Specialty Information
Acute Internal Medicine (AIM) is concerned with the assessment, diagnosis and management of adults presenting to secondary care with acute medical illness. There is a broad spectrum of clinical work within the specialty and trainees will acquire competencies relevant to:
- the prompt practical management of acute presentation of medical illness
- the management of medical patients in an in-patient setting
- the development of new patient pathways to maximise safe, effective care in the community where feasible
- the provision of leadership skills within an acute medical unit
- the development of multi-professional systems to promote optimal patient care
- the care of patients requiring more intensive levels of care than would be generally managed in a medical ward. These competencies are generally acquired from experience within a critical care unit.
All trainees will spend at least 4 months in:
- Intensive Care Medicine
- Cardiovascular Medicine
- Respiratory Medicine
- Geriatric Medicine
All trainees in AIM must develop a specialist skill. These generally fall into one of four categories:
- Procedural skill (eg: echocardiography)
- Additional qualification (eg: medical education)
- Speciality interest (eg: intensive care medicine)
- Research
If you train in AIM you will learn:
- Clinical skills: the immediate management, stabilisation and initial treatment of all general medical emergencies
- Education skills: there is a strong emphasis on becoming skilled in helping others learn
- Academic skills: there is lots of opportunity for audit, clinical or safety and service provision research
- Management and leadership skills: these are a emphasised in your AMU posts
Do Acute Internal Medicine if you:
- Like a wide variety of ‘hands on’ clinical work
- Enjoy the challenge of sick patients
- Want to get people home quickly and safely
- Fancy the flexibility of a sessional job in the future
- Would like to develop a special interest in – anything
For more information, visit the Society for Acute Medicine and takeAIM
Entry to Acute Internal Medicine
Entry into Acute Internal Medicine training is possible following successful completion of both a Foundation Programme and a Core Training Programme.
Core Training Programmes
There are two core training programmes in Acute Internal Medicine;
Core Medical Training (CMT)
Acute Care Common Stem