NEWSLETTER - Society for Academic Emergency Medicine

Transcription

NEWSLETTER - Society for Academic Emergency Medicine
NEWSLETTER
2340 S. River Road, Suite 208 | Des Plaines, IL 60018 | 847-813-9823 | www.saem.org
JULY-AUGUST 2015
VOLUME XXX NUMBER 4
SAEM INTRODUCES
NEW PRESIDENT
Deborah B. Diercks, MD, MSc
ANNUAL MEETING REVIEW
San Diego Was SAEM’s
Biggest + Best Meeting Yet
NEPAL EARTHQUAKE
Emergency Medicine
During the Nepal
Earthquake: 24-7-365
To lead the advancement of emergency care through education and research,
advocacy, and professional development in academic emergency medicine.
SAEM Staff
Chief Executive Officer
Megan N. Schagrin, MBA, CAE, CFRE
mschagrin@saem.org
Director of Information
Systems & Administration
James Pearson
Ext. 225, jpearson@saem.org
Communications Manager/Newsletter Editor
Marilyn Mages, CAE
Ext. 202, mmages@saem.org
Education Manager
LaTanya Morris
Ext. 214, lmorris@saem.org
Executive Assistant to the CEO
Monica Orozco White
Ext. 206, mwhite@saem.org
Grants & Foundation Manager
Melissa McMillian, CNP
Ext. 203, mmcmillian@saem.org
Marketing & Membership Manager
Holly Byrd-Duncan, MBA
Ext. 210, hbyrdduncan@saem.org
Meeting Planner
Maryanne Greketis, CMP
Ext. 209, mgreketis@saem.org
Membership Coordinator
George Greaves
Ext. 211, ggreaves@saem.org
2015-2016
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Deborah B. Diercks, MD, MSc
President
University of Texas Southwestern at Dallas
Andra L. Blomkalns, MD
President-Elect
University of Texas Southwestern at Dallas
D. Mark Courtney, MD
Secretary/Treasurer
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Robert S. Hockberger, MD
Immediate Past President
Harbor-UCLA Medical Center
Steven B. Bird, MD
University of Massachusetts Medical School
Kathleen J. Clem, MD, FACEP
Loma Linda University School of Medicine
James F. Holmes, Jr., MD, MPH
University of California Davis Health System
Systems Administrator/Database Analyst
Michael Reed
Ext. 205, mreed@saem.org
Amy H. Kaji, MD, PhD
Harbor-UCLA Medical Center
SAEM & Foundation
Administrative Assistant
Kataryna Christensen
Ext. 201, kchristensen@saem.org
Ian B.K. Martin, MD
University of North Carolina School of Medicine
Education Administrative Assistant
Elizabeth Oshinson
Ext. 204, eoshinson@saem.org
AEM Staff
Editor in Chief
David C. Cone, MD
david.cone@yale.edu
Journal Editor
Kathleen Seal
kseal@saem.org
Journal Manager
Stacey Roseen
Ext, 207, sroseen@saem.org
Richard Wolf, MD
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center/Harvard Medical School
Kavita Joshi, MD
Resident Member
University of Texas Southwestern at Dallas
The SAEM Newsletter is published bimonthly by the
Society for Academic Emergency Medicine. The opinions
expressed in this publication are those of the authors and
do not necessarily reflect those of SAEM.
For Newsletter archives visit
http://www.saem.org/publications/newsletters
© 2015 Society for Academic Emergency Medicine. All rights
reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored,
or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior
permission in writing from the copyright holder.
Table of Contents
PAGE 4
MEET SAEM’S NEWLY
INSTALLED PRESIDENT
Deborah B. Diercks, MD, MSc
PAGE 10
SAEM MEMBER FEATURE
Two SAEM members experienced
the Nepal earthquake firsthand
PAGE 16
SAEM15 ANNUAL MEETING
San Diego was the biggest and best
6
8
Chief Executive’s Message
Ethics on Call
14
18
20
LouAnn Woodward, MD
22
2015 Residency
+ Fellowship Fair
24
2015 Excellence in Emergency
Medicine Award
26
28
Toxicology Conference
30
Academic Announcements
32
SAEM Western
Regional Meeting
34
19th Annual New England
Regional Conference
Photography Exhibit
Sonogames
2015 SAEM Foundation
Grant Recipients
President’s Message
Deborah B. Diercks, MD, MSc
Professor and Chair
University of Texas Southwestern
Medical Center at Dallas
My daughter comes running off the field of one of her first
soccer games and asks me, “Mom, how did I do?” Her team
had just gotten soundly beaten by a better team, and she
had spent most of the game watching them run by her and
looking at the flowers in the grass. She wanted my feedback,
and I had to decide what I was going to say to my little girl.
Was I going to be the type of parent who just told her what
I thought she wanted to hear, or was I going to be brutally
honest and say what I believed to be true? I looked at her
little face and said, “Tough game, Lauren, but your hair
looked really pretty.” She looked up at me and smiled, quite
happy with my response. I have no idea if I did the right thing,
but I clearly had provided feedback with no substance.
As academic physicians and residents we are often asked to
provide feedback to learners we work with. Providing verbal
feedback is one of the most difficult skills to master. In its
simplistic form, it focuses on sharing information about how
one is doing in reaching his or her objective. Hopefully, the
feedback is provided in such a way that a learner can process
and translate into an actionable change in knowledge and
behavior. In emergency medicine, this often occurs during
or immediately after a busy shift. Although this environment
may not be ideal, providing feedback in a timely manner is a
key component of successfully reaching goals.
Often we tend to confuse feedback with advice. But feedback is
goal oriented. An example would be, “When you sit down with
me and run the board, I have confidence that you are in control
of the area.” Feedback does not require advice on how to do
things better or judgment terms on if the methods or actions are
good and bad. It simply relates to a goal. Oftentimes feedback is
followed by advice on how to improve progress toward that goal.
SAEM is dependent on our members’ feedback in order to
determine if the organization is meeting its goals. As a society,
we can interpret observable effects such as an increase in annual
meeting attendance as positive feedback. However, there is also
great value in ongoing input from our members in terms of how
the organization is progressing. The strategic plan is now on the
website for public viewing as an external document on what
goals we are trying to reach. We need member feedback, as a
large number of our goals are member oriented. (The plan has
also been included in this issue to your right.) Hopefully, some
members have taken the opportunity to provide feedback through
our annual meeting evaluations. Our website also provides an
option to contact SAEM and email feedback at any time.
Feedback is an essential component of assessing progress.
SAEM is committed to our members and the strategic plan that
we created. However, we need member input on a continuous
basis to ensure that we are headed in the right direction.
A graduate of the University of California, Berkeley, Dr. Diercks earned her medical degree from Tufts University School of Medicine. She went on
to complete her residency training at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center, and later earned a master’s degree from the Harvard School of
Public Health. She joined UT Southwestern following 16 years as a faculty member at the University of California, Davis, where she most recently
served as Professor of Emergency Medicine and Vice Chair for Research. There, Dr. Diercks also was Director of Regulatory Knowledge and
Support for the institutional Clinical and Translational Science Awards Center.
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July / August 2015
SAEM Strategic Plan
Goals and Objectives
Goal #1: SAEM is recognized as an essential
contributor to the personal and professional
development of the academic emergency medicine
community.
Objectives:
• Enhance the career success of academic
emergency physicians.
• Increase mentorship, networking and leadership
development opportunities.
• Cultivate the next generation of leaders through
increased participation in SAEM.
• Increase the number of international academic
emergency physicians participating in SAEM.
Goal #2: SAEM’s digital footprint is globally
recognized as the hub for academic emergency
medicine.
Objectives:
• Increase accessibility of SAEM’s digital footprint.
• Maintain essential content on the SAEM website,
communications platforms and other digital venues.
• Increase networking, collaboration and community.
Goal #3: SAEM continues to increase the number of
its members with grant funding.
Objectives:
• Enhance advocacy for dedicated funding of the
Office of Emergency Care Research.
• Increase the number of members applying for
federally funded grants.
• Increase the number of members applying for
non-federally funded grants.
• Support the SAEM Foundation to increase the
number and funding amounts of education and
research grants.
Goal #4: Medical educators in emergency medicine
recognize SAEM as the premier resource for career
advancement.
Objectives:
• Increase the number of medical education
publications by SAEM members.
• Increase SAEM’s resources for supporting academic
promotion and tenure.
• Promote high-impact innovations in medical
education.
• Enhance training in medical education research
methodologies.
Dr. Dierck’s SAEM Involvement
Deborah B. Diercks, MD, MSc, FACEP,
became the 2015-2016 SAEM President at
the Annual Meeting in San Diego this past
May. Dr. Diercks is Professor and Chair of the
Department of Emergency Medicine at UT
Southwestern Medical Center. She holds the
Audre and Bernard Rapoport Distinguished
Chair in Clinical Care and Research.
As a nationally recognized leader in
the specialty, Dr. Diercks oversees the
emergency medicine programs at Parkland
Memorial Hospital and UT Southwestern
University Hospitals, which together
constitute one of the largest emergency
medicine programs in the nation.
Dr. Diercks has collaborated in studies
involving the identification of acute coronary
syndrome in the emergency department,
including the use of cardiac injury markers
and novel electrocardiogram techniques, and
evaluated the observation unit care of the
chest pain patient.
She has participated in therapeutic trials
for congestive heart failure and acute
coronary syndrome. In addition to SAEM, Dr.
Diercks is on the Board of Directors for the
Society of Chest Pain Centers. Additionally,
she is active in several committees of the
American College of Cardiology, American
Heart Association and American College of
Emergency Physicians.
July
May
/ August
/ June 2015
5
SAEM Introduces New CEO:
Megan Schagrin MBA, CAE, CFRE
It is such a pleasure to be your new Chief Executive Officer.
I began on June 15, 2015, and I now feel fairly acclimated.
The staff, leaders, and members of SAEM have been
extremely welcoming. I was able to attend a portion of the
SAEM Annual Meeting in May in San Diego, and I can say
I was most impressed. The education and unique delivery
of that education was inspiring. There was also a youthful
energy to the meeting, which fostered positive networking
experiences and conversations about how to grow, improve
and expand on the delivery of services to our members.
Having sat in on the planning committee meeting for the
2016 Annual Meeting, I know next year will bring even more
valuable education to our members in the enjoyable city of
New Orleans.
For those of you who I have not had the opportunity to meet
yet, I really do look forward to it. For the past 15 years,
I have worked within the medical association community
with some top-notch associations, including the American
College of Chest Physicians, the American Academy of
Otolaryngology (Head and Neck Surgery), the American
Society of Clinical Oncology, and the Society of Nuclear
Medicine and Molecular Imaging.
I have specialized in business development, and I also led
association governances, novel education development,
international expansions, and public and association-toassociation partnerships. I believe all of these experiences
will help me to contribute to the innovation and momentum
that SAEM is currently undergoing. Yes, working for a
medical association is my job, but with all sincerity it is also
a hobby. I truly love what I do and take great joy in helping
to accelerate association growth.
Outside of the office, I am a proud parent to a 13-year-old
son. James is all about football, discus, and shot put for
his middle school teams. My husband, John, is a materials
engineer and senior advisor for program development at
Argonne National Laboratory. While we both share senior
positions in scientific fields in common, our real passions
together are entertaining, boating and travel. It is safe to
say that if we are not working, we are spending free time
participating in one of those three activities.
SAEM is an important organization to society. Our members
lead the advancement of emergency care through education,
research, advocacy and professional development. The
CEO also plays an integral role by helping to define the
business roadmap that serves to accomplish that mission.
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July / August 2015
A successful partnership between our members, leaders,
staff and the CEO helps propel the growth and expansion
of our business while ensuring we maintain proper legal and
business practices of a high-functioning company.
Having shared the importance of the CEO position, I want to
thank Ron Moen for his help and support in fostering a smooth
CEO transition. Ron is extremely well known in the association
world for being an exceptional leader. People follow Ron’s
lead because of who he is and what he represents. He has a
long history of success and a longer trail of those who he has
mentored and helped advance within the association world. I
am privileged to have spent time with Ron before taking over
the helm myself, and SAEM was fortunate to have had Ron
while we did. Now I wish Ron beautiful adventures in retirement
and many trips to Hawaii, which is his favorite vacation spot.
