What Is Emergency Medicine?
Emergency medicine is a medical specialty that deals with illnesses and injuries that require immediate medical care . Emergency physicians are constantly learning how to treat patients of all ages who do not have an appointment with their regular doctor. As such, they are required to be prepared for any unscheduled situations. They must also be skilled and licensed to practice in their area of expertise. The field of emergency medicine has many unique characteristics, such as the wide range of patients that it treats and the high percentage of direct patient contact. The high level of patient contact means that emergency physicians can have a dramatic impact on the health of their patients. Emergency doctors see people of all ages and treat all kinds of illnesses, such as heart, lung, gastrointestinal, and bone and joint problems. Emergency medicine has become an academic specialty. The first resident trainees began their training in 1971. The oldest continuously running progr...