Emergency Medicine
The Pediatric Emergency Department (PED) at the Alberta Children’s Hospital provides care for over 80,000 patient visits per year.
At the Alberta Children’s Hospital Emergency Department, we provide expert, compassionate care to infants, children, and youth 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. As the pediatric trauma and tertiary emergency referral center for southern Alberta, eastern British Columbia, and western Saskatchewan, we care for over 80,000 children annually.
Our team includes pediatric emergency physicians, nurses, respiratory therapists, social workers and child life specialists—all trained to meet the unique needs of children and families in crisis. We offer state-of-the-art facilities including resuscitation suites, procedure rooms, mental health assessment spaces, and dedicated areas for minor injuries and urgent care.
We are also a hub for pediatric emergency research, education, and innovation—advancing care through evidence-based practice, simulation training, and partnerships across disciplines.
Over 65 physicians are part of the Section of Emergency Medicine providing care between our two sites, the Alberta Children’s Hospital and South Health Campus.
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Trauma Program
The Trauma Program at ACH is optimized by the multidisciplinary collaboration of the Trauma Committee which meets monthly and includes representation from nurses, physicians, and other leaders in Emergency Medicine, General Surgery, Transport Medicine, Critical Care, Neurosurgery, Orthopedics, Social Work, Radiology, Anesthesia / OR, Injury Prevention, in addition to other services.
Major trauma patients who present to ACH are met with a world-class multidisciplinary team to rapidly assess and manage their injuries and both the patient and family’s overall wellbeing. The Trauma Program has established criteria for those injured patients who meet Trauma Team Activation criteria and when met, this multidisciplinary team rapidly assembles to care for these patients both acutely and throughout their road to recovery.
We hold quarterly reviews of all major traumas by the Trauma Quality Management Committee which reviews all cases and assesses areas for improvement. Recommendations from this committee are disseminated to the affected services and hospital through educational rounds, protocols, advocacy, and updated processes that continue to improve future trauma management. Our review process continues to ensure excellent trauma management is performed at ACH while still identifying ongoing learning points to practice and optimize.
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Pediatric Emergency Research Team website
PERT Annual Reports can be found here
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ED Research and Quality Improvement Initiatives
- Appendicitis
- Asthma/wheeze
- Concussion/Head Injury
- COVID-19
- Gastroenteritis (Vomiting/Diarrhea)
- Medical education research
- Mental Health
- Pain
- Patient Safety and Quality
- Sepsis
- Simulation Education and Feedback Research
The Section promotes ongoing research in collaboration with the Department and other partners.
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PEM Fellowship
The Pediatric Emergency Medicine (PEM) Subspecialty Residency Training Program at the Alberta Children’s Hospital, affiliated with the University of Calgary, is fully accredited by the Royal College. Our well-resourced emergency department (ED) is located in a stand-alone pediatric hospital, managing over 77,000 patient visits annually. As the designated regional trauma center for children aged 0–14 years, the program provides residents with extensive pediatric trauma exposure. Residents gain experience at both the Alberta Children’s Hospital ED and the pediatric pod of the South Health Campus Hospital ED. This dual-site training offers exposure to a diverse range of presentations, from those unique to a tertiary-care children’s hospital to cases typical of a general emergency department.
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POCUS Fellowship
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Research Fellowship
The Pediatric Emergency Research Team at the Alberta Children's Hospital is offering a one-year Clinical Research Fellowship (renewable x 1). This Fellowship is supported by the One Child Every Child Clinical Transformative Excellence Award. The overall aim of this Fellowship is to support the development of future Clinician Scientists by providing the training and mentorship necessary to develop the core skills needed to jump start a research career.
Interested candidates should contact Dr. Stephen Freedman at stephen.freedman@ahs.ca
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KidSIM Fellowship
The KidSIM Pediatric Simulation Program at the Alberta Children’s Hospital is offering a one-year Fellowship in Simulation Education and Research. This Fellowship is offered in collaboration with the Ward of the 21st Century and the Medical Education Specialization Program at the University of Calgary. The overall aim of this fellowship is to initiate the process of preparing the candidate for an academic career as a clinician educator, with advanced knowledge and skill in the delivery of simulation-based education and research.