Emergency medicine in Switzerland: a laboratory for professional experimentation

Abstract

Switzerland is a small country divided into 26 cantons and four language regions (German, French, Italian and Rhaeto-Romanic) with cultural imprints from neighboring countries [1]. The Federal Constitution specifies the distribution of responsibilities between the Confederation and the cantons. The cantons are responsible for hospital organization, health prevention and for the regulation of the health professions. Each canton, thus, has its own Ministry of Health and develops its health system according to its needs, resources and political orientations. Inspired by the health systems of European border countries, emergency medicine in Switzerland is also largely based on Anglo-Saxon concepts [2]. By experimenting with these different models, Switzerland is gradually developing emergency health care professions and building the foundation of a solid decentralized emergency medical aid system.

From the Operating Room to the Cave: Ultrasound-Guided Locoregional Anesthesia in the Setting of Cave Rescue—A Description of 2 Cases

“…The use of POCUS-guided LRA is not yet standard practice because only 2 of the 6 physicians (ST, AM) are trained in such techniques. The Swiss prehospital organization is a 3-tier system involving dispatch of a prehospital emergency physician to support the management of complex cases, 8 and paramedics are not allowed to perform an LRA blockade. Only a few trained anesthesiologists or emergency physicians perform preclinical LRA at this stage.…”

Status of physician education in emergency medicine in four European countries: no primary specialty yet

“…In Germany, it is the physician chamber in each state, which has the legal power to implement a specialty as outlined above with the Berlin example. A very recent article has thoroughly reviewed the status of emergency medicine in Switzerland [4].…”

“…In Germany, it is the physician chamber in each state, which has the legal power to implement a specialty as outlined above with the Berlin example. A very recent article has thoroughly reviewed the status of emergency medicine in Switzerland [4]. In the Netherlands, the national medical association has set specific criteria for becoming a recognized medical specialty.…”

Implementation of a Novel Concept of Emergency Department Management: e-Boss

“…The directors well understood that every day in the emergency room is different (activity, severity of patients, type of pathologies) and that the possibilities of communication on this theme are many and varied, with the emergency room being at the crossroads of the general population and the hospital and its specialties. In Switzerland, emergency medicine is still not recognized as a specialty as such, contrary to most countries of the European Union [14]. This lack of recognition is detrimental to vocations, as physicians-in-training prefer to turn to a more highly valued specialist title.…”