Emergency medicine's role in the education of medical students: directions for change

Emergency medicine, as a young field emphasizing basic clinical skills, should be in the forefront of the changes in undergraduate medical education. Change needs to occur in our own courses and in our role in the general education of medical students. By graduation, students completing our courses should be able to provide immediate aid, create a problem list, discuss a differential diagnosis for key problems, present a treatment plan for key diagnoses, understand issues pertaining to societal interface with emergency care, and perform essential monitor skills. The general goals of medical education that pertain to strengths of emergency physicians are the ability to use the essential tools of clinical medicine, use data base resources, select the appropriate specialties for consultation, work as a member of a health care team, and use time- and cost-efficient diagnostic adjuncts. Methods for achieving these goals are suggested.