History

Image

Over the past three decades, emergency medicine in the United States has evolved from a novel concept into a fully established academic discipline, with a distinct body of knowledge, more than a dozen peer-reviewed journals, and hundreds of textbooks.

UC San Francisco has long been home to a distinguished emergency medicine faculty, including several nationally recognized leaders in the field. Historically, these faculty were based across multiple sites – UCSF Medical Center at Parnassus, the Priscilla Chan and Mark Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center (ZSFG), and UCSF Fresno – as divisions within other departments. In July 2008, UCSF formally established the Department of Emergency Medicine, uniting faculty from all three locations.

In 2014, the department established its Division of Pediatric Emergency Medicine, laying the groundwork for future growth in pediatric care. UCSF’s clinical footprint expanded shortly thereafter with the opening of UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital San Francisco at Mission Bay in 2015 and the integration of UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland in 2021.

Today, the department includes nearly 250 faculty across San Francisco, Oakland, and Fresno. All faculty are residency-trained and board-certified or board-eligible in Emergency Medicine and/or Pediatric Emergency Medicine, and hold appointments in the UC San Francisco School of Medicine. They are dedicated educators who supervise and mentor residents and medical students while delivering clinical care, conducting research, and lecturing locally, nationally, and internationally. Many hold leadership roles on hospital, state, and national committees and serve as reviewers and editors for peer-reviewed journals. A significant number also bring additional expertise through certifications in areas such as ultrasound, simulation, emergency medical services, global health, infectious disease, and internal medicine, as well as fellowship training in education and research.

This depth of expertise is reflected in the department’s robust training programs. The UCSF-ZSFG Emergency Medicine Residency Program welcomed its inaugural class in 2008 and has since grown into a four-year, ACGME-accredited program approved for 15 residents per year. A separate ACGME-accredited emergency medicine residency program at UCSF Fresno – part of UCSF’s regional campus and a longstanding affiliate of the Department of Emergency Medicine – has trained residents since 1978 and is approved for 10 residents per year.

Our department also offers 13 fellowship programs, including 10 based in San Francisco and Oakland and three in Fresno.