| If you are considering a career in emergency | | | | are important, as they will ready you for the |
| medicine, it is important to know exactly what will | | | | real-world experience of emergency medicine. |
| be expected of you. Your primary job will be to | | | | You can feel safe that after the grueling amount |
| act quickly in stabilizing patients in an emergency | | | | of work you have put into your education and |
| room setting. Beyond this, you will need to be | | | | career, you will be duly rewarded. As of now, |
| able to promptly and efficiently recognize a sick | | | | there is a significant shortage of certified |
| or debilitated patient without much information or | | | | emergency physicians that is thought to last for |
| a lot of tools at your disposal; you must also be | | | | quite a long time, so you will almost certainly have |
| able to evaluate the patient and come up with the | | | | no trouble securing a position upon graduation. The |
| tentative diagnosis. You will also be required to | | | | salary and benefits you receive can vary from |
| work with many patients from many different | | | | location, but the pay generally ranges from the |
| backgrounds, and thus, should have a very good | | | | low $100,000s to as high as $300,000 a year. As |
| amount of communication skills. | | | | for benefits, most places will offer the spectrum |
| If you truly have your heart set on becoming an | | | | of health insurance, as well as malpractice, life and |
| emergency medicine physician, you will have to | | | | pension plans. You may also receive funding for |
| commit to a good deal of education, and a | | | | continuing education. This career is also great for |
| potentially very long stint in residency. Generally | | | | those who like to move around, as this job tends |
| speaking, you will be required to have four years | | | | to travel; you can also set up your own practice, |
| of undergraduate work under your belt; plus four | | | | and will generally make a competitive salary with |
| years of medical school training with a focus on | | | | low overhead costs. |
| emergency treatments such as cardiac life | | | | Although a career as an emergency medicine |
| support, and trauma care. You can also take | | | | physician may be too strenuous for many people, |
| additional courses for subspecialties like toxicology, | | | | those who can commit and stick to the extensive |
| pediatric and even sports medicine. After you | | | | training, long residencies, and the arduous nature |
| have finished all of the educational requirements, | | | | of the job as a whole will get the opportunity to |
| you will then have to go through a rigorous | | | | have a career that will be rewarding, will pay very |
| residency, or in some cases, internship that can | | | | well, and will allow them a lot of freedom. |
| last anywhere from 3 to 8 years. These years | | | | |