Richard J. Hamilton, Crozer Keystone Health
Lance B. Becker, Drexel University College of Medicine
Richard E. Wolfe, Harvard Medical School
D. Adam Algren, University Health
Arnold Thomas, LSU Health Shreveport
Michael Baumann, Maine Medical Center
Ross P. Berkeley, University of Nevada
Terrell S. Caffery, LSU Department of Emergency Medicine
Chad Cannon, University of Kansas Medical System
Theodore J. Corbin, Rush Medical College
Michael E. Chansky, Cooper Medical School of Rowan University
Harinder S. Dhindsa, Virginia Commonwealth, Department of Emergency Medicine
Charles L. Emerman, Case Western Reserve University
David A. Farcy, Mount Sinai Medical Center
Chris Fox, University of California, Irvine
Michael A. Gibbs, Carolinas Medical Center and Levine Children's Hospital
Christopher S. Goode, WVU Medicine
Steven "Andy" Godwin, University of Florida College of Medicine
Dietrich Jehle, University of Texas Medical Branch
David Johnson, Mercy St. Vincents Medical Center
Samuel M. Keim, Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health
Babak Khazaeni, Desert Regional Medical Center
Barry J. Knapp, Macon & Joan Brock Virginia Health Sciences at Old Dominion UniversityFollow
Clint Hawthorne, UnityPoint Health Des Moines
John D. Hoyle Jr., Western Michigan University Homer Stryker
Michael Christopher Kurz, University of Chicago
Evan Leibner, Creighton University School of Medicine
Robert McNamara, Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University
Robert F. McCormack, University of Buffalo
Edward A. Michelson, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center
Chadwick Miller, Wake Forest University School of Medicine
Ashley Norse, University of Arkansas Medical Center
Andrew Nugent, University of Iowa Health Care
Brian J. O'Neil, Albany Medical Center
David T. Overton, Western Michigan University Homer Stryker
Edward A. Panacek, University of South Alabama
William F. Paolo, Upstate Medical University Syracuse
Denis R. Pauzé, Albany Medical Center
Amanda L. Perez, The Permanente Medical Group
Ralph J. Riviello, UT Health San Antonio University Health System
Scott W. Rodi, Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center
Peter S. Pang, Indiana University School of Medicine
Juan A. Gonzalez Sanchez, UPR School of Medicine
David P. Sklar, University of New Mexico
Ben C. Smith, University of Tennessee College of Medicine
Jeffrey R. Stowell, The University of Arizona, College of Medicine
Marc D. Squillante, University of Illinois College of Medicine Peoria
J. Jeremy Thomas, University of Louisville Health
Terry Vanden Hoek, University of Illinois College of Medicine
Gregory A. Volturo, UMass Memorial Health
E. Lea Walters, Loma Linda University Health
Thomas E. Wyatt, U. of Minnesota Medical School
Donald M. Yealy, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine

ORCID

0000-0002-9905-4417 (Knapp)

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2025

Publication Title

Western Journal of Emergency Medicine

Volume

26

Issue

4

Pages

769-772

Abstract

This letter, signed by over 50 academic chairs of emergency medicine, urges the ACGME to reconsider a proposed mandate requiring all emergency medicine residency programs to adopt a four-year training model. The authors argue that current three-year programs are supported by data demonstrating equivalent educational and clinical outcomes compared to four-year formats. They criticize the flawed survey methodology underpinning the proposal, note the loss of milestone-based training flexibility, and highlight the lack of added scholarly or clinical value in the fourth year. The letter also outlines negative consequences for fellowship participation, workforce development, trainee debt, and diversity. The signatories advocate for maintaining the current flexible training model to preserve excellence, equity, and innovation in emergency medicine education.

Rights

© 2025 The Authors.

This is an open access article published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) License.

Original Publication Citation

Hamilton, R. J., Becker, L. B., Wolfe, R. E., Algren, D. A., Arnold, T., Baumann, M., Berkeley, R. P., Caffery, T. S., Cannon, C. M., Corbin, T. J., Chansky, M. E., Dhindsa, H. S., Emerman, C. L., Farcy, D. A., Fox, C., Gibbs, M. A., Goode, C. S., Godwin, S. A., Jehle, D.,…Yealy, D. M. (2025). Letter of concern from the Association of Academic Chairs of Emergency Medicine regarding ACGME proposed changes. Western Journal of Emergency Medicine, 26(4), 769-772.

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