Burns
Assess the injury and recognise airway, perfusion or safeguarding concerns early.
Clinical learning outcomes: Awaiting named clinical review.
What you should learn
- Describe the mechanism, site, extent and apparent depth of a burn.
- Explain initial care and when specialist advice is needed.
Recognise and explain
- Burn severity is not determined by size alone; inhalation injury and associated trauma need attention.
On your placement
Agree the activity and supervision with the clinical team. For patient-facing learning, seek permission and respect the patient’s comfort and care needs.
- Check what first aid was given and review current burns guidance.
- Estimate extent with a clinician and compare assessments.
- Discuss analgesia, temperature protection and the referral decision.
Observe and understand
- Observe specialist fluid planning for a major burn; work through calculations as a supervised exercise.
Observation does not establish competence to perform these activities.
Start here
BBA: first aid for burns
Open the BBA and National Burns Network First Aid Statement dated 7 August 2026; compare its advice with the first aid given.
On your next shift
Ask which feature led to specialist advice, even if the burn looked small.
Go deeper
Optional material. Advanced resources extend discussion; they do not define independent student practice. Check the publication date and compare clinical advice with current guidance.
RCEMLearning: assessing burns
Read the burn-extent and depth sections. Discuss the assessment with your supervisor; advanced resuscitation and procedures remain team-led.
BBA: severe burns course manual
Optional specialist-course reading: discuss assessment and referral with the team. Major-burn fluid planning is not an independent student task.
How this relates to GMC graduate outcomes and the MLA
These are St Emlyn’s learning connections, not a claim that this page covers every national requirement.
Presentations and conditions: Burns.
Clinical and professional capabilities: Assessment and clinical reasoning; Recognising limits and seeking help.
St Emlyn’s interpretation of relevant GMC graduate outcomes and MLA themes; these are summary labels, not official topic codes or a complete curriculum.
Explore the student placement programme
Student practice and graduate expectations
About this resource and its review
A St Emlyn’s guide to learning Emergency Medicine during undergraduate placements. It is not an official medical-school or GMC curriculum. Your medical school’s curriculum and assessment requirements take precedence.
National foundations: GMC Outcomes for Graduates, the practical-skills supplement and the MLA content map applying from September 2026.
Framework checked: 8 October 2026. This is a source check, not clinical sign-off.
Clinical learning outcomes: awaiting named clinical review.
The four learning routes are St Emlyn’s groupings. The six interconnected MLA domains remain part of the official content map.