With SAEM’s new five-year strategic plan, the next steps for our
organization are clear. We will ensure that we are an essential
contributor to the personal and professional development
of the academic emergency medicine community. We will
expand our digital footprint and become globally recognized
as the hub for academic emergency medicine. We will have
a measureable impact and increase the number of members
with grant funding. And at our core, we will know that medical
educators in emergency medicine recognize SAEM as the
premier resource for career advancement.
To accomplish our strategic plan, we will next tactically identify
the steps necessary to get us from where we are today to our
envisioned future of tomorrow. Our goals are lofty, but certainly
achievable. They will take the combined effort of SAEM, SAEM
Foundation, academies, committees and individual members.
It is the combined strength of all of what we do that brings us
to excellence. As you can probably tell, I am a strong believer
in collaboration.
It really was who you are that attracted me to SAEM. You
are there for the acutely ill and injured patient. You are also
a premier organization with deliverables of high quality. As
an organization and as individuals, you value camaraderie,
creativity and diversity. These are all qualities that I personally
believe in as well. I look forward to working with all of you, and
I am most certainly proud to be your CEO.
You can reach Megan at mschagrin@saem.org.
The Importance of Participating in
Scientific Research as a Medical Student
By Joel Brooks, DO
SAEM appreciates the contributions from the Resident and Student Advisory Committee.
This column presents advice, insights and suggestions for other residents and students.
Medical research helps form the foundation of current
clinical practice. There is a great emphasis on practicing
medicine through evidence-based guidelines. All fields of
medicine, especially emergency medicine, follow these
recommendations. These guidelines can only be created
through the efforts of researchers willing to undertake the
projects necessary to define them. Medical students have
a unique opportunity to assist in research as part of a team
and to contribute to the field.
Medical research also has become an integral part of the
resume and application for residency. There are increasingly
large numbers of emergency medicine programs that expect
their applicants to perform research, complete a project,
or have an ongoing study at the time they apply. This is
preparation for the research residents who are expected
to perform under the guidance of their mentors. The more
experience you have, the more attractive a candidate you
become for residency programs.
The different forms of research and publications include:
•
Abstracts offer short summaries to promote critical
thinking and encourage further study.
•
Case reports represent the passage of clinical
experience from physician to physician.
•
Literature reviews focus on a topic and explore
contemporary studies to update the medical field
with the most current information.
•
Primary research studies are undertaken to answer
a specific hypothesis, and they encompass clinical
trials, retrospective and prospective studies.
•
Quality improvement projects are becoming more
important for department development and are a
requirement for many residency programs.
It can be daunting to perform research as a medical student
without prior experience. A helpful place to start is to
communicate with the emergency department chair at your
medical school. Discuss the projects you are interested in
and whether there are ongoing projects in which you could
partake. If you are on an audition rotation, speak with the
department director and express your interest in aiding in any
ongoing studies or propose your own. Many departments
will appreciate your interest and be glad to have you as part
of their team.
If you are unable to find a mentor or project at your school
or rotation sites, the Society for Academic Emergency
Medicine offers a mentorship program with a diverse group
of emergency medicine faculty that can help advise and direct
you. Find more info at saem.org/membership/services/eadvising/student-faqs.
Aim to develop project ideas prior to meeting with a department
director or mentor so that you can be directed on the best
course. Perhaps there is an interesting case you encountered
that you would like to explore further. The advantage to working
within an established department is that it may have already
obtained institutional review board approval for a project and
consent from patients to perform studies. There often are
online training courses in areas such as patient confidentiality,
statistics and ethical research you must complete in order to
participate in medical research.
Once a project is selected, you must decide the venue in which
you wish to present the material. Abstracts and poster sessions
at conferences are well-recognized methods of presenting
research. There are many regional and national conferences
throughout the year that you can present at including those
sponsored by SAEM, the American College of Emergency
Physicians, and the American Academy of Emergency
Physicians. Each conference has specific guidelines for their
submission, and it falls on you to ensure your research is
formatted correctly and that you submit all of your material
within the specified deadlines.
Research can be a great deal of work, but it is also rewarding
to see your efforts advance knowledge, clinical skills and
novel methods for expanding the field of medicine. And while
participating in medical research has become a part of the
application process for residency programs, it is important to
remember that the true goal is to always relate your work back
to your patients and improve the methods and knowledge we
have to help them.
“the true goal is to always relate your
work back to your patients and improve
the methods and knowledge we have
to help them.”
About the Author:
Dr. Joel Brooks is a second-year resident at the Heart
of Lancaster Regional Medical Center in Lititz, Penn.
He serves on SAEM’s Resident and Student Advisory
Committee.
July / August 2015
7
ETHICS
ON CALL
Discharging Intoxicated
Patients Requires a Clear
Hospital Policy
By Jeremy Simon, MD, PhD
It is Friday night, a belligerent drunk man who is 40 years of
age comes into the emergency department. For his safety as
well as the safety of those around him, he is placed within
a secure perimeter with security guards and an elopement
watch. Approximately 10 minutes after being placed in
a stretcher, he is deeply sedated, but the initial exam and
frequent re-evaluations give no indication that the sedation
is the result of anything but alcohol intoxication, and he
gradually becomes more arousable.
After several hours, the patient is awake again. He is no
longer belligerent, but he appears visibly intoxicated. He
is irritable, slurs his speech, is unsteady on his feet, and is
interacting inappropriately with the other patients in his area.
Soon after waking, he calls over the ED attending and asks
to be allowed to leave.
Emergency physicians have powers granted that most people
do not have. In certain circumstances we can take people
we know very little about and without further authorization
or review prevent them from leaving the hospital, effectively
imprisoning them. We have this authority when patients
present an imminent danger to themselves or others. In such
cases, our ethical duty to protect supersedes our duty to
respect autonomy, and, the law, in general, correlates with
this understanding of our duty
8
July / August 2015
The clearest case for using this authority is in the acutely
suicidal or homicidal patient. The law in every state provides
for the involuntary commitment of such patients, and the ED
is often the first point of contact with the medical system for
such patients. The right to hold such patients against their will
applies even when they do not lack decision-making capacity.
It is the content of their decisions, and not their means of
reaching them, that is the problem.
Another patient we often hold in the hospital over their protests
are demented or otherwise intellectually impaired individuals.
Usually this is because they lack capacity to refuse the
treatment needed; thus, they cannot leave against medical
advice and must be admitted for treatment regardless of their
wishes. (This is not to say that every patient who lacks capacity
must be admitted if they do not want treatment, just that in
some cases it is the appropriate pathway.) Other times these
patients must be admitted, not because they need treatment,
but because there is no safe discharge plan. In effect, they are
a danger to themselves if released.
The patient in our example can be difficult to place into this
framework. While intoxicated people have a reduced ability
to care for themselves and certainly can end up getting hurt,
this is generally a risk we as a society do not try to remove.
Certainly mild to moderately drunk people are not picked up by
2015 SAEM Research Winners
emergency personnel simply because they are inebriated. A
person seen walking on the street in the state our patient is
in upon awakening would likely be directed home, not taken
into some sort of protective custody.
It would seem, then, that our patient is not such a danger
to himself that he cannot be allowed to leave. However, that
is not the only consideration here. First, if the patient is in
location where he is likely to return to a car or if he is known
to have driven to the area where he was found then we must
be concerned about the risk he poses to others. While the
risk is not exactly comparable to that posed by a homicidal
patient—where the potential harm is both intended and
directed at a specific target—it may still be one we are
responsible for managing. Also, given that we already are
responsible for the patient’s safety, the bar for considering
us absolved of this responsibility (by being allowed to let
him go) may be higher than the bar that allows us to avoid
taking responsibility for him in the first place (by allowing
him to go on his way on the street).
In the face of these competing imperatives, the general
practice is to observe intoxicated patients until they can
leave, by foot or car safely. However, a recent court decision
in New York somewhat complicates things, at least in that
state. In Kowalski v. St. Francis, New York’s highest court
ruled that a physician had neither the obligation nor the
right to hold an intoxicated patient against his will after the
person had brought himself in. In that case, a man who was
allowed to leave the ED while still intoxicated was injured
after leaving and sued the hospital for allowing him to leave.
The hospital and doctor were not held to be liable as they
had no duty to prevent the patient from leaving.
This case would seem to undercut the practice of holding
patients until they can leave safely. However, before
applying this case to practice, EDs should keep a few things
in mind. First, this case was decided in New York and is
not directly relevant to other states. Second, it related to
a patient who brought himself in, and may not apply to
patients who needed to be brought in against their will.
Finally, in a situation where a patient may cause harm to
others after discharge, the physician may have a duty to
protect the public.
Ultimately, it is important for every hospital to have a
clear policy on discharging intoxicated patients based on
professional standards and local law.
SAEM recognizes excellent performance and
participation at the SAEM Annual Meeting. The
2015 winners and award categories are as follows:
Young Investigator
Lack of Medical Insurance is an Independent
Predictor of Increased Inter-Facility Transfer for
St-Elevation Myocardial Infarction in U.S.
Emergency Departments
Michael J. Ward
Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN
Resident
Application of Focused Echocardiography in
Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation: Systemic Review
and Meta-analysis
Jeanette Kurbedin
Maimonides Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY
Medical Student
Contribution of Fibrinolysis to the Physical
Component Summary of the SF-36 after Acute
Submassive Pulmonary Embolism
Lauren Stewart
Indiana University School of Medicine,
Indianapolis, IN
Fellow
Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest Patients Have
Better Outcomes After Endotracheal Intubation
Compared to Supraglottic Airways: A MetaAnalysis
Justin Benoit
University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH
Faculty
Risk Adjusted Variation of Publicly Reported
Emergency Department Timeliness Measures
Benjamin Sun
About the Author:
Dr. Jeremy Simon is an associate professor of medicine
at Columbia University Medical Center and an attending
physician in the emergency department of New YorkPresbyterian Hospital/Columbia. He serves on the
Columbia University Medical Center Ethics Committee, as
well as SAEM’s ethics committee. His interests extend to
both medical ethics and general philosophy of medicine
and particularly to the intersection of these fields.
Oregon Health and Science University, Portland,
OR
Basic Science
Does Routine Midazolam Administration Prior
to Nasogastric Tube Insertion in the Emergency
Department Decrease Patients’ Pain?
Chelsea Manning
University of Vermont, Burlington,
VT 2015
July
May
/ August
/ June
9
5
NEPAL
EARTHQUAKE
A destroyed building from the earthquake in Pheriche, Nepal (Photo by Renee Salas)
Emergency Medicine during the
Nepal Earthquake: 24-7-365
By Renee N. Salas, MD, MS
Renee Salas, MD, MS, is one of many SAEM members who contribute to emergency
medicine on a regular basis. SAEM thanks her for sharing her story.
(Photo by Salman Bhai)
In my limited time since returning back to the United States
from Nepal, I have grieved for the people that I had come to
love and a country that I called home. I first arrived in Nepal
on March 1 as the capstone of my two-year wilderness
medicine fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital
in Boston. I was one of three volunteer physicians for the
Himalayan Rescue Association (HRA) post in a remote
village near Everest Base Camp (EBC) called Pheriche.
Prior to the earthquake, our team had treated nearly 350
patients over the course of six weeks with complaints
ranging from altitude illnesses to other medical maladies
in the international trekking, climbing, and indigenous
population. Our clinic was a three-bed facility with a limited
pharmacy and an ultrasound machine as our only diagnostic
imaging. There are no motorized vehicles in this region, but
transportation instead is by foot, horse, yak or helicopter.
The nearest hospital is in Lukla, which is an arduous twoday hike down the mountain. Thus, this experience alone
honed my wilderness medicine skills in a way no textbook
or simulation ever could. I operated in an environment
with limited resources that required decisive decisions on
evacuation. Creativity was critical for clinical situations for
which there was no easy solution.
