A consensus conference on acute medicine, now the fastest growing of all medical specialties in the United Kingdom, has called for explicit standards, operational policies, and performance monitoring to be introduced.

Acute medicine was formally recognised as a specialty in general medicine in 2003, but practice continues to vary, and there is debate about the precise remit and standards for the specialty, the configuration and integration of the multiprofessional team, and the delivery of appropriate training.

The conference, organised by the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh and held in Edinburgh last week, agreed a …