This week, BMC Medicine attended the 4th Annual Emergency Medicine conference in London, where key themes and hot topics in the field of emergency medicine were  discussed. The  meeting was attended by around 70  delegates, including consultants in emergency and acute medicine, paramedics, and specialists in trauma and orthopedics.

The presentations were thematically diverse  and  covered all aspects of emergency medicine. Popular topics included  simulation training in a pre-hospital environment, as well as recognition and clinical management of novel recreational drugs – the so called ‘legal-highs’.

Changes afoot in terms of ambulance commissioning  in the UK were debated, with an excellent presentation by Neil Kennett-Brown, the director of London Ambulance Service Commissioning,  who discussed the background to these changes in care pathways, which aim to increase emergency department efficiency.

Of particular interest given the forthcoming  Olympics in London was a session focused on sports medicine, led by  Laurence Gant who is a Consultant and Clinical Director in Emergency Medicine at Homerton Hospital. Dr Gant, who is involved in the planning of medical care for athletes and spectators  for the London Olympics, highlighted the challenges and solutions in organizing a large scale international event. Mike Carmont, a consultant trauma and orthopedic surgeon, discussed emergency assessment of sports injuries, and Jonathan Hanson provided an in-depth presentation on the  causes, management and prevention of sudden cardiac arrest in athletes.

The core themes discussed at this conference will provide researchers and clinicians with deeper background knowledge and practical skills to advance the field of emergency medicine.