Following completion of the training programme in Emergency Medicine in Ireland, there are a number of options available to develop a subspecialty interest; Paediatric Emergency Medicine (PEM) is one of these options.

Consultants in Paediatric Emergency Medicine come from either an Emergency Medicine or General Paediatric background and further develop their PEM subspecialty interest through fellowship training. The training pathways to achieve subspecialisation for those coming from each specialty differ and are outlined in the following document which was published in June 2020 and is endorsed by ICEMT, the Faculty of Paediatrics and the National Programmes for both Emergency Medicine and Paediatrics.

In Ireland, the specialty of PEM is not yet recognised as a standalone specialty by the Medical Council of Ireland (MCI), despite being recognised in similar healthcare delivery systems in the UK, North America and Australasia. Currently PEM Consultants coming from an Emergency Medicine training background are registered in the specialist division of Emergency Medicine with the Medical Council and those coming from a Paediatric training background are registered in the specialist division of Paediatrics.

 

Although not mandatory for a substantive post in Emergency Medicine, many EM trainees consider a period of time spent working in another healthcare system as a complement to their training in Ireland. In recent years, an increasing number of trainees have gone to the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the United States to pursue further training opportunities in areas such as:

• Critical Care medicine
• Pre-hospital and Retrieval Medicine
• Simulation in Emergency Medicine
• Emergency Medicine Ultrasound
• Toxicology in Emergency Medicine
• Paediatric Emergency Medicine