Medical student education in emergency medicine: new model from South Africa

Emergency medicine is a new specialty in South Africa. Postgraduate training, degrees and diplomas have been introduced and this should make a significant difference, in due course, to emergency care in the country. The University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa, like many universities in Australia, embarked upon a Graduate Entry Medical Programme. This implied significant curriculum change and gave opportunity for the development of formal emergency medicine training for students, for the first time. After considerable debate over the needs of the graduate in South Africa a new block was developed, called the Acute and Perioperative Care block. This encompasses forensic medicine, emergency medicine, trauma and anaesthetics. The training is integrated and progressive. No similar programme has been detected elsewhere. At the end of the first year there is considerable satisfaction on the part of both teachers and students and many of the students, finding the module exciting, have indicated a wish to become involved in emergency medicine in the future. The structure of the course is laid out and might be of relevance to colleagues with an interest in medical education.