Emergency medicine in Argentina: a stepwise process to specialty recognition.

As emergency medicine (EM) has developed as a medical specialty throughout the world, each country has followed its own path to official recognition. Despite a successful EM model in the United States, some countries, especially those that require government approval of new medical specialties, have often found it difficult to attain recognition. As of early 2009, Argentina had yet to recognize EM as an official specialty, although some regional governments have acknowledged the specialty's status. The Argentine Society of EM has taken a number of steps and proposed educational paths to EM specialization to convince Argentina's political decision-makers that Emergency Medicine is a fundamental step toward a modern medical system. Such national recognition would further an already thriving EM community and improve the quality of patient care in Argentina. To assist colleagues around the world who are pursuing or will pursue this goal, this article outlines Argentina's complex and ongoing path to specialty recognition.