Lifestyle and Practice Options - Emergency Medicine Specialty Training Program

Emergency medicine is considered one of the better lifestyle specialties. The work is arranged into shifts with a designated hand over time, and there are minimal on call requirements. A typical consultant workload in a tertiary hospital would be 38 hours per week, with one non-clinical shift and 1 night on call. Registrars regularly work night shifts. Doctors are not responsible for their patients once they have left the emergency department, leading to a clear separation between work and play. However, shift work can be challenging and disruptive to sleep patterns and social lives.

Emergency medicine is predominantly practiced in a public hospital setting. Approximately 85% of all emergency physicians have their main job in an acute care public hospital. There are now private hospitals in all capital cities in Australia and 6% of doctors have their main job in this setting. The majority of the workforce is located in urban areas although almost 20% practice in a rural setting. Remuneration is according State Staff awards, however there is possibility for greater income in the private sector.

Subspecialisation in areas such as toxicology, paediatric emergency and academic emergency medicine is becoming increasingly common.

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