KK: What should our workforce look like today with the non-EM trained physicians and also advanced practice providers (APPs)?

JR: The crux of it has to do with two main issues: 1) scope of practice and 2) distribution. I do think the time will come that our workforce will be an entirely composed of those who are residency trained and board-certified. There’s cognitive dissonance where it’s acceptable for an APP to be sometimes practicing independently in the emergency department, but it’s not ok for a physician who doesn’t have residency training or board certification to do the same. It is a complex issue, but it just seems odd that we’re willing to accept someone who is not even a physician, but not a physician who is dedicated to emergency medicine. Again, I don’t think those physicians should be entering the workforce now, but the ones that are there should be supported and embraced.

My personal observation is here in Georgia. You could not be able to come close to meeting the workforce needs if it were not for physicians who are not residency trained or board certified. Even at my local hospital, 40,000 visits per year, we only have two. We do not have equal distribution of our workforce, and we certainly want the most well-qualified person caring for every emergency department patient.

KK: How will you, in your presidency, help to keep residents in training and young physicians engaged in membership and leadership opportunities.

JR: They will be involved in committees, task forces, projects, and work groups. Their involvement is critical to our success.

KK: John, your elevator speech. What is the value of ACEP membership?

JR: ACEP will give you what you need in the different phases of your career. Early on, ACEP will give you networking, camaraderie, education, getting back together with your residents to reconnect, and a sense of family. In the middle part of your career, ACEP gives you opportunities for leadership. It gives you opportunities to give back to the specialty and allows you opportunities to grow and expand personally and professionally. I see ACEP becoming your voice in advocacy. Later, like in my stage, it’s really about mentorship. It’s about giving back to the specialty. It’s my duty and it’s my role and my obligation to set the ground for those that are coming up behind me. That is an extremely rewarding thing to do.