Bursary Updates
Every year APEM provides small bursaries to projects that help develop the field of paediatric emergency medicine for the better through small quality improvement projects.
2026
How Children and Young People Seeking Asylum and Refugees experience your Emergency Department
A full-day workshop was held on 5th October 2026 at St Thomas centre, Manchester. This event explored the Emergency Department (ED) experience of looking after Children and Young People Seeking Asylum and Refugees (CYPSAR) and discussed directions for future work. Attendees ranged from residents in Emergency Medicine and Paediatrics, to Consultants in Emergency Medicine, Paediatrics and Paediatric Emergency Medicine from across the UK.
The workshop kicked off with an interactive session to identify barriers to effective CYPSAR care across different localities; these were collated to produce common issues relevant to caring for CYPSARs in EDs across the UK. Solutions were then suggested in group work, based on professional experience and the existing strategies discussed in the interactive session. It was then explored how these may be adapted according to local priorities and resources, facilitated by the geographically diverse perspectives offered by participants. Finally, discussion centred on areas of existing International Child Health Group (ICHG) guidance to be prioritised in an ED under pressure, and how measures may be taken to ensure these audit standards are met.
Experiences working with CYPSAR in the EDs were then presented by a panel comprising Drs Sally Price, Ciara Carrick, Maria Marcolin, and Jane Moffat. Discussion highlighted the need for clear, auditable standards, greater CYPSAR visibility in research, and consistent care pathways. The four presenters had a wealth of varied experience in domains spanning clinical care, qualitative research and law.
The workshop’s discussion informed a final consideration of next steps. Overall, the event established an initial plan toward developing national guidance and support materials for EDs, a strategy to convert the ICHG standards into a pragmatic audit tool and further thoughts for CYPSAR-specific research. Importantly it provided an opportunity for an invested group of emergency care professionals working with CYPSAR to share knowledge, and form a group working towards change.
If this is an area of interest please contact: anisa.jafar@manchester.ac.uk