Position Statements

The American Academy of Emergency Medicine (AAEM) recognizes and advocates for the patient’s right to know the credentials of all clinicians being trusted with his/her well-being. Studies repeatedly show that patients in the US healthcare system want to know these credentials and are confused when credentials are not clearly presented.1 More importantly, AAEM believes that […]

On Friday, the Trump administration issued a regulation that excludes transgender status from the legal definition of sex discrimination in healthcare. This regulation allows institutions and individual professionals who provide healthcare services to legally exclude transgender people from receiving their services. This regulation also eliminates anti-discrimination protections for patients with a history of termination of […]

We are all deeply saddened when we lose a colleague. Dr. Breen is a hero who served her patients and the NYC community during the COVID pandemic. She risked her life, her health and ultimately her death is a loss for her family, community, institution, and all of us as emergency physicians. Practicing emergency medicine […]

The American Academy of Emergency Medicine is concerned with the increased frequency of interruptions occurring during clinical care in the emergency department; especially during high-risk times. Interruptions are a major patient safety issue which may lead to adverse clinical outcomes. Interruptions during patient sign out, consultations, resuscitations, charting, and order entry should be minimized. While […]

According to public statements, TeamHealth and PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center have terminated Dr. Ming Lin. If this is so, AAEM condemns TeamHealth and PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center for terminating Dr. Ming Lin an emergency physician who went public with his concerns over the safety of the hospital staff and his patients in this […]

Emergency physicians and other frontline clinicians are facing shortages of adequate PPE around the country amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.1 In response, they are addressing this through non-traditional means by self-supplying industrial devices meeting NIOSH standards. Unfortunately, there are numerous reports of hospital systems and administrators forbidding, shaming, and threatening physicians who elect to use a […]

Many frontline healthcare workers are being appropriately asked to self-quarantine at home after potential exposures. While employees often have vacation or sick leave time, independent contractors do not. Given the personal risk frontline healthcare workers are taking to help fight this pandemic, AAEM calls on Contract Management Groups, hospitals, universities, or other entities who contract […]

In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, physicians are being asked to make difficult clinical decisions with limited resources. Patient care decisions that may be best for an individual patient may not be feasible or appropriate when viewed in context of the entire population. On March 13, 2020, President Trump declared a nationwide emergency pursuant to […]

AAEM believes that emergency physicians are entitled to wear self-supplied PPE including respirators that meet NIOSH standards when, in their medical opinion, hospital or healthcare facility supplied PPE is inadequate. AAEM will offer support to any emergency physician threatened or terminated for attempting to protect themselves and their patients in this manner. This includes assistance […]

Adequate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) AAEM supports the right of all physicians, nurses, physician assistants and first responders providing direct care to patients potentially infected with the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) to be provided with adequate personal protective equipment (PPE). We applaud the acts of those on the national and state level who have declared emergencies. […]

The American Academy of Emergency Medicine (AAEM) and the AAEM Resident and Student Association (AAEM/RSA) are aware that academic and other emergency departments sponsor additional training for non-physician practitioners (NPP), including physician assistants (PA) and nurse practitioners (NP). We believe the following is in the best interest of the patient and our specialty. Such programs: […]

The American Academy of Emergency Medicine is expressing it concerns over the recent firing of 15 physicians from the urgent care centers operated by Edward-Elmhurst Health in Chicago. The Academy represents board-certified emergency physicians, some of whom practice in urgent care settings, and most of whom receive patients sent from urgent care centers when their […]

Over 2 million Americans misuse prescription or illicitly-obtained opioids, and opioid overdose deaths rose to a record 47,600 in 2017, representing a nearly 600% increase in 18 years. (NCHS 2019, NIH 2019) Because patients with opioid use disorder (OUD) are often socioeconomically and functionally marginalized, the primary point of contact with healthcare for many is […]

Position Any regulations or laws that restrict out-of-network fees and balance billing from the emergency department should provide that insurers reimburse emergency physicians for their professional services at rates consistent with “usual and customary charges.” The “usual and customary charge” for a service should be defined using a source of unbiased, third party data such […]

The role of the freestanding emergency department is to serve the community and to provide surge protection in the event of a natural disaster. That being said, the freestanding emergency center should only stay open IF POSSIBLE. This decision should be made based on a predetermined disaster plan which should include the following points: Each […]

AAEM is concerned with the rapid growth in the emergency medicine workforce, fueled by the accelerating growth in emergency medicine residencies, as well as the increasing number of advanced practice providers. AAEM notes that the historic emergency physician shortage is rapidly resolving, and if current trends continue, an oversupply of emergency physicians is likely to develop, […]

The American Academy of Emergency Medicine (AAEM) believes that emergency department (ED) patients should have timely and unencumbered access to the most appropriate care led by a board certified emergency physician (ABEM or AOBEM). AAEM and AAEM/RSA oppose the expansion of scope of practice regulations at the state and federal level, and do not support […]

AAEM endorses the following points regarding inquiries about diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders in connection with professional licensing and credentialing: AAEM believes that state licensing boards and credentialing organizations should require physicians to disclose mental disorders only when the disorder currently impairs their judgment or ability to practice. AAEM believes that state licensing boards […]

Emergency departments utilizing a “provider in triage” model should: Ensure that providers have an opportunity to perform an appropriate history and physical prior to ordering diagnostic testing; Conduct appropriate reviews to verify that over-testing is not occurring from triage based providers; Provide advance practice providers with supervision and support by board certified emergency physicians. Approved […]

AAEM endorses the following points regarding the emergency treatment and discharge of patients with psychiatric and/or social problems: AAEM believes that all ED patients should be discharged under conditions that are safe and account for their personal dignity. AAEM encourages communities to establish effective options for persons in need that would enable them to avoid […]

The introduction of the electronic medical records system into the practice of medicine has brought great benefits and presented great challenges to the doctor patient relationship.                                 Multiple studies have shown both benefits and detriments with EMRs. Benefits include a reduction in medication errors, which is the number one cause of adverse events,1 and fast […]

Whereas the volume of ED visits continues to rise and now exceeds 100 million in the United States annually; and Whereas the scope of Emergency Medicine requires a high intensity of service for many conditions, especially during the first hour of treatment; and Whereas emergency medicine involves patient evaluation, interval assessments, complex decision-making, time-intensive procedures, […]

The American Board of Emergency Medicine (ABEM) and the American Osteopathic Board of Emergency Medicine (AOBEM) define the standards for the specialty of Emergency Medicine. Certification by ABEM or AOBEM obviates any additional certifications required for medical staff privileges or disease-specific care center designations, such as that needed for trauma or stroke centers. Major Emergency […]

AAEM White Paper on Acute Pain Management in the Emergency Department Sergey Motov, MD FAAEM Reuben Strayer, MD FRCP FAAEM Bryan Hayes, PharmD Mark Reiter, MD MBA FAAEM Steven Rosenbaum, MD FAAEM Melanie Richman, MD FAAEM Zachary Repanshek, MD FAAEM Scott Taylor, MBBS Benjamin Friedman, MD FAAEM   Effective, efficient, and safe pain management is […]

AAEM opposes the oversight and management of emergency medicine residency programs by contract management groups with lay ownership. AAEM is concerned that this arrangement raises significant conflicts of interests between a residency program's educational mission and the contract management group's fiduciary duty to its shareholders.   Approved: 9/7/17