ACEM - Stage 2 Joint Paediatric Emergency Medicine Training

Overview of the speciality

If you are dedicated to the short-term and emergency treatment of children (neonates to adolescents) then Paediatric Emergency Medicine (PEM) is the sub-speciality for you.

Undertaking this sub-speciality will focus on:

Being well-rounded in all areas of acute medicine and managing most situations independently. This involves coordination of complex patients and interacting with other healthcare service providers.
Educating and supporting other healthcare staff and professionals who work with children.
Managing paediatric patients within an emergency department where medical and surgical emergencies may be required.

Eligibility to enrol in PEM Training with ACEM

To be eligible to enrol into the ACEM PEM Training Program, you must be:

Registered as a Training Stage Two, Training Stage Three, or Training Stage Four FACEM Training Program trainee; or
A Fellow of ACEM (FACEM)

How to apply

Complete the enrolment application form for PEM Training with ACEM.

Temporary pause on 2025 Paediatric Emergency Medicine Training Program Enrolments, find out more information here. Program enrolments will re-open on 1 January 2026.

Click here to register your interest in enrolling in the PEM Training Program from 2026.

Fees

In addition to your ACEM Annual Training Fee, a one-off enrolment fee is payable for all new enrolments in the ACEM Paediatric Emergency Medicine Training Program. Please refer to the ACEM Fee Schedule for further details.

From 1 January 2027, the one-off PEM Enrolment fee will be replaced with a PEM Annual Training fee for all PEM trainees. More information will be provided in the coming months.

Curriculum

FACEM Trainees undertaking the Paediatric Emergency Medicine (PEM) Training Program with ACEM are guided and supported in their training by the PEM Advanced Training Curriculum, used in conjunction with the FACEM Curriculum.

The curriculum specifies the learning outcomes expected at the completion of each stage of training, building upon the pre-existing knowledge, skills and professional attributes of trainees. Assessment of ACEM PEM trainees occurs through In-Training Assessments (ITAs) conducted by the PEM Director of Emergency Medicine Training or Supervisor, Paediatric Emergency Medicine Workplace Based Assessments (PEM-WBAs) and a prescribed set of core procedures on paediatric patients.

Structure and requirements

ACEM stream	PEM requirements	FACEM Training requirements that can be satisfied concurrently
Stage 1	12 months in an Adult/Mixed Emergency Medicine Pass the Primary Exams	Can also be certified to Training Stage One core emergency medicine training time requirements.
Stage 2	12 months Adult/Mixed Emergency Medicine	Can also be certified in Training Stage Two, Three or Four³ core emergency medicine training time requirements.
	18 months¹ Paediatric Emergency Medicine	Can also be certified to Training Stage Two, Three or Four³ core emergency medicine training time requirements.
	12 months General Paediatric medicine (placements accredited by RACP)	Can also be certified to the Non-ED requirement or Training Stage Four³; Elective for FACEM Training, where applicable.
	6 months Paediatric ICU²(placements accredited by CICM)	Can also be certified to the Non-ED requirement or Training Stage Four³; Elective for FACEM Training, where applicable.
	Fulfil Trainee Research Requirement Pass Fellowship Exam To receive a letter confirming completion of ACEM PEM Training, ACEM Fellowship must be achieved in addition to completion of above requirements and associated PEM assessments.

¹The 18 months of mandatory paediatric emergency medicine training time may only be undertaken in departments that have specific ACEM PED accreditation.

²PICU sites classified by CICM as either ‘Foundation’ or ‘Limited General Training (G6)’ will not count towards the PICU requirement of the PEM Training Program. Sites must be classified as ‘General Training (Gen)’.

³Any training completed in Training Stage Four must be undertaken in a Training Stage Four accredited placement.

RACP stream trainee requirements

If you are interested pursuing Paediatric Emergency Medicine Training only, you can undertake this training with the RACP.

All prospective RACP trainees must have:

completed RACP Basic Training, including Written and Clinical Examinations
a current medical registration
been appointed to an appropriate Advanced Training position

For more information, see RACP Paediatric Emergency Medicine.

PEM Training assessments

The assessment requirements listed below are specific to ACEM PEM Training. FACEM Training Program trainees will also be required to complete all relevant assessments of the FACEM Training Program.

A number of the assessments completed for FACEM Training can also be certified towards PEM Training, provided the placement in which they are being undertaken and patient they are being completed on is also contributing to ACEM PEM training time requirements.

