5 minute read
“…And I took the road [far too much] traveled.”
Emily Dawra (MS3) and Sarah Jacobs (MS2)
Why does emergency medicine draw us? So many choices...the puzzle of the undifferentiated patient, the endless variety of care to be offered, the small procedures that provide a big impact, the wild histories with tangled webs of both useless and critical information, the requirement to trust your well-honed instincts, and maybe most importantly the formation of immediate but sincere connections with patients when they are at their most afraid and vulnerable. These are just some of the reasons why we love emergency medicine. As students the draw is undeniable, and we want this to be our future.
“Don’t go into emergency medicine unless it is the ONLY thing you can envision yourself doing.” The words of my attending rang loud in my ears as I re-read ACEP’s report on the future of emergency medicine for the third time. The first time, I cried. The second time, I was numb. The third time, I was looking for loopholes. Is it really possible that I could leave medical school in two years bound for a jobless future? It was supposed to be safe…
When I knew that I wanted to be a doctor, being an emergency physician was the only thing I envisioned. In fact, I knew no other form of doctor. Vaccines had been given to me by nurses as a child, and I never saw a family doctor until my sports physical for the swim team in high school – and that was over the phone. On the other hand, I had frequented emergency rooms with an ill family member perhaps 1-2 dozen times in my senior year alone. Emergency physicians are the doctors I had come to know and hold with great regard. They were my emblems of safety. They were, without any doubt, who I wanted to become. “I wouldn’t recommend emergency medicine to any medical student at this point.” The whispers about the EM job market concerns had become loud conversations, but I was still shocked when an emergency medicine attending told me that I should no longer consider EM an option. I couldn’t dismiss his opinion outright – many of my classmates interested in EM were expressing concerns, I currently owe the federal government a significant sum, and I didn’t want my future employment options to be either unemployment or somewhere far from family (which is how many framed the near-future status of EM employment). One classmate who had been a scribe in the ED originally told me he was interested in EM, but a couple of months later, he said that he was now interested in radiology. When I asked him what had changed, he asked if I had seen the report. I couldn’t wrap my head around that reasoning. I did my first shift in the ED when I was eighteen, completing my clinical hours for my EMT license, and seven years later, it’s still my favorite place in the hospital. I loved the pace, the variety, and the teamwork required. I’d written EM love letters in my medical school application essays, and every experience I’ve had so far in medical school has solidified my desire to pursue a career in emergency medicine.
Over the last two months since ACEP’s report, we have tried countless times to talk ourselves out of walking down the path of dark uncertainty that is emergency medicine. Many friends, physicians, and peers have attempted to help in this regard too. But the further we stray from this heavily trodden path, the more we ask each other, “but then what was the point of all this?” Last week, the two of us returned from AAEM’s Scientific Assembly in St.
Louis, Missouri. We came for connection, mentorship, and understanding of what was happening in the frontlines of the field. We knew we could not rest such a precious decision as our clinical future on a single written report. We needed to hear from the people it affected. Even at the medical student track, a session with program directors explaining the characteristics of good candidates morphed into anxious questions by students about whether or not they should even be entering the field. What we found was optimists and realists - people who thought the report was “no big deal” and people who reemphasized the dire warning. But, in everyone, we found support for going forward. Everyone had their own reason for understanding why we ultimately could not deviate our paths away from emergency medicine. As medical students still mapping out our course along this road far too much travelled, we want to thank this community for giving us endless guidance, strength, and encouragement. Through AAEM, we found resiliency and fighting spirit. We found people bushwhacking new roads and opening doors of possibility for those of us who still wish to take this broadening path towards emergency medicine. We appreciate this community for speaking truth in uncomfortable situations, researching ways to protect the field, and guiding us to join the team.
It is time for a NEW ERA in emergency physician group management.
The AAEM Physician Group holds true to the values that have guided AAEM for 30 years: fairness, transparency, and empowering our emergency physicians. Democratic, physician-owned, emergency medicine groups provide the highest level of patient care and have the strongest commitment to their hospitals and local communities. The AAEM Physician Group supports existing democratic emergency physician groups and can assist in the creation of new groups.
Mark Reiter, MD MBA MAAEM FAAEM Chief Executive Officer | ceo@aaempg.com Robert M. McNamara, MD MAAEM FAAEM Chief Medical Officer | cmo@aaempg.com
The AAEM Physician Group can help you:
• Optimize the management of your emergency physician group • Protect your group from external and internal threats • Recruit the best emergency medicine specialists • Access the expertise of top emergency medicine leaders
Contact Us and Start Today www.aaemphysiciangroup.com info@aaempg.com 800-884-2236
