b'Students Favor Delaying and Reconsidering Proposed Change to Program Duration RequirementBy Dominic Gregorio, OMS-III, Chair, and Sarah Suchko, MS4, Policy and Advocacy Coordinator2.Quality of prospective residents. In discussions with our council members, we found that future applicants from M1 to M3 were feeling fearful and uncertain about the future of EM. Unfortunately, their sense of fear may be based in realism: match participation is likely to fall if the perceived cost of participating rises by one year. Although EM is the only career imaginable for uniquely committed applicants like ourselves, for others, a new program Dominic Gregorio, LECOM OMS-III Sarah Suchko, UPSOM MS4 length minimum could narrow the MSC Chair MSC Policy and Advocacy Coordinator gap between EM and their next-most favored specialty. No labor As fourth-year medical students andrespectfully include them below, solelyeconomist would predict workforce EM applicants, we were concerneddesiring to see the continued creationparticipation to remain the same in the face of rising barriers to entry. about the future of our targetof quality emergency physicians for theIn fact, those with the least means specialty when we learned of thelong run. will be the hardest hit. A current proposal to increase all training1.Evidence-based training. In theirempirical example comes from the programs to a length of four yearsWestJEM editorial, Dr. Lotfipouraccounting world, where certified (48 months).and co-authors describe thepublic accountant (CPA) training was While this proposal will not impact themethodological issues with theeffectively extended by one year, duration of our own training, it wouldprogram requirements writing groupsfollowed by a 26 percent drop in affect the future of our field, includingapproach to choosing 48 monthsminority CPA trainees and an overall of our future co-residents and currentas a training length. As they pointshortage of CPAs. In response, Gov. EM-interested colleagues. Becauseout, directors of 36-month programsShapiro this summer signed a law of this, we held a discussion on thereported a calculated ideal totalabandoning the training extension. 48-month requirement with the resttraining time of under 42 months.Meanwhile, professional bodies have of our student councilcomposed ofWe echo that this calculated totalbegun to introduce competency-particularly passionate and dedicateddoes not account for the expectedbased certification pathways in EM-interested studentsand honed instrategy of overlapping certain blocks.order to improve CPA training on three main reasons the AccreditationMost importantly, an evidence- without unnecessarily extending Council for Graduate Medical Educationbased approach would not imposetraining duration. In EM, we should (ACGME) should continue to delayan extension of training beforelearn from the example of CPAs and implementation of the 48-monthdemonstrating its success empirically,avoid another difficult match where requirement and consider evidence- such as by trialing it in pilot formprograms may be forced to lower based alternatives that are conducive tofirstespecially when the additionaltheir selectivity in order to fill their the flourishing of EM as a specialty. Wetraining poses a significant time costranks. According to the AMA, 71% of to potential applicants. medical students already graduate 14 PACEP News | Fall 2025'