Emergency medicine is one of the most intense professions in the medical world. Emergency medicine doctors have to be trained to effectively respond in a rapid manner to a wide range of medical and emotional crises, with causes both diverse and unexpected.

The path to becoming an emergency room doctor is long, and may at times be quite challenging. But for individuals in the medical field who are interested to work in an intense, fast-paced environment, and varying environment, working as an emergency medicine doctor can be a highly rewarding career choice.

The Process of Becoming an Emergency Room Doctor
A high degree of schooling and training is necessary to become a physician of any type. Post year 12, medical training entails a four year undergraduate degree followed by a four or five year medical degree.

For some, the path to becoming an emergency medicine specialist may begin in or shortly after medical school. Medical schools may have specialised curriculum focusing on knowledge of and experience in emergency medicine.

After graduating medical school, the first year as a medical doctor is an accredited internship somewhere which will involve spending time in medicine, surgical, and emergency departments. This time spent in emergency helps future emergency doctors to work out if emergency medicine will be their chosen specialty. A subsequent medical officer term in emergency medicine can strengthen this commitment.

Physicians intent on pursuing a path in emergency medicine to become an Emergency Medicine Specialist and achieve the FACEM qualification — or switching to emergency medicine from another medical sub-specialty — will follow the following path:

• Doctors will complete at least one year of provisional training, which includes committing to further work in emergency medicine, as well as completing the requisite exam and interview.
• Doctors will then complete a further four years of advanced training, which may including sub-specialty training, as well as research

Life as an Emergency Physician
An emergency medicine doctor career is not for everyone, but it is enjoyable and deeply rewarding for many. Work is less standardised than, for instance, doctors who maintain general family practices. Shifts can be long, and very intense — but they will also typically be diverse, as you will have to face a wide variety of clinical situations.

Hours may be unusual, particularly for new emergency physicians with shifts working nights, weekends, and holidays being fairly common. Individuals will be more likely to thrive in an emergency setting if the following criteria apply:

• You work well under pressure, and can maintain calm in stressful, rapidly-shifting, and often immediately life-threatening situations
• You prefer to work under fast-paced employment conditions.
• You enjoy a shifting diversity of work.
• You are prepared to deal with a varying and sometimes disturbing degree of physical and emotional trauma in patients — often requiring immediate attention.
• You are interested in maintaining a flexible (or slightly less regular) schedule that may involve long shifts, as well as work on nights, weekends, and holidays with this compensated by regular extended blocks of time off.
• You are able to effectively multi-task and shift tasks quickly and as needed.
• You are compassionate, balanced, and derive meaning from helping to heal and calm people in traumatic situations.
• You are psychologically prepared to deal with medical situations in which there is no easy fix, and where you may be confronted with significant suffering or death.
• You are interested in the unique paths for research offered by emergency medicine.
• You are prepared to handle frontline work during public health events such as pandemics.

Emergency Medicine Doctor Salary
As an emergency medicine physician, a starting salary is likely to be around $80,000 as a junior doctor. A senior emergency medicine doctor qualified as a FACEM will earn between $300,000 to $500,000 per annum depending on the State and how regional the facility is in a permanent position. As a locum emergency medicine doctor a Registrar can expect to earn between $120-$160 per hour and a FACEM qualified Emergency Medicine Specialist will earn between $2,000 to $3,500 per day.

A Unique and Rewarding Path
While some individuals must cultivate a certain disposition to succeed as an emergency medicine doctor, for many, this choice of profession can be a deeply satisfying way to build a rewarding professional career, while effectively contributing to the wider community.

JPS Medical Recruitment has a breadth of experience in connecting medical personnel with unique job opportunities through Australia and New Zealand. Contact JPS Medical Recruitment today to learn about available opportunities to diversify your medical career path.