Never a Dull Moment By Neal E. Flomenbaum, MD, Editor-in-Chief

With this issue, EMERGENCY MEDICINE sets out in a new direction on its mission of providing the liveliest, most interesting, and most up-to-date clinical information for practitioners of emergency medicine. In refocusing our efforts on the needs of emergency physicians, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners who provide both emergency and urgent care in emergency departments, this journal renews its commitment to the core audience for which it was launched more than three decades ago.

In 1969, publisher Steve Fischer saw the need for a new medical journal that would address the clinical and professional issues facing a small but growing number of dedicated physicians who were concentrating on diagnosing and treating medical and surgical emergencies. The first issue of EMERGENCY MEDICINE appeared a full 10 years before emergency medicine was officially recognized as a medical specialty and, as is the case with the specialty with which it shares its name, the journal has continued to grow and change ever since.

In an early attempt to better define itself, the specialty of emergency medicine considered seeking designation as a primary care specialty, alongside family practice, internal medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, and pediatrics. Ultimately, emergency medicine chose full specialty designation instead. In much the same way, EMERGENCY MEDICINE has chosen to concentrate its energies and talents on better addressing the needs of the professionals for whom it was primarily conceived.

And not a moment too soon. The issues that emergency physicians face today are far more complex and overwhelming than they were in 1969 or 1979: the ever-increasing volume of patients seeking emergency care; the rapidly aging population—with many elderly people living into their 80s, 90s, and even 100s—who present unique clinical challenges to emergency physicians; newer diagnostic modalities now available in the emergency department, such as bedside emergency ultrasound, faster and better computed tomography scanners, and more widely available magnetic resonance imaging; increasingly sophisticated forms of prehospital care; the growing concerns about terrorist attacks, natural disasters, and hazardous materials incidents; and the challenges of antibiotic resistance and new and emerging pathogens.

EMERGENCY MEDICINE will deal with all of these issues—and more—in a variety of ways.

In the months to come, this journal will continue to evolve, reflecting the specialty it serves. Regular features and departments with widespread appeal and relevance to the practice of emergency medicine—such as The Emergent Patient feature and our “Tricks of the Trade,” “Diagnosis at a Glance,” “ECG Challenge,” and “Emergency X-Ray” departments—will be retained. Other departments will return to these pages with greater frequency—namely, “Errors in Emergency Practice,” “Trauma Rounds,” “The Toxic Emergency,” and “Would You Miss This Diagnosis?”

In addition, we will be introducing new practice-based content—both features and departments—that will better address the needs of emergency physicians. Full-length clinical articles will reflect topics emphasized by the American Board of Emergency Medicine’s Lifelong Self-Assessment Program each year. We will also devote more space to the subspecialties of emergency medicine—toxicology, pediatric emergency medicine, sports medicine, and prehospital care. With my colleagues on the editorial board, I also look forward to addressing some of the critical issues confronting our specialty in this space every month.

I am confident that EMERGENCY MEDICINE, like our specialty, will be characterized in the months and years to come by the expression “Never a dull moment.” This will be an exciting journey into the future of emergency medicine.

Won’t you join us?

Emerg Med 38(6):6, 2006