This was the setting for the 7.8 magnitude earthquake
that struck without warning on April 25 around noon. It
devastated the small village of Pheriche, causing either
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July / August 2015
complete destruction or significant structural damage to all
but two buildings. There were no significant injuries within the
village, so the immediate actions were to determine the safety
of loved ones and colleagues in the country. Communications
were disrupted, which led to angst from the uncertainty. Our
continued attempts at radio contact to our colleagues at
Everest EBC went unanswered over the course of the day. It
wasn’t until we received the first two patients from EBC nine
hours later, patients who had self-evacuated by foot and horse
immediately after the event, that we learned of the avalanche. A
high-velocity avalanche produced by the earthquake cascaded
off Pumori Mountain and devastated the middle third of Everest
Base Camp, resulting in death and destruction. After treating
these two patients, our team anxiously awaited further patients.
However, none arrived that evening.
But beginning early the next morning, over the course of five
hours, we received, treated and then evacuated 73 patients
from EBC with a range of blunt trauma injuries sustained during
the avalanche 18 hours previously.
The EBC team, the true heroes of this tragedy, treated and
packaged the patients superbly. The sound of helicopter rotors
echoed through the valley as the pilots continuously brought
patients to our small rock helipad. The local and international
trekking community rallied in an effort that was awe-inspiring
as we required both medical and non-medical assistance to
Everest climbers get extracted to Pheriche from EBC (Photo by R. Salas)
care for these patients. Continual streams of teams carried
the stretchers from the helipad to our clinic. We received the
most critical patients first. After quickly filling our three beds,
they were placed on either our clinic floor or in our adjacent
sunroom. The less critical and walking wounded were
directed to the neighboring lodge’s dining room. We placed
a large piece of white tape on the chests of the patients that
included name, presumed injuries, running vital signs and
the medications administered. As we furthered the medical
care to the best of our ability, we worked against the clock
and weather to attempt evacuation to more definitive care.
After securing a Mi-17 helicopter that could carry 16 to 18
patients, we were able to get all of the patients evacuated
down to Lukla Hospital by early afternoon.
In the 10 days following the earthquake, I was heartbroken
as I slowly gained more information about the extent of the
devastation throughout the country and region. After the
climbing season on Mount Everest was cancelled and base
camp evacuated, the trekking population vanished. The
decision was made to close the clinic early, but my heart
knew there was more work for me to complete. Thus, my
intense but brief mass causality experience was followed by
extended service with the International Medical Corps. Our
team was transported by helicopter into remote villages in
the Gorkha region, west of Kathmandu, to provide medical
care to those affected by the earthquake. Our team treated
mainly chronic, but some acute, conditions – often seeing
over 100 patients in a half day. The structural devastation
within the villages was heartbreaking, especially with
the looming monsoon season. However, the spirit and
generosity of the villagers was overwhelming. For example,
they continually attempted to feed us despite their dwindling
food supplies.
My emergency and wilderness medicine skill set provided
the foundation for me to provide care in a variety of settings
during my three months in Nepal. Through this, I rediscovered
the reasons I chose emergency medicine. It has renewed my
passion for practice. While many of us relish the fast-paced,
uncertain and adrenaline-filled environment that we often
practice in, it is the sacred gift of interacting with numerous
patients in a short time span at their time of greatest need
that I cherish most. In disaster and austere environments,
this is only amplified. We also have a clinical skill set that
prepares us to address the breadth of all possible chief
complaints.
The clinic, mass casualty, and remote village patients covered
the gamut of pathologies. However, we thrive on a spectrum
of chief complaints within the walls of our emergency
departments. The ABCs of our specialty are ingrained in us,
and I repeated this with each trauma patient in Pheriche.
However, instead of performing my exam standing next to a
stretcher, I was kneeling next to them on the wood floor pulling
away sleeping bags instead of sheets. We also are experts
at fighting for the best interests of our patients. But instead
of convincing a sub-specialist of the necessity of a consult, I
was fighting for helicopters for patient evacuations. Lastly, we
fundamentally rely on teamwork and collaboration to achieve
the optimal care for our patients. Our remote team could
never have achieved the success we did without the selfless
volunteers who assisted us.
We are the only true 24-7-365 specialty in medicine. We, as
emergency medicine physicians, are always there for our
communities at their time of greatest need. I happened to be
present for a natural disaster that created a time of greatest
need for an entire country. While I hope I was able to catalyze
some small change through my actions, the fortitude,
generosity and sense of community that the citizens of Nepal
exhibited forever changed me. However, their struggle is far
from over as more challenges will arise with the impending
monsoon season. It will take years to truly rebuild. I hope
that we, as a community of resourced emergency medicine
physicians, can continue to be there for Nepal, 24-7-365.
It is already what we do best.
Western HRA team who managed the EBC mass casualty in Pheriche (from left to
right) - Renee Salas, MD, Meg Walmsley, MD, Reuben Tabner, Katie Williams, MD,
Andrew Nyberg, MD (Photo by Ken Zafren)
About the Author:
Renee N. Salas, MD, MS, is an emergency medicine
physician and wilderness medicine fellow at
Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and a Clinical
Instructor of Emergency Medicine at Harvard Medical
School in Boston. She attended the Cleveland Clinic
Lerner College of Medicine in Cleveland, Ohio, for medical
school and the University of Cincinnati for residency. She
will be transitioning to faculty at MGH in the Division of
Wilderness Medicine in July upon graduation from her
fellowship.
July / August 2015
11
EM Physician Offers Support in the Face
of Local Disaster
By Lara Phillips, MD
SAEM had two members in Nepal at the time of the earthquake, Lara Phillips, MD, shares with
us her experiences of being in Nepal when a disastrous earthquake struck on April 25, 2015.
I was stationed at Manang (11,600 feet) and Thorong Phedi
(15,000 feet) for three months. I first became interested in
wilderness medicine during an elective in my 4th year of
medical school. I enjoy providing medical care in nontraditional
settings with limited resources under austere conditions. It
also gives me the opportunity for humanitarian work, providing
service to those in need.
Where were you and what were you doing when the quake
struck? What did you experience?
I was stationed at Thorong Phedi working in a satellite clinic
through the Himalayan Rescue Association and going for a
day hike to high camp about 30 minutes away (around 16,000
feet). I heard a deep rumble and the ground trembled. I looked
around to make sure I was not in the way of an avalanche
and was fortunately in an open space. I had never been in an
earthquake before and assumed it was a nearby avalanche,
although something seemed wrong. I stopped in a tea house
at high camp when the first aftershock occurred a few minutes
later. Once inside a building, you could appreciate how
much the structure was shaking. Everyone ran outside, and
fortunately there were no injuries. I hiked back to my clinic in
Thorong Phedi, where all communication was cut off. Even our
clinic’s satellite phone wouldn’t function for 24 hours. We felt
lucky as the tea house in Thorong Phedi is surrounded by large
overhanging boulders and none were dislodged. We heard bits
and pieces from the radio of the damage in Kathmandu. All I
could think was how much I needed to let my family know I
was OK..
Thick snowfall started, making it even less likely the satellite
phone would work. The following day, weather cleared, the
phone was working and I called my family immediately, at
which point I learned about the extent of the damage and
tragedy. We then passed the phone around to the Nepali
staff that had family and friends in Kathmandu and who were
anxiously awaiting to hear from their loved ones. We were able
to get in touch with the Himalayan Rescue Association (HRA)
and decided to descend to Manang to better coordinate our
actions with the other doctors.
After descending, we had a difficult decision whether or not
to close the HRA clinic. The clinic in Manang serves the local
Nepali community in addition to trekkers traveling through the
Annapurna circuit. While the volume of trekkers declined after the
earthquake, we still had a responsibility to the local community.
Fortunately, Manang was largely unharmed by the earthquake.
The volunteer doctors also felt a responsibility to assist in areas
that were devastated by the earthquake and ultimately, after
discussion with the HRA, a decision was made the close the
12
July / August 2015
clinic for the season and join the earthquake relief effort. We
mobilized a medical supply and departed for Sindhupalchok, a
three-day journey from Manang, which suffered massive losses
of human life, housing and livestock. While in Sindhupalchok,
we surveyed medical needs and provided health services. We
worked with their local health aid workers and the Nepali army
to help augment their existing health care network. Most cases
were chronic medical conditions with some orthopedic injuries
and the beginnings of infectious disease and sepsis cases
as most villagers were without solid shelter and exposed to
unsanitary conditions.
After two days in Sindhupalchok, we headed back to
Kathmandu; the HRA doctors joined with one of the NGOs to
continue volunteering. I joined their mobile medical units in
Gorkha where we would fly by helicopter to multiple isolated
pockets of villages and run health clinics for one to two
days before flying to the next village. We set our tents up far
away from all structures and on safe areas with low risk for
landslides. We took several safety precautions as we were still
experiencing aftershocks daily.
These small rural villages have little access to healthcare, with
the closest hospital being a three-day hike away. Some villages
were completely isolated as there was damage to bridges and
roads connecting them to the outside world. One village we
visited had set up a landing spot for a helipad with “HELP US”
written in stones as they were completely dependent on aerial
transport for food and medical services.
Many of the patients we saw in Gorkha weren’t just earthquake
victims given their limited access to health services. For
example, I cared for a 20-year-old girl complaining of chest
pain for five days. I checked her vital signs and her heart rate
was 243, three times the normal rate! It was purely coincidence
that we found a patient with supraventricular tachycardia who
otherwise may not have sought care unless medical disaster
teams had visited her village.
Where you prepared for the events that happened after the
quake?
Yes, I felt prepared for the events after the quake. While in
the field, we saw many patients. In one particular health clinic
staffed with four doctors, two nurses, two pharmacists, and
several interpreters, we saw more than 500 people in two
days. As an emergency medicine physician, we are equipped
to seeing large masses of patients. We learn to be flexible, stay
calm and make clear decisions as patient volume and acuity
surges.
As a wilderness medicine fellow, we are trained to thrive in prehospital setting with limited resources. Prior to the earthquake, I
was managing patients in the HRA’s high-altitude clinics, which
helped prepare me for the events after the quake. You learn to
be creative with the resources at your disposal (e.g. we used a
bike to wheel a patient with high altitude pulmonary edema to
the clinic when no stretcher was available; a tampon was used
to stop bleeding from a laceration when we had no packaged
gauze; field splints can be made using cloth and a sticks, etc).
There was a second quake, how did that one compare to the
first one?
The second earthquake occurred while running a mobile
medical clinic in Gorkha. As soon as we felt the shaking, we
ran outside in time to watch one of the walls of the buildings
we were in collapse. All around the village, you could see
rockfalls. There were no major injuries in the village and we
were extracted that afternoon and brought to Kathmandu. We
were told that we would need to set up a field hospital to take
overflow orthopedic trauma patients from a nearby hospital that
suffered damage. Daylight was gone and we were scrambling
using our headlamps to set up tents to place the patients in.
By morning, we were ready and transported patients from the
hospital to our field site. Over the next two weeks, we would
continue to care for post-surgical orthopedic trauma patients.
Setting up the field hospital came with much responsibility
as one must consider infrastructure, staffing, supply chain,
level of service, data and information record and polices and
procedures. This had been successful thanks to collaborative
efforts between IMC, Patan Hospital and the Nepali Army. It
was one of my most rewarding experiences.
What are your “take home” ideas or lessons learned?
The earthquake in Nepal was a horrific tragedy, but also
exhibited the selfless actions of others. Massachusetts General
Hospital mobilized a medical team after the earthquake. It
also took less than 24 hours for the doctors in the emergency
medicine department to cover each other’s shifts, making it
possible for others to deploy to Nepal. The local Nepali doctors
I worked with in the field hospital were incredible. Some had
not left the hospital for days after the second earthquake.
Others were giving their all every day while they went “home”
to sleep in tents.
After the earthquake, there is damage beyond the physical
realm. When I first arrived in Gorkha and was setting up the
clinic, one woman walked over to me, grabbed my hand and just
sobbed. She had lost her home and one of her family members
was missing. Everywhere families were in mourning the loss
of loved ones. During one of the health clinics, the village
uncovered their last missing person, the body of a 3-year-old
boy. As if the demolished buildings weren’t enough, the daily
aftershocks were a constant reminder of what occurred.
