Optimizing Visits to Blogs

Still trying to figure out how to optimize exposure for blogs, if anyone has any suggestions I would like to hear from you (as long as you are not some sales person selling software or a spammer). I thought perhaps people would want to know what really goes on in ED's but maybe that's just not the case.

People assume that when they need emergency care, ED's will be there for them. Unfortunately, not all ED's are alike. Although many physicians who work in ED's are board certified in the speciality, many are not.

Recent staffing studies suggest that there will be a continued shortage of emergency medicine physicians. Emergency medicine is a relatively new specialty (only 40 years old). The "baby boomers" who started emergency medicine are moving on to other things or are retiring.

Interestingly, the majority of patients go to smaller and midsized ED's that may not be staffed with board certified emergency medicine physicians. That means the physician may still be trained in some other field - surgery, internal medicine, family practice, etc. Where I don't mean to degrade the capabilities of those who have practiced emergency medicine for a far longer time than I, I think the public needs to know this. That said, I have seen less than optimal care provided by physicians who are board certified in many specialities so board certification does not guarantee excellent care but it does imply specialized training in the field.

Many hospitals require physicians to be "board certified" but that does not mean that the person working in the ED be certified in emergency medicine. For the educated consumer, you need to find out what percentage of those physicians in the ED are "board certified or residency trained in emergency medicine." Where you don't have this luxury to shop around when you have an emergency, it helps to know what hospitals near home fall into this category. You may be surprised. And the size of the hospital may not determine the percentage of EM trained physicians!