ABEM EMS case studies
ABEM EMS · Put your knowledge to work in context.
The ABEM Emergency Medical Services (EMS) subspecialty certification is a credential offered by the American Board of Emergency Medicine for physicians who have completed EMS subspecialty training or an equivalent practice pathway and wish to demonstrate expertise in out-of-hospital emergency care. It is intended for emergency physicians who serve as EMS medical directors, field physicians, tactical or special-operations physicians, and advisors to ground and air EMS agencies. The ABEM EMS case studies are 5 cases and about 2,996 words.
1The Collapsed Firefighter: Heat Illness vs. Cardiac Arrest on Scene
You are the EMS medical director responding as a field observer with a busy urban fire-based EMS agency. At 14:20 on a 97°F day with 60% humidity, crews are on scene of a two-alarm warehouse fire.
634 words, about 3 min2The 8-Minute Transport Window: Refusal, Capacity, and the Intoxicated Patient
You are the on-duty EMS medical director for a suburban agency covering a 40-square-mile district. At 23:40, a BLS crew (two EMTs) responds to a 'man down' at a convenience store.
648 words, about 3 min3The Protocol That Doesn't Fit: Online Medical Control and a Pediatric Airway
You are the EMS medical director taking online medical control calls on a Saturday evening. A paramedic unit is on scene with a 6-year-old, 20 kg child who has a suspected foreign-body aspiration.
588 words, about 3 min4The Explosion at the Fairgrounds: Triage, Transport, and the Load-Sharing Problem
You are the EMS branch director at a county fairgrounds where a propane tank explosion has occurred near a food vendor row at 18:30 on a Saturday. Initial reports: 14 patients.
615 words, about 3 min5The New Paramedic and the Missed STEMI: Education and QA in a Small Agency
You are the medical director for a rural agency with 6 paramedics and 18 EMTs. A newly certified paramedic (18 months since certification) transports a 58-year-old man with 45 minutes of substernal chest pressure, diaphoresis, and nausea.
511 words, about 3 min