How do you think this will help you in your future EM practice?
Every experience I had over the last three months has helped
shape me into a better physician. Without medical technology,
I learned to take time listening to the patient and making a
clinical judgment based on history and physical exam alone.
While certainly medical technology has aided in our ability to
diagnose and treat multiple conditions, I hope to continue to
use this different skillset to care for patients.
About the Author:
Dr. Lara Phillips is a clinical instructor of emergency
medicine at Harvard Medical School and a Wilderness
Medicine Fellow at Massachusetts General Hospital.
As part of her fellowship, Dr. Phillips had the honor to
volunteer through the Himalayan Rescue Association
(HRA) in a high-altitude clinic in Nepal. She became
interested in wilderness medicine during her 4th year in
medical school.
The Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Alabama School
of Medicine is seeking talented residency trained Emergency Medicine
physicians at all academic ranks to join our faculty. The University offers both
tenure and non tenure earning positions.
The University of Alabama Hospital is a 903-bed teaching hospital, with a state
of the art emergency department that occupies an area the size of a football
field. The Department treats over 75,000 patients annually and houses
Alabama’s only designated Level I trauma center. The Department’s dynamic,
challenging emergency medicine residency training program is the only one of
its kind in the State of Alabama.
The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) is a major research center
with over $440 million in NIH and other extramural funding. The Department
of Emergency Medicine hosts a nationally-recognized research program and
is a site for the NIH-funded Resuscitation Outcomes Consortium (ROC). The
Department has been highly successful in developing extramural research
support in this warmly collaborative institution.
Birmingham Alabama is a vibrant, diverse, beautiful city located in the foothills
of the Appalachian Mountains. The metropolitan area is home to over one
million people, who enjoy recreational activities year round because of its mild
southern Climate. Birmingham combines big city amenities with Southern
charm and hospitality.
A highly competitive salary is offered. Applicants must be EM board eligible or
certified. UAB is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer committed
to fostering a diverse, equitable and family-friendly environment in which all
faculty and staff can excel and achieve work/life balance irrespective of, race,
national origin, age, genetic or family medical history, gender, faith, gender
identity and expression as well as sexual orientation. UAB also encourages
applications from individuals with disabilities and veterans.
A pre-employment background investigation is performed on candidates
selected for employment.
In addition, physicians and other clinical faculty candidates, who will be
employed by the University of Alabama Health Services Foundation (UAHSF)
or other UAB Medicine entities, must successfully complete a pre-employment
drug and nicotine screen to be hired.
Please send your curriculum vitae to:
Janyce Sanford, M.D., Associate Professor & Chair of Emergency Medicine,
University of Alabama at Birmingham; Department of Emergency Medicine;
619 South 19th Street; OHB 251; Birmingham, AL 35249-701
July / August 2015
13
New Dean at University of Mississippi Medical
Center Uses Her ER Background to Tackle Home
State Challenges
By Tara Burghart
If anyone understands
the health challenges
faced by the state of
Mississippi, it is LouAnn
Woodward, MD, the
new vice chancellor for
health affairs and dean of
the School of Medicine
at the University of
Mississippi
Medical
Center (UMMC).
Dr. Woodward, 51, grew
up on a farm in Carroll
County, Miss. As a girl,
she loved science and
LouAnn Woodward, MD
was fascinated by life
cycle events she saw as she accompanied her father around
the farm checking on the animals. Going into medicine was
an early choice.
medical center runs hospitals in three cities, has more than
9,800 employees, nearly 3,000 students and a budget of $1.6
billion.
Dr. Woodward certainly knows she has a challenge on her
hands: Her big-picture goal is to improve Mississippi’s place
on these health outcome lists.
“There’s so much potential for good things to happen in
Mississippi,” she says. “And in so many instances, because we
are the only academic medical center in the state, we feel there
is a great responsibility to do these things for Mississippi or
they just won’t happen.”
The state is already making strides, she says. UMMC recently
marked its 50th liver transplant, just two years after creating the
state’s only liver transplant program. Its Telehealth program,
which started as TelEmergency, is going strong in the hospital’s
emergency department.
After graduating from the University of Mississippi’s School
of Medicine in Jackson in 1991, Dr. Woodward completed an
internship in internal medicine and a residency in emergency
medicine at UMMC. She then joined its faculty while also
working as an emergency physician, eventually taking on
greater administrative roles until being named to her newest
positions in February 2015.
In fact, a pilot program showed improved outcomes with home
monitoring of patients. Dr. Woodward says these telephone
calls could have tremendous promise in a state where just
getting to a doctor can be a challenge. An additional effort
exists to grow class sizes in Mississippi for students entering all
health-related fields. And Dr. Woodward is personally meeting
with a number of key figures, agencies and organizations in the
state, trying to recruit partners to target those diseases that
affect Mississippi residents the most.
Now she’s determined to use the triage skills that served her
well all those years in the emergency department to focus on
efforts that will improve the health of residents in her home
state.
“We’ve got 100 different efforts happening at once, but all are
pushing in the direction of getting Mississippi in a healthier
place.”
As of 2012, Mississippi ranked second in the nation for
overall diabetes prevalence. The state’s mortality rate from
cardiovascular disease is the highest in the nation, as are its
rates for heart disease and cancer. Its adult obesity rate in
2013 was 35.1 percent, tied for the highest in the nation. And
it has the fewest number of physicians per capita.
“When you’re looking at a list of the good things, then we’re
at the bottom. If you’re looking at a list of bad things, then we
are at the top,” Dr. Woodward says.
Meanwhile, UMMC has the state’s only Level 1 trauma
center, its only children’s hospital, its only high-level NICU
and the only specialists in many surgical subspecialties. The
14
July / August 2015
Dan Jones, MD, chancellor of the University of Mississippi,
said he’s not surprised that a national search led to Woodward
as the best fit for its key leadership position.
“She has earned a national reputation in medical education
and has contributed greatly to our medical school’s recognition
as one of the very best in the country,” Dr. Jones said. “I am
grateful to her for offering herself for leadership here at home,
when large opportunities exist for her nationally.”
Dr. Woodward hit the ground running immediately after her
appointment this winter, and she thinks her background in
emergency medicine prepared her well for a challenging role
in academic administrative life. Yet the call to emergency
medicine came relatively late in her medical education.
“I like the philosophy that you treat any and all patients who
present to you. I like the excitement of not knowing what
comes in the door next,” she said. “And the fact that as an ER
physician you can connect with patients in those (vulnerable)
moments to forge a good bond.”
Immediately after her residency, Dr. Woodward stayed on
at UMMC as a faculty member and an assistant program
director. “It was so much fun being able to do that bedside
teaching, to help influence residents and students and still
be a physician. It was the perfect place in my life where I was
able to combine those two things that I love the most.”
A number of reports regarding Dr. Woodward’s promotion
mentioned that she’s the first woman to be named vice
chancellor for health affairs at the University of Mississippi
and dean of its School of Medicine. “It surprised me a
little bit, the attention the ‘woman thing’ has garnered,” Dr.
Woodward says with a laugh. But she thinks much of the
interest comes from outside the medical field.
As she has taken on more administrative work in her career,
especially the latest, most demanding post, Dr. Woodward says
she’s been amazed at how well the skills she learned working
in emergency medicine translate outside the emergency
department.
“As an emergency medicine physician, you get very comfortable
making hard decisions and tough decisions when you know
you don’t have all of the information,” she said. “You’ve got a
limited amount of information and a limited amount of time and
you’ve got to make a decision that’s important. Not all specialty
training prepares you for that.”
“she’s determined to use the triage
skills that served her well all those
years in the emergency department to
focus on efforts that will improve the
health of residents in her home state.”
“Within the community of medicine, yes, there are more
men than women in a lot of these types of positions,” Dr.
Woodward said. “But there are a lot of women who have
leadership positions in different areas within medicine.”
About the Author:
Tara Burghart is a contributing writer to the
SAEM Newsletter.
Emergency Medicine Opportunities
CharlestonAreaMedicalCenter(CAMC)inCharleston,WestVirginiaisseekingadditionalacademiccorefacultypositionstosupportafully
accredited and well established Emergency Medicine Residency program. Providing an excellent experience for residents, CAMC is a 908-bed
teaching hospital consisting of four hospital facilities, including a Level I trauma center and a Women & Children’s hospital. Serving a multicounty area, the four Emergency Departments see over 100,000 patients per year.
Job Requirements are:
• MDorDOdegreefromanaccreditedemergencymedicineresidencyprogram
• BoardCertificationbytheAmericanBoardofEmergencyMedicineorthe
AmericanOsteopathicBoardofEmergencyMedicine
• Participationinappropriateacademic,clinicalresearchorotherscholarly
activity as may be required of clinical faculty
• FamiliaritywithGMEprogramrequirementsandpolicy
Benefits include:
• Excellentbenefitspackage
• Salarycommensuratewithqualificationsandexperience
• Protectedacademictime
• Vibrantcommunity
• Superbfamilyenvironment
• Unsurpassedrecreationalactivities
• Outstandingschoolsystems
The Emergency Medicine residency program is a fully accredited four-year program by the American Osteopathic Association (AOA) and approved for a
complement of 16 residents. The program is pursuing transition to ACGME accreditation under the new unified accreditation system of the ACGME and
AOA and will expand its residency complement to 18 residents. The program is well established and achieved a maximum accreditation status at its most
recent review cycle. The Emergency Medicine core faculty will become part of an academic/teaching department that is supported by a large clinical and
academic enterprise on site.
CAMC is the largest teaching hospital in West Virginia and serves as the sponsoring institution for 11 graduate medical education programs approved by
the ACGME/AOA and other graduate level programs including pharmacy residencies, a psychology
internship and a School of Nurse Anesthesia. Affiliated with the West Virginia School of Osteopathic
Medicine and West Virginia University School of Medicine, CAMC is a regional campus for over 100
medical students completing their 3rd and 4th year of clinical training. CAMC has received numerous
awards and recognition for its patient care quality and many services to the community.
For additional information please contact:
Carol Wamsley | Physician Recruitment | Charleston Area Medical Center | (304) 388-3347 | carol.wamsley@camc.org
July / August 2015
15
SAEM 2015
ANNUAL MEETING
San Diego Was SAEM’s Biggest
and Best Meeting Yet
By Ali Raja, MD
The 2015 SAEM Annual meeting provided more research presentations, more didactic sessions
and more innovations. Hopefully you were able to take advantage of this year’s programming.
On behalf of the SAEM Program Committee and staff who
organized the Annual Meeting, THANK YOU! We had an
amazing time seeing everyone in San Diego. On final
count, 3,070 attendees registered for the 2015 Annual
Meeting, an 18 percent increase over last year (our prior
record)! The location was beautiful and the weather held out
until Friday, when San Diego received some much-needed
rain. Everyone was on social media sharing thoughts
and ideas, and there were amazing presentations, events
and competitions throughout the week – all thanks to the
fantastic SAEM members who participated and presented.
The conference began with a series of pre-meeting workshops.
These were a roaring success and especially useful to members
who had very focused interests. The pre-meeting workshops
also gave attendees a
place in which to meet
others who were just
as passionate about
these topics as they
were.
Throughout
the week, audiencespecific
symposia
for medical students,
residents, and both
junior and senior faculty
similarly gave members
opportunities
for
focused education and
networking specific to
particular aspects of
Steven J. Stack, MD, AMA President-Elect,
their careers.
was SAEM’s 2015 Keynote Speaker
The keynote speech by Steven J. Stack, MD, the youngest
president-elect of the American Medical Association and the first
emergency physician, was a true highlight of the conference—
attendees talked about it for days. It was fantastic to see “one
of us” leading the AMA. The plenary research presentations
were both impressive and diverse, with a packed ballroom
16
July / August 2015
Committee [see Page 33] and SAEM Board of Directors, who
I personally cannot thank enough. We are already planning
the 2016 Annual Meeting in New Orleans, with a lofty goal of
making it even better than 2015. We’re revamping our ePoster
presentation system, coming up with New Orleans-themed
event ideas, and getting ready for abstract and didactic
submissions (we’ll post the deadlines in the coming weeks) –
all so that we can have even more fun in 2016. See you in 10
months in New Orleans!
worth of attendees. And all of the research and didactic
presentations that followed over several days, as well as
the fantastic SonoGames and Sim Wars competitions, fit
perfectly with the SAEM Mission Statement: “To lead the
advancement of emergency care through education and
research, advocacy, and professional development in
academic emergency medicine.”
