Emergency room (ER) doctors are typically the first doctors to see a patient visiting a hospital. They assess medical conditions and determine if that person can be treated from the ER and sent home or if they need to be admitted to stay longer for further work-up and treatment. There are many conditions that doctors treat in the ER, such as acute infections and minor injuries. They also serve a very important role in stabilizing critical patients (such as trauma patients or patients with immediate, life-threatening conditions) before admitting them into the hospital. Emergency medicine is a specialty that some doctors are trained in after medical school.
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