PEM Training Platform

Enhancements to ACEM Specialist Training are commencing in late 2025 and are due to be complete for the start of the 2026 training year. The enhanced platform will provide a centralised and accurate system to track PEM training time progress. The ability to complete PEM Training assessments (PEM WBAs and PEM Core DOPS) is not available at this stage.

In-Training Assessments

Throughout FACEM and PEM Training, trainees are required to complete In-Training Assessments (ITA) with their DEMT/Supervisor every 3 months.

All trainees undertaking Paediatric ED placements, must complete a Paediatric ED ITA in addition to the FACEM Training ITA. This will only be required once the Paediatric ED ITA is available online. For PICU and General Paediatric Medicine placements, an additional ITA is not required.

Paediatric Emergency Medicine Workplace-based Assessments (PEM-WBAs)

During the 18 FTE months of Paediatric Emergency Medicine placements, trainees must complete the following Paediatric Emergency Medicine Workplace-based Assessments (PEM-WBAs). Some of the below PEM-WBA instruments (CbD, Mini-CEX and Shift Reports) can also be counted towards the required EM-WBA requirements for Training Stages Two, Three and Four of FACEM training.

Type of PEM-WBA	Minimum number required	Minimum complexity requirement
Case-based Discussion (CbD)*	3	2 x high complexity 1 x medium complexity
Mini-CEX*	6	3 x high complexity 3 x medium complexity
Communication skills (patient/family)	3	N/A
Shift reports*	3	In Charge

*These PEM-WBA instruments can also be counted in FACEM Training.

Core paediatric DOPS

To achieve completion of PEM Training with ACEM, trainees must be assessed as independent in all procedures in the PEM Core DOPS Procedure List as listed in the PEM Advanced Training Curriculum.

Paediatric Emergency Medicine (PEM) Trainee Progression Review (TPR) Panel

Trainees undertaking PEM Training with ACEM will have their progress through the program reviewed by the PEM Trainee Progression Review Panel at the completion of each of the following milestones/progression points:

18 FTE months of Paediatric Emergency Training
12 FTE months of Paediatric Medicine Training
6 FTE months of Paediatric Intensive Care Medicine Training
24 FTE months adult/mixed emergency medicine training (if the requirement has not been fulfilled during completion of the FACEM Training Program).

The Panel will review all ITAs and WBAs completed during the relevant review period to determine if the standard has been achieved. All data presented to the Panel is de-identified.

Completion of the PEM Training Program

To be eligible for completion of the ACEM PEM Training Program, trainees must have:

satisfactorily completed all assessment requirements of ACEM PEM Training and;
achieved Fellowship of ACEM

Upon successful completion of the program, trainees will be provided with a letter confirming completion of training via the ACEM pathway. This letter can be used to apply for recognition as a Paediatric Emergency Medicine Specialist with AHPRA.

Training due dates

ACEM PEM Training Program trainees who have satisfactorily completed the requirements of the FACEM Training Program must complete all remaining ACEM PEM training requirements within 7 years of the date of election to Fellowship of ACEM.

ACEM PEM Training Program trainees who enrol in Paediatric Emergency Medicine after award of FACEM must satisfactorily complete all training requirements outlined within 7 years of the date of enrolment into the ACEM PEM Training Program.

Neonatal ICU (NICU) towards General Paediatric Medicine

The CJCT-PEM have approved that up to 3 months NICU training time may be accredited towards the General Paediatric Medicine component of PEM Training, subject to their review and approval of the training site and learning outcomes of the role.

For the CJCT-PEM to review 3 months of your NICU placement for contribution towards the PEM training time requirement of General Paediatric Medicine, please provide the following:

Confirmation of the NICU site at which you intend to complete this placement.
A position description for the placement.
If possible, confirmation of your supervisor for this placement.
Cover letter on how you intend to address Learning Outcomes.

PEM Trainees are expected to meet the Learning Outcomes as outlined in the Guideline on Certification of Neonatal ICU (NICU) to The General Paediatric Medicine Requirement for PEM.

To request that an additional 3m of NICU training time be considered towards General Paediatric Medicine requirements (6m in total), you will need to submit a Special Consideration request. You should review the Exceptional Circumstances and Special Consideration Policy and if you wish to proceed, submit an application on this form, together with relevant supporting documentation.