Emergency Medicine is a relatively new specialty in India, and the Department of Emergency Medicine at B. J. Medical College, Ahmedabad — headed by Dr. Chirag Patel — is honoured to have hosted the first MCI-recognised degree course in the country. Established in 2009, the department received permission to start its postgraduate course in 2010 and currently has 7 NMC-recognised MD seats per year.

The department is housed on the ground floor of the Trauma Centre at Civil Hospital, with a dedicated entrance and 80 inpatient beds for emergency care. It provides 24×7 emergency services including triage, resuscitation, and management of acute and life-threatening presentations across all specialties. Round-the-clock support from laboratory services and imaging — including X-ray, ultrasound, CT scan and MRI — enables rapid investigation and decision-making at the point of care.

A comprehensive Triage System has been implemented at the entry point, significantly improving patient sorting, flow and overall emergency-response efficiency. The department is staffed by specialists from multiple disciplines and uses advanced technologies such as bedside ultrasound and modern airway-management techniques to support stabilisation and resuscitation of patients arriving with conditions ranging from polytrauma to acute medical and surgical emergencies. Definitive care is coordinated with the relevant specialty departments after initial stabilisation.

The department has also played a central role in the establishment of the National Emergency Life Support (NELS) Skill Centre at B. J. Medical College, providing emergency life-support training to residents, doctors, nurses and paramedics from across the state and beyond. Through its combination of high clinical volume, structured training, multi-specialty collaboration and a strong focus on protocol-driven emergency care, the department is helping shape the practice of Emergency Medicine in India and offers a strong learning environment for its postgraduate trainees.