For the first time in the history of medicine in Spain, the Canary Islands have welcomed the inaugural residents in emergency medicine. This new specialty, long sought after by sector professionals, aims to ensure continuity and generational change in emergency services, which have historically struggled with a shortage of qualified personnel.
The creation of this specialty by the Ministry of Health, following decades of advocacy by emergency physicians, marks a significant milestone. "It was something we were eagerly awaiting; it changes everything because now we can dedicate ourselves to training individuals who will stay here," explains Pilar González, an attending physician at the University Hospital Nuestra Señora de Candelaria in Tenerife and an accredited tutor for this training.
The University Hospital Nuestra Señora de Candelaria will train its first resident, Elizabeth Granados, this year. In total, three future specialists will be distributed among reference hospitals in Tenerife and Gran Canaria. The tutor highlights the importance of the accreditation obtained and expresses the desire to train more residents in the coming years, ideally four annually, to offset upcoming retirements.
Granados's training notably differs from previous specialties like internal medicine or family medicine, which were the only pathways to rotate through emergency departments until now. "From the second year onwards, and especially in the third and fourth years, it is much more oriented towards emergency care," details González. Previously, many doctors trained in emergencies but did not practice in them, which left a "nagging feeling" within the departments.
Elizabeth Granados, who studied Medicine at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, expresses her "great happiness" at accessing this position through the "ideal path." Her interest in emergencies solidified during her rotations, and her arrival in the Canary Islands, after prior training at the University of Las Palmas, led her to the Hospital de La Candelaria, where she commends the service's organization and the initial tranquility she experienced.
The training innovations include rotations at the Hospital del Sur starting from the second year, as well as with the Canary Emergency Service (SUC) and its ambulances. Rotations in anesthesia, intensive care units, and pre-hospital medicine are also planned, broadening the scope of training to prepare future specialists for all aspects of emergency care.
