Overview of Division
In July of 1994, Emergency Medicine was officially
classified as a division in the Department of Surgery. This designation
established a formal connection between the Department of Surgery
and Emergency Services that had informally existed for years.
This association is also most appropriate because a large percentage
of patients seen in the Emergency Department have diagnoses that
require surgical evaluation. Finally, the institution’s emphasis
on the management of trauma makes the surgical leadership in this
area quite valuable.
Between 80,000 and 90,000 patients are seen per year in Emergency
Medicine. The division is housed in a state-of-the-art building.
Aeromedical services have rapid access to the Emergency Division
via landing pad sites next to the facility. Patients with such
diverse diagnoses as multiple trauma, closed head injury, severe
burn, petroleum industry accidents, hazardous material exposure,
myocardial dysfunction and a variety of minor complaints are treated
simultaneously in this facility. Areas are available for monitoring
and critical care management for the brief stays that are necessary
for severely ill or injured patients. The Emergency Medicine faculty
include 19 members, some of whom have received formal emergency
medicine training and some of whom have had extensive experience
in emergency medicine.
The Department of Internal Medicine provides Emergency Medicine with residents and interns for all shifts. In addition, residents are provided by the Department of Surgery for all shifts. Residents from the Department of Pediatrics, Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, the Department of Family Medicine and the Department of Anesthesiology rotate through the Emergency Medicine Service intermittently. Students in the third year on surgical rotations rotate through Emergency Medicine, and fourth-year students have a required one-month rotation. Nursing students and physician assistant students also rotate on the service. Emergency Medicine is equipped with a satellite radiology area, which includes a CT scan, standard radiograph and ultrasound.
The surgical resident can expect rather immediate and ongoing experiences in emergency medicine. He or she will rotate on this service for one or two months during the first year. The resident will participate in some emergency room evaluations of patients on inpatient services as he or she rotates through other services during all years. From the second to the fourth year, the resident will serve increasingly as a surgical consultant and will be responsible for evaluation of patients in Emergency Medicine. Finally in the fifth year as many as 30 percent of operative cases will be derived from emergency medicine admissions.
Typical Schedule of Instructions
| Faculty Bedside Teaching Rounds | Daily |
| Faculty-led Lecture Series | Daily |
| Emergency Medicine Mortality and Morbidity | Monthly |
