Pop-Up Safety Town, a community outreach initiative by the University of Michigan’s Department of Emergency Medicine in partnership with the U-M Concussion Center, brings free, hands-on injury prevention education to underserved communities across Michigan. Designed for children ages three to six, the program teaches vital safety skills, like helmet use, medication safety, and pedestrian awareness, through interactive events and classroom kits. By engaging families directly in schools and community spaces, and expanding through partnerships and national scaling efforts, the initiative aims to reduce preventable childhood injuries and keep kids out of the emergency room.

The K12 Neuro-EM Scholars Program, launched in 2024 at the University of Michigan’s Weil Institute and funded by the NIH’s National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, is the first national initiative designed to train early-career emergency medicine (EM) faculty in neurological research. With dedicated funding, mentorship, and a focus on high-impact research, the program supports scholars as they pursue independent research careers focused on critical, time-sensitive neurological emergencies. In its inaugural year, four scholars were selected, with additional support provided through a Pipeline Program for emerging researchers. The initiative is quickly building a nationwide community of EM physician-scientists committed to advancing care for neurological emergencies.

A simple blood test is changing how emergency medicine operates.

When Francine Bomar fell and hit her head, she feared a long ER wait and a CT scan—but instead, she became one of the first patients at Michigan Medicine to benefit from a groundbreaking new blood test for traumatic brain injury (TBI). Introduced in December 2024 and developed by Dr. Fred Korley and his team, the test rapidly detects two brain-specific proteins, providing results in 15 minutes and reducing the need for CT scans. In just a few months, it has already helped avoid 95 unnecessary CTs. With strong clinical support and funding from the Department of Defense, researchers are now developing a handheld version, aiming to make personalized, efficient brain injury care accessible everywhere.

Michigan Medicine was abuzz April 9 as the Department of Emergency Medicine hosted its 10th Annual William G. Barsan Emergency Medicine Research Forum — a celebration of innovation, research, and teamwork.

2025 Emergency Medicine Department Intern Class of 2025