What it's really like in emergency medicine—from 4 physicians who know

As a medical student, do you ever wonder what it’s like to specialize in emergency medicine? Over the years, four emergency medicine physicians from around the country and working in a variety of practice settings have taken the time to be featured doctors in the AMA’s "Shadow Me” Specialty Series, which offers advice directly from AMA member physicians about life in their specialties. Check out their insights to help determine whether a career in emergency medicine might be a good fit for you.

1. Shadowing Kathleen Clem, MD

   1. Dr. Clem is employed at a Level I trauma center with an emergency medicine training program. She has been in practice for 31 years and still finds it fresh. “When I come on to my shift, I don’t have any clue what I’m going to see,” she said.
   2. People commonly think the most challenging part of being an emergency physician is dealing with the trauma and very sick patients. “For me, that’s not it. I love challenging cases. I’m trained for that and know how to take care of really sick patients,” she said. “The hardest thing for me is patients with unrealistic expectations. In certain instances, patients think that ‘No matter what’s wrong with me I’m going to the ER and that doctor should figure it out and provide a cure.’” 
   3. At the same time, she absolutely loves “to be where patients are when they need help the most,” she said. “I went to medical school to help people, and there’s not a shift that goes by where I can’t go back and say, ‘I really helped somebody today. I helped make their life better.’”

2. Shadowing Jordan Warchol, MD

   1. When this profile was published in 2019, Dr. Warchol was three years into practice and jointly employed by a hospital and a university in Omaha, Nebraska. She described the typical emergency physician as decisive, flexible and dependable. 
   2. “Emergency medicine is a constantly evolving practice, where every moment is different than the one before it and the one after it. You’re in the hub of the hospital and rely on nearly every other specialty to help you do your job well,” she said. “You have to be good with people—from patients to colleagues—and understand that the same person who just argued with you about a consult may be the same person you need to talk to again for your next patient. As for the sleeping, our schedules are all over the place, so being a good sleeper is a definite plus.”
   3. For medical students considering a career in emergency medicine, she recommended this: “Shadow, shadow and shadow some more. This is a specialty unlike any other, so it’s tough to know what you’re getting yourself into if you don’t see it firsthand. The American College of Emergency Physicians and the resident organization, EMRA, have a lot of great resources for students considering emergency medicine.”

3. Shadowing Sam Mossallam, MD

   1. Dr. Mossallam is employed at a group practice and an academic medical center by Henry Ford Health in Detroit and Southeast Michigan. Henry Ford Health is a member of the AMA Health System Program, which provides enterprise solutions to equip leadership, physicians and care teams with resources to help drive the future of medicine.
   2. He noted that while his employer has many processes and initiatives directed at enhancing physician well-being, emergency physicians also can benefit from smart personal choices. “Having family support and time to exercise and decompress are extremely important in emergency medicine,” he said. “Time for self-reflection and self-improvement is also necessary.”
   3. And even though they aren’t tested for on the board exam, soft skills are extremely important, he said. One of those is good communication, as emergency medicine is a team activity. Another is adaptability, given the ever-changing work environment. “Time management and the ability to prioritize the critical tasks first are essential,” he added. “Finally, problem-solving skills are important, not just for clinical issues but also for social and other challenges.”

4. Shadowing Erick Eiting, MD

   1. For this 2019 profile, Dr. Eiting discussed his experience being employed by an academic faculty practice at a hospital. In practice for eight years at the time, he suggested one question physicians in training should ask themselves before pursuing a career in emergency medicine: Am I ready to make the commitment to regularly working nights and weekends?
   2. “Many of the people who gravitate to the field are attracted to the lifestyle of working fewer clinical hours than other specialties,” he said. “But people who really do not enjoy working nights and weekends are likely to experience burnout early on in their careers.”
   3. He also noted one of the keys to becoming an effective emergency physician: “Spend some time learning more about mental health and its impacts. A surprisingly large number of ED visits are somehow related to mental health in one form or another. Understanding more about patients’ mental health issues can be really helpful, particularly when trying to answer the question about the ability to provide a safe discharge for a patient.”

The AMA Specialty Guide simplifies medical students’ specialty selection process, highlights major specialties, details training information, and provides access to related association information. It is produced by FREIDA™, the AMA Residency & Fellowship Database®. 

Learn more with the AMA about the medical specialty of emergency medicine.