However, the 2015 Annual Meeting wasn’t all hard work.
The opening reception started us off on a wonderful note,
with great people, a beautiful setting, fantastic (and plentiful!)
food and a tasty drink contest. The fact that both Dr. Stack
and a dancing shark were in attendance just made it even
more perfect. The fun continued throughout the week, with
a number of receptions and dinners, a great Fun Run, wine
tasting and competitive dodgeball. It was all topped off by a
well-attended closing reception, allowing everyone to catch
up and say goodbye before heading home.
None of this could have been possible without the work of
our outstanding SAEM staff, the members of the Program
About the Author:
Dr. Ali Raja is Chair of the 2015 and 2016 SAEM
Program Committees and Vice Chair of the Department of
Emergency Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital.
July / August 2015
17
The SAEM Residency & Fellowship Fair is open to all Medical Students &
at the SAEM
2015 Annual Meeting in San Diego, California.
2015Residents
Photography
Exhibit
This
is aThe
great
networking
event for&those
seeking aFair
residency
or a fellowship.
and
Visual
Diagnosis
Contest
SAEM
Residency
Fellowship
Is Open
to
All Medical
Students
Residents
Friday,
May&15,
2015 at the
SAEM 2015 Annual Meeting in San Diego, California.
SOCIETY FOR ACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE – 2015 ANNUAL MEETING
3:00 – 5:00This
pm Year’s Winners
Friday, May 15 - 3:00Medical
pm –Student:
5:00 pm
Sheraton San Diego HotelAnne
andHayes,
Marina
Pavilion
University of Louisville
Pavilion/Marina tower Lobby Level
Resident:
Stephen Boone, Christiana Care
Health System
During the week of the Annual Meeting, 34 visual diagnosis
participants presented their cases and photos. They were
selected from more than 90 entries by medical students and
residents. Calvin Brown, III, MD, was the member in charge of
this year’s program. It was Dr. Brown’s first year as chair.
This year’s winners in the medical student and resident
categories were awarded a one-year membership in SAEM,
a subscription to Academic Emergency Medicine (AEM), a
free registration to attend the 2016 SAEM Annual Meeting in
New Orleans, a major Emergency Medicine textbook, and a
subscription to the SAEM Newsletter.
The photos included a case history, a diagnosis and “take
home” points. SAEM was proud to display original photos of
educational value and gratefully acknowledges the efforts of
the individuals who contributed to this year’s Clinical Pearls
and Visual Diagnosis Contest entries as well as the patients
who graciously allowed themselves to be photographed.
Solving Your
Employment
Puzzle
SAEM
CareerCenter
careers.saem.org
18
28
July / August 2015
2015 Exhibit Participants
Jay Slutsky, DO, Khalid El-Hussein, MD
St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center
Mark Gonzales, DO, MPH
York Hospital
Lydia Luangruangrong, MD
Barnes-Jewish Hospital/St. Louis Children’s Hospital
Washington University St. Louis
Gabriel Wardi, MD, MPH
James Grieme, MD
Jorge Fernandez, MD
University of California San Diego, Department of Emergency
Medicine
Howard Kim, MD
Denver Health Residency in Emergency Medicine
Juliana Lefebre
Univerity of Southern Florida Emergency Medicine Residency
Pavitra Kotini-Shah, MD
Ryan Scholz, DO
Wesley Eilbert, MD
Ricky Rechenmecher, BS, MA
Joseph Colla, MD
University of Illinois, College of Medicine
Terrance McGovern, DO, MPH
St Joseph’s Regional Medical Center
Justin McNamee DO
Kristen Peña, MS IV
St Joseph’s Regional Medical Center
Peter McCorkell
Monica Parraga, MD
Brittany Semion
New York Medical College; Metropolitan Hospital
Monalisa Muchatuta, MD
Mark Silverberg, MD, FACEP
State Univeristy of New York
Walter Green, MD
Patrick Liu, MD
University of Texas Southwestern
Michael Jin Hong, DO
Emilola Ogunbameru, MD
St Josephs Regional Medical Center
Peter McCorkell
Monica Parraga, MD
Brittany Semion
New York Medical College/Metropolitan Hospital
Steve Christos, DO, MS, FACEP, FAAEM
Presence Resurrection Medical Center
Monalisa Muchatuta, MD
Mark Silverberg, MD, FACEP
Walter Green, MD
Patrick Liu, MD
University of Texas Southwestern
Michael Jin Hong, DO
Emilola Ogunbameru, MD
St Josephs Regional Medical Center
Therese Canares, MD
Department of Pediatric Emergency Medicine, Johns Hopkins
University School of Medicine
Paul Cheung, MD, MPH
Department of Emergency Medicine, The Warren Alpert Medical
School of Brown University
Dierdre Fearon, MD
Department of Pediatric Emergency Medicine, The Warren Alpert
Medical School of Brown University/Hasbro Children’s Hospital
Marion Vincent Mempin, MD
New York Hospital Queens
Philip Mudd, MD, PhD
University of Cincinnati Medical Center
Jeffrey Moon, MD, MPH
Julie Pasternack, MD, MPH
University of Rochester
Robert Kelly Barnett
University of Kentucky
Stewart Wright, MD, MEd, FACEP
University of Cincinnati
David Page, MD
D. Adam Robinett, MD
University of Alabama at Birmingham
Sara Singhal, MD
Nicholas Irwin, MD
University of Kentucky Medical Center
Lucia Derks, MD
University of Cincinnati
Amanda Polsinelli, MD
Edmond Hooker, MD, DrPH
University of Cincinnati
Terren Trott
Lynn Roppolo, MD
Patrick Liu, MD
Walter Green, MD
University of Texas Southwestern
Melissa Kroll, MD
Barnes-Jewish Hospital
Adam Bloom, DO, LT, MC, USN
Kevin Koehler, MD, LCDR, USN
Rodolfo Manosalva, MD, LT, USN
Naval Medical Center Portsmouth
Tina Bramante, MD
SUNY Upstate
Lauren Cataldo, DO
Cooper University Hospital
Justin Hourmozdi, MD
Henry Ford Health
Brian Kendall, MD
Dustin Williams, MD
University of Texas Southwestern
James Yoder, MD, LCDR, MC, USN
Scott Koehler, MD, LCDR, MC
Navy Medical Center Portsmouth
July / August 2015
19
2015 SONOGAMES
®
2015 SonoGames® Reaches New Heights
By Rachel Liu, MD & J. Matthew Fields, MD
What do Duplo blocks, the classic board game “Operation” and a shotgun wedding all have in common?
All were features of the most successful edition yet of the annual SonoGames®!
Organizing the Games for 2015
The 2015 SonoGames® Organizational Committee was cochaired by Matt Fields, MD, and Rachel Liu, MD. Returning
for the fourth year in a row as members of the committee
were Andrew Liteplo, MD, and Resa Lewiss, MD, with Kristin
Carmody, MD, in her second year. Thank you to the many
faculty, fellow, resident and student volunteers who helped run
registration, modeling, timekeeping, judging and staffing of
the event. The committee extends special thanks to our AEUS
SAEM staff liaisons, Melissa McMillian, Maryanne Greketis
and Marilyn Mages; and the SAEM Program Committee and
Board of Directors, who was all invaluable in making the event
possible. Thanks to all the participants and spectators, it is the
only SAEM event that is able to draw almost 500 people into
one space!
On May 14, 2015, at the SAEM Annual Meeting in San Diego,
Calif., the SAEM Academy of Emergency Ultrasound hosted
the 4th annual SonoGames®. It was a thrilling four-hour
competition, testing emergency medicine residents from
across the country on their ultrasound knowledge, skills
and teamwork. Attendees wanted to know: Who would be
crowned the 2015 SonoGames® champion?
20
July / August 2015
Industry
The SonoGames® once again had solid ultrasound industry
support this year. BK, Philips, Terason, SonoSim and Sonosite
all provided machines and monetary support. A special thanks
to all of these companies who help keep the SonoGames®
viable!
The Teams
A record 55 EM programs represented by 165 residents on
three-member teams participated in this year’s SonoGames®.
Each year, awards are presented for the most creative team
name and costumes. The winning name was “Probe Oh Nos”
of Stanford University. The award for Best Costume went
to the University of South Florida “Double Barrel Shotgun
Sign” who were dressed as “shotgun wedding” groomsmen
with bride. Other notable costumes were the University of
Arizona “SonoSumos,” who competed in full sumo suits and
the University of California at San Diego “Avengers: Age of
Ultrasound” in full Avengers costumes.
The Main Event
The SonoGames® 2015 competition consisted of new,
innovative educational content. The first round, “The
Eliminator,” created and emceed by Drs. Fields and Liu,
consisted of 39 multiple-choice questions based on clips,
images and articles covering as many aspects of point-ofcare ultrasound as possible. The 10 highest-scoring teams
advanced to the second round: Alabama, Boston Medical
Center, George Washington, Georgia Regents, Indiana,
NYU/Bellevue, South Florida, University of Texas Health
Science Center, Yale and the University of Virginia.
In Round 2, these teams rotated through the following five
skill stations:
“Arrrgh You the Expert?” – Created by Dr. Carmody.
Teams had to race against pirate experts to obtain images
before the pirate obtained them. Pirates had a handicap of
not being able to use their dominant eyes (covered by pirate
patches) or dominant hands (covered by pirate hooks).
Screams of “ARRRRGH” or “Ye landlubbers” and “Thar she
blows!” were heard throughout the tent.
“Ultra-Pictionary” – Created by Dr. Fields. Team members
had to draw clues leading to the correct ultrasound
application. Once the answer was guessed, they had to
scan to obtain the answer image.
“Operation Relay” – Created by Dr. Lewiss. Teams were
required to answer questions based on key ultrasound
literature, then perform scans based on concepts discussed
in the literature. Once images were obtained, they had to
retrieve an “Operation” board game gamepiece pertaining
to the application.
“I’m Not Dead…Yet” – Created by Dr. Liteplo. This station
used SonoSim’s SonoSimulator® to test residents’ ability to
scan a simulated model and match correct diagnoses and
management to each case.
“Castlefest” – Created by Dr. Liu. This station tested
residents’ abilities to apply ultrasound evaluation of dimensions
in choosing correct blocks out of a pool of water to build a
Duplo castle. There were additional items included, and kudos
to the University of Virginia who were the only team to retrieve
the goldfish!
NYU/Bellevue and Yale advanced to the final competition in
Round 3, which was created and emceed by Dr. Carmody
and judged by Drs. Liteplo and Fields. The round included the
identification of video clips uncovered by the removal of tiles
on a board and a “scan off” in which the audience and judges
were blinded to the team performing the final scan. The judges
voted on the best acquired image and in the case of indecision,
the audience chose. Points for these two teams were really
neck-and-neck until the final scan where the audience chose in
favor of a Yale-obtained posterior tibial nerve.
Congratulations to the 2015 SonoGames® champion Yale
team (Brad Tinloy, Anneli von Reinhart, Erik Fischer, team
captain Joe Pare who has won SonoGames® twice himself,
and Chris Moore) on an amazing victory! The SonoGames®
2015 was a record-setting, huge success, and one of the
highlights of the SAEM Annual Meeting. Plans are already
underway for SonoGames® 2016, so get your probes
prepared!
If you would like more information on programs and membership
for the Academy of Emergency Ultrasound, please go to the
SAEM Website at saem.org/saem-community/academies.
About the Authors:
Dr. Rachel Liu, Yale University School of Medicine, is
currently AEUS president elect; Dr. Matt Fields, Thomas
Jefferson University, is AEUS immediate past president.
