Emergency medicine physicians work in emergency departments and are tasked with caring for patients who need urgent treatment. They use their critical thinking skills to manage the fast paced environment of emergency medicine.
Whether you’re thinking about becoming a physician, are already in the process of getting your specialty certification or are fully licensed and are interested in learning more about continuing education requirements, this is the guide for you!
What does an Emergency Medicine Physician Do?
Emergency medicine physicians treat patients in the Emergency Department, regardless of injury or illness type. Emergency physicians are tasked with immediately stabilizing and treating diverse patient populations of all ages who have been admitted to the hospital with life threatening conditions.
How can I become an Emergency Medicine Physician?
To become an emergency medicine physician, you first need to become a physician. This can be done by graduating college with a bachelor’s degree, then passing the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT). You then need to graduate from an accredited medical school.
As a prospective physician, you will then need to pass a licensing exam. The licensing exam that they need to take depends on the kind of school they graduated from- MDs need to take the United States Medical Licensure Examination (USMLE), while ODs can take either the USMLE or the Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensure Exam (COMLEX-USA).
You then need to complete residency training, which typically takes four years.
Physicians who want to work in emergency medicine should then get certified by the American Board of Emergency Medicine if they are an MD or the American Osteopathic Board of Emergency Medicine if they are an OD. Though it is not always required to work in the emergency department, the American Board of Physician Specialties urges EM board certified physicians to encourage their fellow ED physicians to become board certified.
How do I certified by the American Board of Emergency Medicine?
Candidates need to take two exams to get certified by the American Board of Emergency Medicine: the Qualifying Exam and the Oral Exam.
The Qualifying (written) Exam is multiple choice and has a total testing time of six hours and twenty minutes in an eight hour testing session.
The Oral Exam is made up of seven cases based on actual clinical cases. It typically consists of 4-6 standardized patient encounters and 1-3 structured interviews.
How do I certified by the American Osteopathic Board of Emergency Medicine?
Candidates need to take a written and an oral exam to get certified by the American Osteopathic Board of Emergency Medicine (AOBEM). Some additionally need to take a clinical exam.
To take the Emergency Medicine Written Exam, applicants must have satisfactorily completed at least 80% of an AOA-accredited/ACGME approved emergency medicine residency program. The written exam is designed to test the knowledge and understanding of basic science and clinical knowledge, skills and principles critical to the practice of Emergency Medicine The exam is taken online in a multiple choice format and consists of six sections made up of 50 items. Candidates have one hour to complete each section.
Applicants for the oral exam must have completed their residency training at the time of the examination. The oral and written exams can be taken in any order. The oral exam is designed to evaluate candidates’ clinical ability and skill in diagnosing and treating emergency medicine cases.
Most candidates are not required to complete the Emergency Medicine Clinical Exam. The Clinical Exam is only required for candidates who were approved to sit for the Emergency Medicine Written (Part I) Exam before Sept. 1, 2013.
What are continuing education requirements for emergency medicine physicians?
The American Board of Emergency Medicine operates on a five year certification cycle. The ABEM MyCert consists of four modules and is taken open book.
Continuing medical education requirements for physicians vary by state.
How much do emergency medicine physicians typically earn?
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the mean annual wage for emergency medicine physicians is $306,640 as of May 2023. It listed Alaska, Arkansas and Hawaii as the highest earning states for emergency medicine physicians.
Check out our salary guide to learn more!
Get a locum tenens job as an emergency medicine physician
If you’re already a physician specializing in emergency medicine, Wellhart has a locum tenens job for you! If you love the fast paced environment of emergency medicine and are looking for a chance to travel, get a locum tenens job with Wellhart.
This article was written by Liliana French