The last three years have been full of unprecedented events in emergency medicine. For many of us, it has felt like a roller coaster ride. As an emergency medicine physician leader, my experience in 2020 was both one of my scariest and proudest moments. Navigating the unknown to create the safest environment for my team, learning how to deliver care to a new and cryptic disease, while despite my own fears, comforting our patients and communities. We were purposeful in a time when so many could just sit back and watch. The world was charged up around us offering great support and appreciation. As a resident of New York City, the 7pm banging of the pots, the hooting and hollering from the surrounding buildings, took my breath away every evening. Emergency medicine was universally understood as the safety net. We were there when few others were. Our commitment to society was understood. But as we have seen the glory has slipped away and we are left with the burden of burnout, shortages, overcrowding, and now the unfamiliar problem of a resident shortage.
When I graduated medical school nearly 20 years ago, positions in emergency medicine residencies were not guaranteed. Even with competitive grades and test scores, I entered the match with trepidation I wouldn’t match in one of my desired programs. When my department established a new residency program in 2010, we were cautiously optimistic about filling our first year. Though we knew the odds were on our side, we never presumed we would fill in subsequent years, though we did. These were “normal” nerves and healthy concerns.