July / August 2015
21
2015 Residency & Fellowship Fair
The SAEM Residency & Fellowship Fair is a unique
opportunity to share programs with hundreds of medical
students from across the country interested in the specialty of
emergency medicine and residents in search of a promising
fellowship. The Fair is a combined event that offers your
institution the opportunity to showcase your residency and
fellowship programs as a group or as separate exhibits.
Thank you to the 2015 participants.
Akron General EM
Alameda Health System/ Highland Hospital EM Residency
and Fellowship Program
Allegheny Health Network/Allegheny General Hospital
Baylor College of Medicine
Baystate Emergency Medicine
Beaumont Health
Boston Medical Center
Brigham and Women's/Faulkner Hospital
Brigham and Women's Hospital/Massachusetts General
Hospital Harvard Affiliated
Brown University
Carolinas Medical Center
Central Michigan University
Christiana Care
Duke University: Global Health
Eastern Virginia Medical School
Emory University
George Washington University
Georgetown University/Medstar
Washington Hospital Center
Hackensack UMC
Harvard Affiliated at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Hemepin County Medical Center
Henry Ford Hospital-Detroit
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Indiana University
Jacobi/Montefiore/Albert Einstein Medical Center
John Peter Smith
Johns Hopkins University
Kaiser Permanente EM Residency and Fellowship
Kaweah Delta EM Residency
LAC+USC Medical Center (Keck School of Medicine of the
University of Southern California)
Lincoln Medical and Mental Health Center
Loma Linda University Medical Center
Louisiana State University-New Orleans
Massachusetts General Hospital
Medical College of Wisconsin
Mount Sinai Beth Israel
New York Hospital Queens
New York Methodist Hospital
North Shore University Hospital
Oregon Health and Science University
Penn State Hershey
Regions Hospital
Saint Louis University
Southern Illinois University
Sparrow Hospital-Michigan State University
22
July / August 2015
St. Luke's University Hospital
Stanford/Kaiser EM Residency and Fellowships
Staten Island University
SUNY Downstate Medical Center/Kings County Hospital
Texas A&M/CHRISTUS Spohn Hospital EM Residency Program
Texas A&M/Scott and White Healthcare
Texas A&M/Scott and White Healthcare EM Residency Program
Texas Tech EM Program
The Alpert Medical School of Brown University
The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center
The University of Mississippi Medical Center
The University of Texas at Austin: Dell Medical School EM
Residency Program
The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
UCLA/Olive View-UCLA EM
UCSF-SFGH Emergency Residency and Fellowships
University Hospitals Case Medical Center
University of Arizona
University of California Davis
University of California Irvine
University of California San Diego
University of California San Francisco Fresno
EM Residency and Fellowship
University of Chicago
University of Cincinnati
University of Colorado Denver
University of Connecticut
University of Florida College of Medicine-Jacksonville
University of Florida Health Dept. of EM Residency and
Fellowship Program
University of Florida Jacksonville
University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria
University of Kentucky EM Residency and Fellowship Program
University of Louisville
University of Maryland
University of Massachusetts
University of Michigan/ St. Joseph Mercy Hospital
University of Missouri
University of Nebraska
University of Nevada EM/University of Nevada SOM
University of New Mexico
University of North Carolina EM Educational Programs
University of Pittsburgh
University of Rochester
University of South Florida EM Residency Program
University of Tennessee-Nashville
University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
University of Utah
University of Virginia
University of Washington
University of Wisconsin
Virginia Commonwealth University
Washington University
West Virginia University Department of EM Residency and
Fellowship Program
Yale University
Yale: National Clinicians Scholarship Program
SAEM OnDemand
View the SAEM15 Presentations — Anytime, Anywhere ] Unlimited online access to up to 100 education sessions
Special M
] Earn CME credits
ember Dis
] Presentations include synchronized slides, audio and embedded video
] Download PDFs of presenter slides and audio MP3
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saem.org/ondemand
SAEM would like to thank the 2015 Medical Student
Ambassadors for their work at the meeting in San Diego.
Tom Califf
University of Colorado School of Medicine
Randall De Leon
Loma Linda University School of Medicine
Anne Delisio
University of Cincinnati College of Medicine
William Douglas
University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine
Gabriel Espinoza
UC Davis School of Medicine
Chris Evans
University of California San Diego School of Medicine
Kumar Gandhi
UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine
Dustin Harris
UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine
Annie Hayes
University of Louisville School of Medicine
Alexander Huh
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
Katie Hunold
University of Virginia School of Medicine
Seth Kelly
Texas A&M University Health Science Center
Aaron Lee
University of California San Diego School of Medicine
Armando Martinez
University of California San Diego School of Medicine
Sara Obeid
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Alex O'Brien-Lambert
University of Washington School of Medicine
Daniel O’Sullivan
University of Virginia School of Medicine
Aimee Parks
Cooper Medical School of Rowan University
Alexandra Printz
University of South Florida College of Medicine
Michael Rains
Medical College of Virginia/VCU School of Medicine
Kenley Raney
University of Miami Miller School of Medicine
Ashley Rider
Baylor College of Medicine
Bryan Wilson
Rutgers, New Jersey Medical School
Justin Worthing
New York University
July / August 2015
23
2015 Excellence in Emergency
Medicine Award Winners
Listed below are the recipients of the 2015 SAEM Medical
Student Excellence in Emergency Medicine Award. This
award is offered to each medical school in the United States
and internationally to honor an outstanding senior. This is the
20th year this award has been available. Recipients receive a
certificate and a one-year membership to SAEM.
Peter William Ackerman
University at Buffalo School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
Ainsley Adams
University of Maryland School of Medicine
Megan Alego
Temple University School of Medicine
Michael Allain
The University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine
Kathryn Marie Applin
M. Christina Creel-Bulos
Rush Medical College, Rush University
Earl "Quin" Cummings
Louisiana State University School of Medicine Shreveport
Callie Davies
The University of Arizona, College of Medicine
Adeline Rose Dozois
Vanderbilt University School of Medicine
Hunter Faircloth
Georgia Regents University
Joshua Feblowitz
Harvard Medical School
Anne Finlayson
University of Manitoba
Shayla Freeman
Medical University of South Carolina
Christie Lea Fritz
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
Alison Frizell
Wake Forest University School of Medicine
UVM College of Medicine
Emily C. Arena
Tony (Han) Gao
University of Virginia
Zev Balsen
Upstate Medical University
Kevin Gardner
Yale School of Medicine
Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania
Lubabah Ben-Ghaly
James Gould
University of California, Los Angeles – David Geffen School of Medicine
Alexander Barton Beyer
Washington University School of Medicine
Lauren P. Black
University of Florida
Rachelle Blais
Dalhousie University
Mariana Guerreo
Weill Cornell Medical College
Bing Hao Hui
The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston
Jessica Herold
Memorial University of Newfoundland
University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine
Timothy Buff
Lily Hitchner
University of Missouri-Columbia
Brian T. Bunning
University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine
Danielle Holtz
University of South Alabama
Loma Linda University School of Medicine
Angela Chen
Bryan Francis Imhoff`
Rutgers-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
Howard Choi
The University of Kansas School of Medicine
Paul Jansson
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Avery Clark
James Jiang
The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University
Ryan L. Clark
Albany Medical College
Lynn Jiang
Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine
Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons
Nickolas Ray Collins
Ryan Joseph
University of Pikeville-Kentucky College of Osteopathic Medicine
Albert Conicella
Drexel University College of Medicine
Carly Cox
Oregon Health and Science University
24
July / August 2015
UNTHSC—Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine
Carolyn Rachel Kanter
New York University School of Medicine
Ayesha Khatoon
Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine
Joshua Klepinger
Evan Robinson
Wright State University, Boonshoft School of Medicine
Western University of Health Sciences, College of Osteopathic
Medicine of the Pacific
Margaret Krebs
The Ohio State University College of Medicine
Deanna L. Lassegard
University of South Dakota Sanford School of Medicine
Eric Thomas Lederer
East Tennessee State University Quillen College of Medicine
Carl Leonhardt
Western University of Health Sciences COMP-Northwest
ENS Ellen Lesh
F. Edward Hébert School of Medicine, Uniformed Services University of the
Health Sciences
Mark Liao
University of California, Davis School of Medicine
Megan Litzau
University of Missouri-Kansas City, School of Medicine
Mei Ling Liu
University of Michigan Medical School
Gregory Marton
University of Ottawa
Courtney Holmes McKee
Medical College of Wisconsin
Sar Medoff
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Stephen Mohney
University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry
Nicole Chicoine Mooney
University of Washington
Cristina Mullins
Morehouse School of Medicine
Collyn Murray
University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill
Sonya Naganathan
University of Toledo College of Medicine and Life Sciences
Benjamin Nicholson
Virginia Commonwealth University
Mary O'Hear
University of Mississippi Medical Center
Jeffrey Odenbach
University of Alberta
Rachel Rodriguez
Texas A&M HSC-Temple Campus at Baylor Scott & White,
Brandon Roe
Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences
Theodore Segarra
State University of New York Downstate College of Medicine
Stephen Sheridan
Florida State University
Hilary Michelle Simon, MD
New York Medical College
Bryan Sloane
University of California Irvine
Joseph Smith
University of Nebraska Medical Center
Jacob Stelter
Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine
Logan Traylor
Saint Louis University School of Medicine
Nicholas Tsipis
Duke University School of Medicine
T.J. Tzavaras
Eastern Virginia Medical School
Andrew Vucelik
West Virginia University
Hannah Wallace
University of Miami Miller School of Medicine-Regional Medical Campus
Lindsay Warren
University of Connecticut School of Medicine
Kyle Watanabe
University of Hawaii, John A. Burns School of Medicine
Spenser White
University of Kentucky
Ryan Wilkie
University of Calgary Cumming School of Medicine
Ali Yakhshi
Queen's University
Stephanie Coe Zelleer
University of Miami Miller School of Medicine
Enola Renee Okonkwo
Indiana University School of Medicine
Scott Pasichow
Rutgers, New Jersey Medical School
Justen W. Pettigrew
University of Louisville
Jessica Rainey
University of South Florida
Darien Sutton Ramsey
New York University School of Medicine
July / August 2015
25
TOXICOLOGY
Scholarship Allows Emergency Physician to
Immerse Herself in Toxicology at Conference
By Theresa Kim, MD
One of my favorite Shakespeare quotes comes from Henry
IV: “And seeing ignorance is the curse of God, Knowledge
the wing wherewith we fly to heaven.” This line embodies to
me what a gift education and knowledge are, especially as a
young emergency physician and aspiring toxicologist. As the
recipient of the recent 2015 Spadafora Toxicology Scholarship,
I was able to attend the American College of Medical Toxicology
Annual Scientific Meeting this past March in Clearwater Beach,
Fla. I was so excited for this opportunity because it gave me
the chance to learn more about the field of toxicology, and I
returned home with a treasure trove of new knowledge and
experiences.
Day one featured Steve Aks, DO, from the Toxikon Consortium
speaking to the question “Does Naloxone Really Raise Lazarus
from the Dead?” Some hard facts that his lecture included:
1 in 15 people, or 12 million people, who take nonmedical
pain medicines would try heroin within 10 years. Additionally,
according to a New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM)
study published by Okie et al. in 2007, there were over 11,000
opioid analgesic deaths and 2,000 heroin-related deaths in the
United States. The bulk of the lecture touched upon available
naloxone training programs and the importance of aftercare,
close follow-up and education to successfully combat the
opioid epidemic. I loved the motto that Dr. Aks repeated
throughout his lecture: “Save a life, no brainer.” And the
26
July / August 2015
literature he presented supported just that. In 2010, according
to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 53,032
people were trained in using naloxone, and 10,171 deaths
were reversed. Considering that the NEJM in 2007 reported
11,000 opioid analgesic deaths, the evidence seems clear
of the training programs’ powerful impact. The lecture then
closed with a discussion regarding areas for further research
and future of such programs.
Another one of my favorite experiences from the conference was
the “Fellows-in-Training Open Mic Session.” This competition
gave toxicology fellows a chance to give a five-minute talk on
a toxicology-related topic and to receive feedback from judges
about the delivery and clarity of their talk. As a former English
literature major, I loved the fusion of medicine, history and
art that the fellows incorporated into their talks. Sahaphume
Srisuma, MD, from the Rocky Mountain Poison Center, gave
a very interesting lecture on alternative uses of disulfiram.
