Introduction: Quality assistance in the emergency department is possible only if physicians have received a high quality education. The PHEEM (Postgraduate Hospital Educational Environment Measure) scale is a valid and reliable instrument used internationally to measure the educational environment in postgraduate medical education. Materials and methods: A cross-sectional study used the Spanish version of the scale PHEEM for meet educational environment of emergency programs. Cronbach`s alpha coefficient was calculated to determine internal consistency. Descriptive statistics is applied globally, by category and items of the scale PHEEM. The results were compared by gender, year of residence and program. Results: 94 (94%) residents filled the questionnaire. The mean score of the PHEEM was 93, 91 ± 23, 71 (58, 1% of the maximal score) which is considered the educational environment more positive than negative, with capability of improvement. There was a statistically significant difference in the perception of educational environment among residency by programs (p=0. 01). The instrument is highly reliable (Cronbach´s alpha = 0. 952). The most common barrier was overcrowding teaching and assessment was perceived in order to meet standards. Discussion: The results of this study provided evidence of the internal validity of the scale PHEEM in the Colombian context. This study demonstrated how the measurement of the educational environment in a medical-surgical specialty, with the use of a quantitative tool, can provide information regarding the strengths and weaknesses of the program.
