Tarragona’s Joan XXIII University Hospital will take the province’s first resident for the new emergency medicine specialty this June. The placement is part of Spain’s specialised health training system and gives Tarragona an early role in the new programme.
The specialty was recognised under Royal Decree 610/2024 and is now the 47th in the state catalogue of health specialties. Joan XXIII’s post is one of 82 created across Spain for the first intake, and one of 11 allocated in Catalonia. For readers following wider health coverage in the region, see our news page.
The recognition responds to a long-standing demand from emergency professionals, who have called for their own specialty since the 1980s. Joan XXIII Hospital has already been accredited to take on two more residents in this field in 2027. The specialty was created to reflect the growing complexity of urgent care in hospitals and emergency health services.
Carme Boqué, head of the Emergency Service, said the move “marks the beginning of a new stage”. She said the hospital has long trained residents in family and community medicine, internal medicine, anaesthesiology, cardiology and intensive care medicine, and can now also train doctors who choose emergencies as their main field.
Francesc Feliu, head of Studies and president of the hospital’s Teaching Commission, said Tarragona has taken part “from the very first minute” in the rollout of the new specialty. He said this reflects the strategic value of emergency and emergency medicine within the health system. More on the hospital is available on the CatSalut hospital page.
The training programme will last four years. It will focus on immediate care for critical patients or those with acute conditions, decision-making in high-pressure situations and coordination with other emergency services. During the first two years, residents will train alongside family and community medicine.