Elizabeth Hines, MD, from the New York City Poison Control
Center, captivated the audience with a history review as she
hypothesized the possible poisons that could have ultimately
killed Cleopatra. And Jennifer Stephani, MD, gave an eloquent
analysis of poisonings that completely changed my view of Van
Gogh’s yellow phase, use of lead paint mediums as well as his
depiction of the infamous fox glove plant!
Lastly, I loved the evidence-based lecture titled “Choosing
Widely Campaign” by Anne-Michelle Ruha, MD, from Banner
Good Samaritan Medical Center. The American College
of Medical Toxicology’s recommendations can be found at
www.choosingwidely.org and covers such consensus
guidelines as not using phenytoin or fosphenytoin in
withdrawal seizures; not ordering tests to diagnose
“idiopathic environmental intolerances”; and not performing
a fasciotomy in snake envenomation patients without
elevated intra-compartmental pressures. She reviewed the
literature supporting each of the currently listed guidelines,
as well as some of the controversies regarding other pending
guidelines.
This brief summary does not clearly do justice to the many
other valuable lectures I attended, including the analysis by
Josef Thundiyil, MD, from the University of Florida, of the
research literature regarding genetically modified foods;
the communication skills I learned during the “Delivering
an Effective Sound Bite” breakout session; and the breadth
of inspiring research projects presented during the poster
sessions. I feel so honored to have been granted the
opportunity to attend the conference and add this knowledge
to my own practice of emergency medicine. Without the
assistance of the Spadafora Toxicology Scholarship, I would
not have had the chance to attend the conference—or as
Shakespeare put it, to gain the “wings” to rise to my career
aspirations.
About the Scholarship:
Dr. Michael P. Spadafora was an academic emergency
physician and medical toxicologist who was dedicated to
resident education. He was a member of SAEM and the
American College of Medical Toxicology (ACMT). After
his untimely death in October 1999, a scholarship was
established in his name at both the ACMT and SAEM
Foundation to encourage emergency medicine residents to
pursue medical toxicology fellowship training. The deadline
to submit applications for the 2016 Spadafora Toxicology
Scholarship is Aug. 1, 2015. More information can be
found at saem.org/saem-foundation/grants/what-we-fund/
spadafora-toxicology-scholarship.
About the Author:
Dr. Theresa Kim is an emergency physician in her fourth
year of residency at John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of
Cook County. She is interested in academic emergency
medicine, toxicology, hyperbaric medicine and FOAMed.
She was the 2015 Spadafora Toxicology Scholarship
recipient, and she provided this summary after attending
the American College of Medical Toxicology Annual
Scientific Meeting from March 27–29, 2015.
VA Section Chief
The Department of Emergency Medicine (DEM) at
University of Wisconsin, School of Medicine and
Public Health (Madison, WI) is seeking candidates
for the position of VA Section Chief. This is an exceptional opportunity for a highly motivated Emergency
Medicine Physician (BE/BC) with strong interest in
clinical operations and quality improvement. Job
responsibilities include leading a collaborative team
of emergency department physicians, nurses, and
staff to improve the clinical care provided to veterans
through process improvement.
Compensation and benefits are extremely
competitive. Inquiries should be accompanied by
a curriculum vitae and may be e-mailed or
addressed to:
While a track record in graduated administrative
responsibilities is preferred, opportunities also exist
for more junior faculty.
As part of DEM faculty, the successful applicant will
staff upwards of half of his/her clinical shifts at William
S. Middleton Memorial Veterans Hospital and half of
his/her clinical shifts at University of Wisconsin
Hospital & Clinic (UWHC). UWHC is one of only
two academic medical centers, and Level I Trauma
(adult & pediatrics) and Burn Centers, in the state of
Wisconsin.
Azita G. Hamedani, MD MPH MBA
Chair, Department of Emergency Medicine
800 University Bay Dr., Ste. 310, Madison, WI 53705
agh@medicine.wisc.edu
Department of Emergency Medicine
The UW Madison is an EEO/AA employer; Wisconsin open records and Caregiver laws apply.
A background check will be conducted prior to employment.
July / August 2015
27
MEET THE 2015 SAEM FOUNDATION
GRANT RECIPIENTS
Thanks to your generous gifts, the SAEM Foundation Research Training Grant has been increased to $150,000!
Help us give more opportunities to young investigators by donating today. The society will match all gifts through
July 31 up to $100k! Donate at www.Saemfoundation.Org
Jestin N. Carlson, MD, MS and
Adam N. Frisch, MD, MS
JUSTIN L. BENOIT, MD
UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI, CINCINNATI, OH
GANNON UNIVERSITY, ERIE, PA
2015 EDUCATION RESEARCH GRANT - $10,000
2015 RESEARCH TRAINING GRANT - $100,000
Current techniques for teaching acute care providers
to run resuscitations are limited to general feedback
after an encounter (simulated or live) and lack focused
and objective detail. Previous work has suggested that
experienced providers focus on different aspects of the
environment with less variability in focal points than novice
individuals. Data examining visual centers of attention in
the simulated cardiac arrest setting are lacking. It is thought
that experienced acute care providers follow these same
trends where focused visual centers of attention are a
marker of proficiency and may translate into safer patient
care. The hypothesis is that experienced providers will
have a more focused visual center of attention than novice
providers. The aim of this study is to determine if there are
differences between novice and experienced acute care
providers’ visual centers of attention during cardiac arrest
resuscitation.
Over 36,000,000 calls for EMS occur annually in the U.S.
Despite this staggering demand, clinical research in EMS
remains unfocused and underfunded. In 2010, the American
Heart Association acknowledged, “there is inadequate
evidence to define the optimal timing of advanced airway
placement in relation to other interventions during resuscitation
from cardiac arrest.” Dr. Benoit will gain advanced training in
research methods, biostatistics and epidemiology using a
combination of didactic and applied learning experiences to
develop skills in statistical modeling and interpretation through
this study which will address this fundamental question. The
central hypothesis is that the risk-to-benefit ratio for advanced
airway interventions will change throughout the time course
of OHCA resuscitation attempts. The aim is to evaluate the
effect that the timing of prehospital airway interventions
has on the minute-to minute likelihood of achieving return
of spontaneous circulation. Evaluate the effect that the time
between establishing an airway and hospital arrival has on the
probability of achieving neurologically intact survival.
“COMPARISON OF THE VISUAL
CENTERS OF ATTENTION IN
EXPERIENCED VS NOVICE
PROVIDERS”
“TIMING OF AIRWAY INTERVENTIONS
AND SURVIVAL AFTER OUT OF
HOSPITAL CARDIAC ARREST”
The SAEM Foundation is a 501c3 public charity. The mission of the SAEM Foundation is to improve the emergency care of patients through
medical research and scientific discovery; to enhance research capabilities within emergency medicine; and to help emergency physicians develop
the skills to become successful investigators.
28
July / August 2015
NOW ACCEPTING
GRANT PROPOSALS
The SAEM Foundation is
accepting grant proposals for
the 2016-2017 grant cycle
The following grants will be offered and have a
deadline of Aug 1, 2015.
Research Training Grant
New! Funding Increased to $150,000!
The Research Training Grant (RTG) is intended to
provide funding to support the development of a
scientist in emergency medicine. $75,000/yr. (2 year
grant)
Education Fellowship Grant
The Education Fellowship Grant is intended to
develop the academic potential of the selected
fellow by providing support for a dedicated
two-year training period that includes an
advanced degree in education.
$50,000/yr. (2 year grant)
Education Research Grant
The Education Research Grant will provide
support for a medical education research project.
$10,000 (1 year grant)
SAEMF/ACMT Michael P. Spadafora
Toxicology Scholarship
The 2016 recipient will attend the American
College of Medical Toxicology (ACMT) Annual
Scientific Meeting in Huntington Beach, CA on
March 17-20, 2016. $1,500 (travel award)
SAEMF
$100K CHALLENGE
Between April 1 and July 31,
the Society is matching every
donation to the SAEM Foundation
up to $100,000. Donate online or
make a pledge to pay later. Your
gift will have double the impact
on patient care!
HELP FUND FUTURE
INVESTIGATORS
As the SAEM Foundation gets
closer to its goal of $10 million,
more funds are becoming
available to emergency medicine
researchers and educators
through these grant programs!
Please help us continue to fund
future investigators and increase
the amount of our grants by
donating at
www.saemfoundation.org
For more details and application instructions, please visit the grants section of the SAEM Foundation website (www.saemfoundation.org).
July / August 2015
29
ACADEMIC
ANNOUNCEMENTS
The newly established Department of Emergency
Medicine (DEM) at University of Wisconsin School of
Medicine & Public Health has received a transformative
$13.5 million gift, from James G. Berbee, MD, MS,
MBA, and Karen A. Walsh, MA of Madison, WI. Berbee
completed his emergency medicine residency at Wisconsin
after a career as an entrepreneur. UW Health will match $4
million of the gift to double the clinical footprint of the current
UW emergency department by March 2016. The remainder
of the gift creates a $9 million endowment, part of which
includes support for Azita G. Hamedani, MD, MPH MBA,
Founding Chair, and Manish N. Shah, MD, MPH, John and
Tashia Morgridge Vice Chair for Research and Academic
Affairs. Hamedani along with the faculty and staff of DEM
are enthusiastic about the recent recruitment of Shah,
as his accomplished record will help the new department
accelerate its research efforts. Shah’s research interests
closely dovetail the administrative efforts of the department,
as led by Jeffrey P. Pothof, MD, Vice Chair of Quality &
Operations.
vice chair in 2012. He also serves as director of clinical
research in the department of emergency medicine. Miller’s
promotion to professor, emergency medicine, is effective
July 1. He is a nationally recognized expert whose research
focuses on advancing care for patients with cardiovascular
and pulmonary emergencies.
Craig Newgard, MD, MPH, a professor of emergency
medicine at Oregon Health & Science University, was
awarded a four-year R01 grant from the Agency for
Healthcare Research and Quality for $956,227. The project
is titled “The Value of Emergency Care for Injured Older
Adults” and will run from May 1, 2015, through April 30,
2019. This project will evaluate the current emergency care
system for injured older adults, from 911-call through oneyear follow-up, including ways to improve the system and
explore the balance between outcomes and costs. The interdisciplinary project team includes members with expertise
in emergency medicine, EMS, system engineering, trauma
surgery, geriatrics, decision analysis, health economics,
informatics and biostatistics.
The Department of Emergency Medicine (DEM) at
University of Wisconsin, School of Medicine and Public
Health (Madison, WI) is seeking candidates for the
position of VA Section Chief. This is an exceptional
opportunity for a highly motivated emergency medicine
physician (BE/BC) with strong interest in clinical operations
and quality improvement. Job responsibilities include leading
a collaborative team of emergency department physicians,
nurses, and staff to improve the clinical care provided to
veterans through process improvement.
James W. Hoekstra, MD, Professor and Chair, Department
of Emergency Medicine, and Vice President for clinical
business development at Wake Forest Baptist Medical
Center, is taking on an expanded role as Vice President
for Network Clinical Affairs and stepping down as Chair,
Department of Emergency Medicine. Chadwick Miller, MD,
MS, executive vice chair of emergency medicine, will serve
as the department’s interim chair.
Under Hoekstra’s leadership, the department of emergency
medicine has developed a national reputation for education,
research and clinical care. From a faculty of 12 and an ED
volume of 60,000 visits when Hoekstra became chair in
2003, the department today manages 11 western North
Carolina emergency departments (EDs) with more than 200
providers and 500,000 annual patient visits.
Miller, the emergency medicine department’s interim chair,
joined the department in 2003 and became its executive
30
July / August 2015
Academic Emergency Medicine is going green!
