Formation | Association: 12 October 1967 Faculty: 2 November 1993 College: 29 February 2008 |
---|---|
Merger of | British Association for Emergency Medicine, Faculty of Accident and Emergency Medicine |
Type | Medical royal college |
Headquarters | Chancery Lane, London, England |
Region served | United Kingdom |
President | Adrian Boyle |
Publication | Emergency Medicine Journal |
Affiliations | |
Website | www |
The Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM) is an independent professional association of emergency physicians in the United Kingdom which sets standards of training and administers examinations for emergency medicine. The patron is the Princess Royal.
The College in its current form was incorporated by royal charter in 2008. [1] However, the history of its preceding organisations, the Faculty of Accident and Emergency Medicine and the British Association for Emergency Medicine, date back to 1993 and 1967 respectively.[ citation needed ]
Traditionally in British hospital practice, "casualty departments" were staffed and led mainly by non-consultant doctors with surgical backgrounds. The first UK doctor to be designated as a "Consultant Surgeon in Charge of the Casualty Department and Receiving Room" was Maurice Ellis, who was appointed at Leeds General Infirmary in 1952. [2] Another 15 years passed before a distinct professional body came into being; Ellis became the head of the Casualty Surgeons Association (CSA) which first met on 12 October 1967 at BMA House (a year before the equivalent American College of Emergency Physicians in the United States). [2] The field developed over the years, with the first UK specialty exam in emergency medicine held in 1983 under the auspices of the CSA. The CSA adopted the British Accident & Emergency Medicine Journal and Archives of Emergency Medicine as its journals in 1985. The CSA changed its name to the British Association for Accident and Emergency Medicine (BAEM) in 1990. It helped found the International Federation for Emergency Medicine in 1991 along with the American, Canadian and Australasian colleges. The BAEM was renamed once more in 2004 to the British Association for Emergency Medicine, retaining the same initials.[ citation needed ]
The intercollegiate Faculty of Accident and Emergency Medicine (FAEM) was inaugurated on 2 November 1993 with six parent colleges: the Royal College of Surgeons, the Royal College of Physicians, the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow, and the Royal College of Anaesthetists. It was tasked with developing academic and training issues, whilst the BAEM had responsibility for professional and clinical matters.[ citation needed ]
In late 2005, FAEM reached agreement with BAEM for the two organizations to merge to form a new medical royal college. The faculty was renamed the College of Emergency Medicine (CEM) as of 1 January 2006, becoming independent of its parent colleges. It relocated to Churchill House in London (the headquarters of the Royal College of Anaesthetists, where BAEM was also based) on 29 August 2006. CEM and BAEM formally merged in February 2008, with the new organisation continuing under the name of "College of Emergency Medicine", but incorporated by a royal charter giving it its own legal status. In February 2012 the College moved to newly purchased headquarters at 7-9 Bream's Buildings in London.
Dr Clifford Mann was president of the College 2013–2016, and was an outspoken critic of the Coalition government's Health and Social Care Act 2012 which he blamed both for causing "decision-making paralysis" and leaving the country short of around 375 emergency doctors. [3]
The college was granted permission to use the "Royal" title in January 2015, giving rise to its current name. [4]
In July 2017 the college produced a report saying that the NHS needed at least 5,000 more beds to achieve safe bed occupancy levels and hit the four-hour target in emergency departments. [5]
The College sets standards of training and administers examinations for emergency physicians. It also organises annual scientific meetings, as well as continuing professional development meetings for its members.
In November 2021 it produced a report showing that pressures from the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom had produced more than 4,500 excess deaths in 2020-21 as a result of crowding or 12-hour stays in emergency departments. [6]
The College sets the qualification awarded by examination that lead to a Certificate of Completion of Training in emergency medicine training in the United Kingdom - the Fellowship of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine (FRCEM). Doctors who complete this training program may sit the FCEM examination, and on completion become a Fellow of the College and may be recommended by the College for a Certificate of Completion of Training in emergency medicine. [3]
The first sitting of the College's examination was the Fellowship of the Faculty of Accident and Emergency Medicine (FFAEM) examination, equivalent to the current Final FRCEM, was in October 1996. In 2003 the College introduced an introductory examination, now the preferred route of entry to specialist registrar training, the Membership of the Faculty of A&E Medicine (MFAEM). [7]
Both examinations were renamed in 2006, as part of the creation of the College, as Fellowship of the College of Emergency Medicine (FCEM) and Membership of the College of Emergency Medicine (MCEM) respectively. [7] Their titles were further updated in 2015 when the college gained the "Royal" title, as the Membership of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine (MRCEM), and the higher Fellowship of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine (FRCEM).
In August 2016 further changes to the curriculum led to the merging of the examinations into a new FRCEM exam, split into three parts: the FRCEM Primary Examination, FRCEM Intermediate Certificate, and the FRCEM Final Examination. [8]
Further revisions in July 2021 saw the exams being separated out again; the FRCEM Primary and FRCEM Intermediate qualifications were depreciated and replaced with the MRCEM primary and MRCEM intermediate SBA examinations (which in the interim had continued as a qualification for doctors not in formal training programmes). [9] [10] [11]
Emergency medicine is the medical speciality concerned with the care of illnesses or injuries requiring immediate medical attention. Emergency physicians specialize in providing care for unscheduled and undifferentiated patients of all ages. As first-line providers, in coordination with emergency medical services, they are primarily responsible for initiating resuscitation and stabilization and performing the initial investigations and interventions necessary to diagnose and treat illnesses or injuries in the acute phase. Emergency medical physicians generally practice in hospital emergency departments, pre-hospital settings via emergency medical services, and intensive care units. Still, they may also work in primary care settings such as urgent care clinics.
