Emergency medicine Emergency
Immediate management of conditions that threaten life or move fast, then deciding whether to admit or discharge.
Who is usually sent here
Chest pain, breathlessness, one-sided weakness, uncontrolled bleeding, major injury, new confusion.
What this specialty does NOT cover
Not a fast route for a long-standing problem. And the order of seeing people follows URGENCY, not arrival — if you get worse while waiting, say so immediately.
What a first visit usually involves
Triage first, then management by urgency. State the most dangerous symptom in your very first sentence.
Bring with you
A pocket health card, a medicine list, and someone who knows your situation.
Worth asking
- Am I going home or staying for observation
- Which signs mean coming straight back
- Who takes over my care after this