Each day of the ICEM begins with a plenary session featuring keynote speakers from around the world. Following are the 4 themes for the daily plenaries.
Day 1: Disaster Preparedness
Day 2: Global Outreach and Cooperation
Day 3: Leadership in Emergency Medicine
Day 4: Patient Safety and Reducing Errors in Emergency Medicine.
Day 1: 3 April 2008
8:15 am - 8:30 am
ICEM 2008 Opening and Welcome - Dr. Diane M. Birnbaumer, Chair, ICEM 2008
8:30 am - 9:15 am
Disasters: Public Health Implications
Plenary Speaker: Dr. Brantley Tillman Jolly, Associate Medical Officer of Health Affairs, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Washington, DC.
It is inevitable that at some point a disaster will occur that will potentially affect public health. Identifying and planning for these potential disasters can minimize the impact of such a disaster. The speaker will discuss the types of disasters that may affect public health and how to identify and plan for them.
9:15 am - 10:00 am
Disasters and Surge Capacity
Plenary Speaker: Lt. Col. Rob Russell, Lead Emergency Physician at Peterborough Hospital (UK) and Senior Lecturer in Emergency Medicine.
With many emergency departments already full to capacity, an event such a disaster will further stress and possibly break the system. Despite this, emergency medical systems will be the first providers when such a disaster occurs. The speaker will discuss how to be assess surge capacity and address how to maximize care in the case of a disaster.
Day 2: 4 April 2008
8:00 am - 8:45 am
Global Outreach and Cooperation: Emergency Medical Education
Plenary Speaker: Francesco Della Corte, MD, Director, Department of Anesthesiology, Critical Care and Emergency Medicine, Ospedale Maggiore Novara, Italy
The importance of the specialty of emergency medicine is quickly becoming apparent on a global level. Education in emergency medicine is crucial to optimal delivery of this emergency care. The speaker will discuss the current status of emergency medical education and will offer suggestions as to how cooperation between countries with experience in this area can best help those early in the development of emergency medical education.
8:45 am - 9:30 am
Global Outreach and Cooperation: Provision of Emergency Medical Care
Plenary Speaker: Professor V. Anantharaman, President, Society for Emergency Medicine (SEMS) Singapore and Senior Consultant Emergency Physician, Singapore General Hospital
Across the globe emergency medical care is administered using differing systems and providers. Especially in disasters, these systems must cooperate to provide optimal care for patients. The speaker will discuss how to develop and implement systems to provide cooperation and to optimize care in the international arena.
Day 3: 5 April 2008
8:00 am - 8:45 am
GEORGE PODGORNY LECTURE
Leadership in Emergency Medicine - Local, Regional, and National Leadership
Plenary Speaker: Arthur L. Kellermann, MD, FACEP, Professor and Director, Center for Injury Control, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA
Although the specialty is relatively new and rapidly evolving, emergency medicine is a critical part of the health care delivery system. As first providers and sometimes as the providers of last resort, emergency physicians also have a unique view of health care delivery system. Emergency physicians can use their unique experiences and view of health care to become involved and to affect change. The speaker will discuss how to become a leader at the local, regional and national level, and will explain the potential impact of this leadership.
8:45 am -9:30 am
Plenary Speaker: Professor Herman Delooz, MD, PhD, Emeritus Professor of Emergency Medicine and Critical Care, University Leueven, Belgium
Internationally, the need for emergency medical care is universal. Emergency medicine holds a unique place in international health care delivery, and leadership at the international level can help coordinate and maximize emergency medical care. The speaker will emphasize the importance of international leaders in emergency medicine and their potential impact.
Day 4: 6 April 2008
8:00 am - 8:45 am
Patient Safety/Reducing Errors in Emergency Medicine: Identifying Risks
Plenary Speaker: Drew B. Richardson, MBBS, Director of Emergency Medicine at The Canberra Hospital, ACT, Australia
It is a dictum in medicine: First, do no harm. Keeping our patients safe and preventing medical errors is as important as is delivery of appropriate medical care. The first step in preventing medical errors is to find ways to identify them. The speaker will discuss how to identify medical errors and how to determine which are most important to correct in order to most improve patient safety.
8:45 am - 9:30 am
Patient Safety/Reducing Errors in Emergency Medicine: Developing Solutions
Plenary Speaker: Pat Croskerry, MD, PhD, Professor in Emergency Medicine at Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
Once medical errors are identified, corrective measures need to be taken to prevent these errors. Solutions ranging from education to the use of computers can be effective in addressing how best to correct these errors. The speaker will discuss how medical errors, once identified, can be prevented.