In the medical profession, a general practitioner (GP) or family physician is a physician who treats acute and chronic illnesses and provides preventive care and health education to patients of all ages. GPs' duties are not confined to specific fields of medicine, and they have particular skills in treating people with multiple health issues. They are trained to treat patients to levels of complexity that vary between countries. The term "primary care physician" is more usually used in the US. In Asian countries like India, this term has been replaced mainly by Medical Officers, Registered Medical Practitioner etc.
The Royal College of Physicians of London, commonly referred to simply as the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) is a British professional membership body dedicated to improving the practice of medicine, chiefly through the accreditation of physicians by examination, and now also Physicians Assistants without examination. Founded by royal charter from King Henry VIII in 1518, as the College of Physicians, the RCP is the oldest medical college in England.
The Royal College of Surgeons of England is an independent professional body and registered charity that promotes and advances standards of surgical care for patients, and regulates surgery and dentistry in England and Wales. The college is located at Lincoln's Inn Fields in London. It publishes multiple medical journals including the Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, the Faculty Dental Journal, and the Bulletin of the Royal College of Surgeons of England.
Anesthesiology, anaesthesiology, or anaesthesia is the medical specialty concerned with the total perioperative care of patients before, during and after surgery. It encompasses anesthesia, intensive care medicine, critical emergency medicine, and pain medicine. A physician specialized in anesthesiology is called an anesthesiologist, anaesthesiologist, or anaesthetist, depending on the country. In some countries, the terms are synonymous, while in other countries, they refer to different positions and anesthetist is only used for non-physicians, such as nurse anesthetists.
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Membership of the Royal Colleges of Physicians of the United Kingdom (MRCP(UK)) is a postgraduate medical diploma in the United Kingdom (UK). The examinations are run by the Federation of the Medical Royal Colleges – the Royal College of Physicians of London, the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, and the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow. The three Royal Colleges of Physicians share this common three part assessment in general medicine which consists of two written parts and one clinical examination. Examinations are held throughout the UK and in overseas centres.
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The Royal College of Physicians of Ireland (RCPI), is an Irish professional body dedicated to improving the practice of general medicine and related medical specialities, chiefly through the accreditation of physicians by examination.
Medical education in the United Kingdom includes educational activities involved in the education and training of medical doctors in the United Kingdom, from entry-level training through to continuing education of qualified specialists. A typical outline of the medical education pathway is presented here. However training schemes vary in different pathways may be available.
The Royal College of Anaesthetists (RCoA) is the professional body responsible for the specialty of anaesthesia throughout the United Kingdom. It sets standards in anaesthesia, critical care, pain management, and for the training of anaesthetists, physicians' assistants (anaesthesia), and practising critical care physicians. It also holds examinations for anaesthetists in training, publishes the British Journal of Anaesthesia, and informs and educates the public about anaesthesia. Its headquarters are in Churchill House, London.
The Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) is the professional body for general (medical) practitioners in the United Kingdom. The RCGP represents and supports GPs on key issues including licensing, education, training, research and clinical standards. It is the largest of the medical royal colleges, with over 54,000 members. The RCGP was founded in 1952 in London, England and is a registered charity. Its motto is Cum Scientia Caritas – "Compassion [empowered] with Knowledge."
The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow is an institute of physicians and surgeons in Glasgow, Scotland.
Membership of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine (MRCEM) and Fellowship of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine (FRCEM) are postgraduate awards made by the UK Royal College of Emergency Medicine to specialists in Emergency Medicine.
The Final FRCA is a postgraduate examination in anaesthesia, more fully called the Final Examination of the Diploma of Fellowship of the Royal College of Anaesthetists.
In the United Kingdom, some Commonwealth realms and Ireland, a medical royal college is a professional body in the form of a royal college responsible for the development of and training in one or more medical specialities.
The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges (AoMRC) is the coordinating body for the United Kingdom and Ireland's 24 Medical Royal Colleges and Faculties. It ensures that patients are safely and properly cared for by setting standards for the way doctors are educated, trained and monitored throughout their careers. The Academy Council meet regularly to agree direction. The Council comprises the Presidents of the member Colleges and Faculties and four coopted council members.
The Fellow of College of Physicians and Surgeons (FCPS) is a fellow of College of Physicians and Surgeons Pakistan (CPSP) who holds a professional qualification (fellowship) awarded after completing specialized training in a selected area of specialization and passing the examination in that particular specialty.
Physicians and surgeons play an important role in the provision of health care in Canada. They are responsible for the promotion, maintenance, and restoration of health through the study, diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment of disease, injury, and other physical and mental impairments. As Canadian medical schools solely offer the Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) or Doctor of Medicine and Master of Surgery degrees, these represent the degrees held by the vast majority of physicians and surgeons in Canada, though some have a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (D.O.) from the United States or Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery from Europe.
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