Emergency care in India: the building blocks

BACKGROUND: The Republic of India, the world’s most populous democracy, has struggled with establishing Emergency Medical Care. However, with the recent recognition of Emergency Medicine as a formal specialty in medical training, there has been renewed vigor in the developments in the field. METHOD AND RESULTS: We outline here the building blocks of the health care system in India, and the contribution each has made and is capable of making to the growth of emergency medical services. We also provide an account of the current situation of emergency medicine education in the country. CONCLUSIONS: As we trace the development and status of emergency medicine in India, we offer insight into the current state of the field, what the future holds for the emergency medical community, and how we can get there.