In 1989, EMF partnered with ACEP to establish a Teaching Fellowship Program. Attendees received more than 100 hours of intensive continuing education as well as a comprehensive set of faculty development materials. Years later, this successful program continues to thrive today under ACEP’s sole direction.

In the fall of 1992, EMF produced the inaugural issue of Scope, a quarterly newsletter dedicated to the promotion of emergency medicine research and education. An article would confirm that, “Unlike other specialties which receive large amounts of federal funding, EMF is the only national organization funding research in emergency medicine.”

By 1992, EMF was funding 22 grantees, each invited to prepare poster exhibits at the EMF Showcase during the annual Scientific Assembly.

In 1995, EMF’s Board voted to approve the inclusion of health policy into the foundation’s mission and announced a two-year feasibility study to support the shift. Policy related awards continued through the years, and in 2013, EMF partnered with the Emergency Medicine Action Fund (EMAF) to award the first Health Policy Scholar. The physician selected was not only responsible for pursuing research goals, but also serving as a resource for both organizations as health policy questions would arise throughout the year. Since then, ACEP has awarded three one-year grants and two two-year Health Policy Scholar grants.

In 1997, long-time EMF donor David Wilcox, MD, created the Council Challenge, pledging to match the first $5 of each ACEP Councillor pledge. That year, $6,155 was raised. By 2017, the Council Challenges would raise just shy of $148,000.

Partners in Research

Throughout the years, EMF would pursue outside funds from foundations to study issues and bolster educational efforts. In 1981, W.W. Kellogg Foundation supported a two-year study on cost containment in the emergency department. In 2010, the Century Council (now the Foundation for Advancing Alcohol Responsibility) funded a research study on the use of texting to reduce hazardous drinking by young adults. The National Football League supported the development of a concussion course in 2015. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is currently supporting efforts to address the range of social issues presenting in emergency departments.

EMF has also worked throughout its history to partner with like-minded organizations to conduct research. Early partners included the Emergency Nurses Foundation, the Emergency Medicine Residents’ Association, and the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine, all of whom continue to support co-funded research today.

Partnerships for EMF would also take place in the form of directed research funded by corporate entities with like-minded goals. Past sponsors include Vidacare (now Teleflex), Genentech, Bristol Myers Squibb, Pfizer, GE Healthcare, and more.

Building for the Future

In September 2012, EMF established the EMF Endowment Fund, a commitment to building a fund to support research into the future. ACEP generously agreed to match all unrestricted donations to EMF, up to $1 million. ACEP honored its commitment in June 2013, a year after EMF hit its fundraising goal.