Abstract
It has been a decade since emergency medicine was recognized as a specialty in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). In this short time, emergency medicine has established itself and developed rapidly in the UAE. Large, well-equipped emergency departments (EDs) are usually located in government hospitals, some of which function as regional trauma centers. Most of the larger EDs are staffed with medically or surgically trained physicians, with board-certified emergency medicine physicians serving as consultants overseeing care.Prehospital care and emergency medical services (EMS) operate under the auspices of the police department. Standardized protocols have been established for paramedic certification, triage, and destination decisions. The majority of ambulances offer basic life support (BLS/Type 2) with a growing minority offering advanced life support (ALS/Type 3).Medicine residency programs were established 5 years ago and form the foundation for training emergency medicine specialists for UAE.This article describes the full spectrum of emergency medicine in the UAE: prehospital care, EMS, hospital-based emergency care, training in emergency medicine, and disaster preparedness. We hope that our experience, our understanding of the challenges faced by the specialty, and the anticipated future directions will be of importance to others advancing emergency medicine in their region and across the globe.
Highlights
The United Arab Emirates (UAE), formed in 1970, is a constitutional federation of seven states called “emirates.” It is the size of the state of Maine and is situated in the southeastern tip of the Arabian Peninsula
In recent data published by the Health Authority–Abu Dhabi (HAAD) in the local media, more than 75% of cases in emergency departments (EDs) in Abu Dhabi are non-urgent
This imbalance could be aggravated in the future if residents certified by the Arab Board are not recognized at the level of emergency medicine-certified physicians in North America
Summary
The United Arab Emirates (UAE), formed in 1970, is a constitutional federation of seven states called “emirates.” It is the size of the state of Maine and is situated in the southeastern tip of the Arabian Peninsula. The country has diversified its economy and has become a major industrial, tourism, trade, and financial hub [1]. It has experienced high population growth, mainly due to the immigration of expatriate workers. Health care in the UAE has undergone a rapid development. Despite this rapid pace of development, or perhaps because of it, there is a paucity of published reports describing health care in the UAE. This report describes the specialty of emergency medicine, addressing its structure, workforce, training, and the challenges facing it in this rapidly developing, highincome country
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