How to Become a Pediatric Emergency Medicine Doctor
Doctors specializing in pediatric emergency medicine work with children in emergency or life-threatening situations. Their training, however, enables them to work with patients of all ages and conditions in an emergency situation. Doctors in this field undergo extensive training beyond medical school. PayScale notes that salaries for emergency medicine doctors in general ranged from $140,356 to $235,832 a year as of November 2010.
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Instructions
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Obtain your bachelor's degree. You do not need to major in pre-medicine, but medical schools look for candidates who have prepared for their medical studies by taking courses in math and science. Choose a science-related major, such as chemistry or biology, or choose a degree in another field in the arts and sciences and take many of your elective courses in the sciences.
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Complete medical school. Apply to as many medical schools as possible to ensure that you get a choice of where you wish to attend, but try to find a program that has a strong reputation for pediatric or emergency medicine, or both. Medical school will take you approximately four years to complete.
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Apply for residency positions in emergency medicine. Residency programs are specialized training programs that physicians complete after medical school. Residencies take three to five years to complete, depending on the area of specialization.
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Pass your licensing exam. This process begins during medical school and culminates during your first year of residency work. In order to become state-licensed to practice medicine, you must pass the United States Medical Licensing Examination, or USMLE, and meet the other requirements for your state.
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Complete a fellowship in pediatric emergency medicine. Medical fellowships are training programs beyond residency that take one to two years to complete. Find an emergency medicine program that offers the pediatric sub-specialty as an option.
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Apply for positions with hospitals and other emergency medical facilities.
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References
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