Video: Family Doctors and Emergency Medicine

Emergency Medicine January 2026 Feature Stories Special Interest Group News

January, 2026

“As family doctors, we must be prepared for everything, because nobody knows what will enter through the door of the consultation,” says Dr Elena Klusova, family doctor and past chair of WONCA’s Emergency Medicine Special Interest Group (SIG). Klusova works in Advanced Life Support with the SAMU061 Mobile Intensive Care Unit and Helicopter Emergency Medical Service in Ibiza, Spain.

Practical emergency skills

The WONCA Emergency Medicine SIG is one of WONCA’s 18 Special Interest Groups. It connects family doctors and primary care clinicians who want to strengthen their confidence and skills in urgent and emergency care, through peer learning, workshops and shared resources.

The SIG is chaired by Dr Nisanth Menon (India), and welcomes members from every region.

New video featuring workshops around the world

This short documentary is a lively, people-focused introduction to the group. It follows SIG activities and workshops across three locations:

Lisbon (World Conference 2025)
Nairobi (Africa Region Conference 2024)
Bengaluru (South Asia Region conference 2025)

Viewers will see the SIG’s workshop style up close, including role-play, teamwork, and learning formats designed to keep people engaged.

In the film, Dr Rabee Kazan explains the SIG’s approach: “We try to do things a little differently, in the sense of maintaining the role-playing aspect, gamification in general. That way, we know that they are learning and enjoying the workshops.”

There is a strong focus on skills that can cause real anxiety in day-to-day practice. One session introduces an ECG workshop that “normally poses quite a panic to the family doctors, especially working in the emergencies”, before encouraging participants to focus on “the rhythms not to fear.”

The documentary also captures a mass casualty scenario exercise in Nairobi. Participants are reminded of the core principle: “You’re trying to save the most lives, not only one.”

Alongside the skills training, the film shows the SIG’s community spirit. Dr Miriam Rey introduces her daughter Alissa, the youngest member of group, aged 6-and-a-half.

“We’re a family... so if you’d like to join us, we’re here.”

Alongside conference workshops and in-person training, the Emergency Medicine SIG also runs regular online education open to members across regions. An upcoming South Asia regional webinar, “Chest Pain of Acute Onset”, will take place on 17 January 2026 and brings together speakers from Sri Lanka and India to discuss real-world emergency presentations relevant to family doctors and primary care teams. Events like this reflect the SIG’s focus on accessible, case-based learning that can be applied directly in everyday practice.

Looking ahead, the Emergency Medicine SIG aims to continue expanding its regional reach, strengthen collaboration across WONCA regions, and grow its programme of practical education through both conferences and online sessions. Under the current chair, Nisanth Menon (India), the group is focused on welcoming new members, particularly family doctors working in settings where urgent and emergency care is part of daily primary care practice. As the documentary shows, the SIG’s strength lies in its sense of community, shared problem-solving, and commitment to learning together, wherever family doctors are working.

If you are coming to a future WONCA conference, keep an eye out for the Emergency Medicine SIG workshops. They are designed to be practical, interactive, and memorable.