Letter from the Program Director
Welcome to Emergency Medicine at Drexel Med! This program has a long and storied history spanning from the very inception of our specialty. It was started in 1971 at the Medical College of Pennsylvania by David K. Wagner, M.D. and is one of the oldest programs in existence.
Dr. Wagner is one of the founding fathers of our specialty. He is a former president of ABEM and SAEM, and a founding editor of Principles and Practice of Emergency Medicine (the first textbook of Emergency Medicine), the Yearbook of Emergency Medicine, and Emergency Medicine News. Dr. Wagner is still active in the department and still can be seen once or twice a month pulling a shift in the Hahnemann Emergency Department.
The philosophy of the program remains true to Dr. Wagner’s principle that “training in emergency medicine is best carried out by trained Emergency Physicians functioning within Emergency Centers.” The majority of our clinical training is accomplished in the emergency department and in a critical care unit that is run by our residents. We have a minimal number of outside rotations and these are used only to acquire additional experience in selected skills (e.g., OB and neonatal resuscitation). All of our rotations offer graded responsibility for the resident. A resident evolves from learning how to be a physician, to working semi-autonomously as an Emergency Physician, to managing an Emergency Department and teaching others what it is to be an Emergency Physician.
 The mission of the residency program is to produce a well-trained clinical Emergency Physician with the additional skills necessary to begin, if so desired, a career path in academic Emergency Medicine.
The goals of the residency program include exposure of the trainee to the various subspecialty areas of Emergency Medicine, including EMS Systems, Pediatric Emergency Medicine, Sports Medicine, Toxicology, and Ultrasound. This produces a well-rounded Emergency Physician with a wide-ranging knowledge base and introduces the trainee to the areas where he/she may consider further training in a Fellowship.
Our Research-Scholar Rotation is meant to introduce the resident to research and the scholarly process – exploration of a specific area in emergency medicine, active study of that area with recorded findings, and sharing of those findings with the academic community via the written word. Within the first month, the resident will join a research group and begin working on an actual research project that leads to publication of the study in a peer-reviewed journal. This method fosters a collaborative approach to the process of scientific discovery and develops teamwork.
 Philadelphia is a vibrant city with a rich past and a promising future. It is a city of neighborhoods and offers a diversity of places to live. The city offers a wealth of things to do including a myriad of restaurants (from Cuban to French to Italian to Spanish to Vietnamese, and more), many different museums (including the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Franklin Institute), cultural events (including concerts, shows, plays, the ballet, and the Philadelphia Orchestra), sports (both major and minor leagues teams including the Eagles, Phillies, Flyers, and 76ers), historical sites (Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell), and many outdoor activities and recreation (the Philadelphia Zoo, Fairmount Park, the Jersey shore, and the Poconos).
Hospitals and universities from around the country recruit our graduates for the highly competitive jobs in Emergency Medicine. We place about half our residents in academic jobs and fellowships and half in community practice. A graduate of our program is ready for anything and ready to go anywhere.
We are interested in energetic, dynamic individuals who want training that will prepare them for any challenge the field has to offer. Contact us anytime with questions or inquiries. We would love to hear from you!
Edward A. Ramoska, M.D., MPH, FACEP
Program Director, Emergency Medicine |