Effective January 2017, Academic Emergency Medicine will
transition to an online-only publication. Robust online tools
are already available for electronic viewing of the journal,
through our app (AEM Journal, available free at the Apple
online store for iPad and iPhone; coming soon for Android),
and our pdf and enhanced HTML versions are available
at www.aemj.org. Content alerts, RSS feeds, Twitter, and
other productivity tools are also available for our readers,
and will continue to develop. All other aspects of the journal,
including the manuscript submission, review, editing, and
typesetting processes, will remain the same; the only change
will be the elimination of the print journal.
While a track record in graduated administrative
responsibilities is preferred, opportunities also exist for
more junior faculty. As part of DEM faculty, the successful
applicant will staff upwards of half of his/her clinical shifts at
William S. Middleton Memorial Veterans Hospital and half of
his/her clinical shifts at University of Wisconsin Hospital &
Clinic. UWHC is one of only two academic medical centers,
and Level I Trauma (adult & pediatrics) and Burn Centers,
in the state of Wisconsin. Compensation and benefits are
extremely competitive. Inquiries should be accompanied
by a curriculum vitae and may be e-mailed or addressed
to: Azita G. Hamedani, MD MPH MBA; Chair, Department
of Emergency Medicine; 800 University Bay Dr., Ste. 310,
Madison, WI 53705 agh@medicine.wisc.edu.
SAEM Fellowship Approval Program
Deadline: September 1, 2015 (Global Health)
Deadline: April 1, 2016 (Education Scholarship, Geriatrics,
and Research)
In an effort to promote the standardization of training for
fellows, the SAEM Fellowship Approval Program has been
developed for eligible programs to earn the endorsement of
SAEM as an approved fellowship in Research, Geriatrics,
Global EM and Education Scholarship. Fellows who
complete a program at an SAEM-approved institution also
receive recognition for earning the standard qualifications
and skills needed.
The deadline for institutions to apply to become an SAEMapproved fellowship is September 1 for Global Health and
April 1 for all other fellowships. All fellows for all approved
fellowships must register and submit progress reports by
September 14, 2015.
The application fee is $400. Visit the Fellowship Approval
Program at http://www.saem.org/education/fellowshipapproval-program.
To view a listing of approved fellowships, visit the SAEM
Fellowship Directory at
www.saem.org/fellowship-directory.
The George Washington University
Department of Emergency
Medicine Fellowship Programs
Washington DC-The Department of Emergency
Medicine at the George Washington University is offering
Fellowship positions beginning in July 2016:
Emergency Management | International Emergency Medicine
ED Operations & Leadership | Medical Toxicology
Emergency Ultrasound | Operations Research
Telemedicine/Digital Health | Health Policy
Extreme Environmental Medicine | Clinical Research
Simulation in Medical Education
Fellows receive an academic appointment at George
Washington University School of Medicine and work
clinically at a site staffed by the Department. The
Department offers Fellows a common interdisciplinary
curriculum, focusing on research methodologies and
grant writing. Tuition support for an MPH or equivalent
degree may be provided, as per the fellowship’s
curriculum.
Complete descriptions of all programs, application
instructions and Fellowship Director contacts can be
found at
http://smhs.gwu.edu/emed/education-training/fellowships
July / August 2015
31
SAEM WESTERN
REGIONAL MEETING
SAEM Western Regional Meeting Takes
Advantage of Desert Locale
By Frank G. Walter, MD
The 18th Annual SAEM Western Regional Meeting was held
at the University of Arizona College of Medicine in Tucson,
Ariz., on March 27-28, 2015. A total of 303 people registered
for the meeting, which was hosted by the college’s
department of emergency medicine.
Friday’s afternoon plenary session featured nine full-length,
oral abstract presentations, while there were 110 lightning
oral abstract presentations on Saturday. There were 22
moderated poster abstract presentations.
The first day began with pre-meeting activities, including behindthe-scenes tours of the Arizona Poison & Drug Information
Center and the Arizona-Sonoran Desert Museum, hosted by
Mazda Shirazi, MD, medical director, Arizona Poison and Drug
Information Center. Other activities included SonoGames 2015
(a competition allowing residencies to demonstrate their skills
and knowledge of point-of-care ultrasound) and a viewing of
the documentary, “Code Black.”
The meeting officially began with a welcome address by
Frank G. Walter, MD, meeting chair, and Sam Keim, MD, chair,
University of Arizona College of Medicine, department of
emergency medicine.
Charles B. Cairns, MD, interim dean, University of Arizona
College of Medicine, delivered the keynote address: “Time
Makes a Difference to Everyone, Everywhere: Evolving
Opportunities in Emergency Care.”
Keim said he found Cairns’ keynote address “superb and
inspirational.”
“Dr. Cairns was personally instrumental in the development of
an (National Institutes of Health) Office of Emergency Medicine
Research and he gave some highlights of how that discussion
went down ... with Dr. Francis Collins and other major players
at NIH. Incredible!”
Dr. Cairns’s presentation was followed by nine full-length,
oral abstract presentations. Robert S. Hockberger, MD,
then-president of the SAEM Board of Directors, spoke about
the importance of “SAEM and Mentorship in Academic
32
July / August 2015
Emergency Medicine.” The day concluded with an evening
reception that included an Arizona-Sonoran Desert Museum
docent who brought a number of desert animals.
The second day began with concurrent lightning oral
presentations in five rooms followed by a panel discussion,
“Looking Back and Looking Forward: Reflections on
a Successful Career and Life in Academic Emergency
Medicine,” featuring Hockberger; Harvey Meislin, MD; Peter
Rosen, MD; and Art Sanders, MD.
“Dr. Frank Walter and program leadership staff Amy Williams
and Danielle Crounse have already established a new standard
of quality for SAEM regional meetings,” Keim said after the
meeting conclused. “Multiple out-of-state EM leaders have
approached me to tell me this is the best Western SAEM
meeting they’ve ever been to.”
We greatly appreciate the leadership and expertise of SAEM
and its abstract review committee for reviewing and ranking
all the abstracts; Dr. Hockberger and the SAEM Board for
his visit and his inspiring presentations; Holly Byrd-Duncan
and LaTanya Morris for their help; and the SAEM Academy of
Women in Academic Emergency Medicine for their leadership
and outstanding presentation. This meeting was a success
because of the hard work of those acknowledged and
thanked on the final pages of the meeting schedule (http://
emergencymed.arizona.edu/news/wsaem-2015-info).
About the Author:
After lunch, two “Point/Counterpoint” discussions were
held:
•
In the first session, John Sakles, MD, presented the
benefits of video laryngoscopy and William Mallon,
MD, discussed the use of direct laryngoscopy.
•
The second session focused the management of
calcium channel blocker and beta blocker poisoning.
Mazda Shirazi, MD, discussed hyperinsulin euglycemia
therapy; Robert French, MD, discussed vasopressors.
Frank G. Walter, MD, is a professor of emergency
medicine & pharmacy practice and science in the
department of emergency medicine at the University of
Arizona College of Medicine. He was the meeting chair for
the 2015 SAEM Regional Western Meeting.
Next, an Academy of Women in Academic Emergency
Medicine presentation featured Deidre Anglin, MD; Mindi
Guptil, MD; Tammi Thomas, MD; and Heather Whitlow, MD.
They discussed the importance of mentoring with “Tips to
Get Your Career Up and Running.”
The meeting concluded with a second set of abstract
presentations, including three lightning oral tracks and a
moderated poster session.
A concurrent afternoon session for medical students was
held on Saturday. Ali Min, MD, and Lisa Stoneking, MD,
organized and led the track. Medical students had the
opportunity to have lunch with program directors from
emergency medicine residencies in the Western Region.
Aaron Leetch, MD, and Chris Williams, MD, conducted a
mock interview and discussed interview techniques. Jan
Shoenberger, MD, described the interview process. The
“4th year Structure” was outlined by Kristi Grall, MD. The
medical student track finished with a panel decision among
current University of Arizona emergency medicine residents,
discussing “Life as an ED Resident.”
July / August 2015
33
19th Annual New England Regional SAEM
Conference Has Strong Turnout
By Christopher Fischer, MD
19th Annual New England Regional SAEM Conference April 1, 2015 Boston Newton Marriott, Newton, MA
Hosted by Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center/Harvard Affiliated Emergency Medicine Residency
oral presentations from each New England residency program,
with a special focus on oral presentations by current residents.
During lunch, attendees were treated to two presentations:
The New England Research Directors (NERDs) hosted the
19th Annual New England Regional SAEM Conference on
April 1, 2015, at the Boston Newton Marriott in Newton,
Mass. This year’s meeting continued the upward trend
through strong attendance and support for emergency
medicine (EM) research. The conference hosted more than
225 residents, faculty, medical students and research staff
from over a dozen institutions across New England.
The first, a panel from the Academy for Women in Academic
Emergency Medicine, discussed transitioning to an academic
EM career, including the challenges and benefits. The chair was
Jeannette Wolfe, MD, Baystate Medical Center in Springfield,
Mass. Other members included Jeffery Schneider, MD, and
Judith Linden, MD, from Boston Medical Center; Federico
Vaca, MD, MPH, from Yale; and Susan Duffy from Brown.
During the second presentation, Charles Pollack, MD,
discussed the management of acute cardiac syndrome ED
patients with a specific focus on upstream management
of those with unstable angina and non-ST elevation MI. Dr.
Pollack is professor of Emergency Medicine at the University
of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and is chairman of
Emergency Medicine at Pennsylvania Hospital in Philadelphia.
The final oral presentations were followed by three simultaneous
lightning oral presentations that focused on critical care, public
health and high-risk chief complaints. A total of 40 lightning
oral presentations were moderated by faculty and research
experts from Beth Israel Deaconess and Yale.
The conference schedule included three invited lectures and
panel discussions, along with the following: 145 research
abstracts as posters, lighting oral presentations, and full oral
presentations.
Attendees met and networked during poster sessions in which
more than 75 medical students and residents, along with junior
and senior faculty, presented original research on a variety of
EM topics.
The day began with a welcome message from the New
England research directors and a keynote presentation from
Judd Hollander, MD. Hollander shared his unique perspective
on EM research and discussed the characteristics of a
successful research career, his vision for the future of
EM and medicine in general. Hollander is a former SAEM
Program Committee Chair, past member of the SAEM Board
of Directors and past member of the Emergency Medicine
Foundation Scientific Review Committee. He currently serves
as associate dean for Strategic Health Initiatives, Sidney
Kimmel Medical College, Thomas Jefferson University and
professor/vice chair, Department of Emergency Medicine.
The meeting was successful because of the dedication of the
New England Research Directors (NERDs), which includes
Nathan Shapiro, Virginia Mangolds, Lori Post, James Feldman,
Howard Smithline, Joao Delgado, Toby Nagurney, Danny
Pallin, and Blair Parry. Finally, thank you to the SAEM for their
support, specifically Holly Byrd-Duncan, LaTanya Morris,
George Greaves and Jim Pearson.
Ted Melnick, MD, department of Emergency Medicine, Yale,
then presented his National SAEM Plenary Presentation
“Understanding Overuse of CT for Minor Head Injury in
the ED: A Triangulated Qualitative Study.” Melnick gave a
preview of the “best of breed” research. This was followed by
34
July / August 2015
About the Author:
Dr. Christopher Fischer is the Assistant Director of
Emergency Department Operations at BIDMC. His
research interests include improving the care of geriatric
patients in the ED, investigation of novel biomarkers
of infection, and the effects of ED crowding on patient
safety.
2015 Annual Meeting
Program Committee
Beau Abar, PhD
University of Rochester Medical Center
Harrison Alter, MD, MS
Highland Hospital, Alameda Health System
Gillian Beauchamp, MD
Oregon Health & Science University
Mary Colleen Bhalla, MD
Summa Akron City Hospital
Calvin A. Brown, III, MD
Brigham & Women’s Hospital/Harvard Medical School
Jennifer Carey, MD
University of Massachusetts
James E. Colletti, MD
College Of Medicine, Mayo Clinic (Rochester)
Mark Courtney, MD
Northwestern Medicine, Northwestern University
Moira Davenport, MD
Allegheny General Hospital
Kevin L. Ferguson, MD
University of Florida, Gainsville
Jorge Fernandez, MD
University of California, San Diego School of Medicine
Barbara Forney
Program Manager, University of Cincinnati CME compliance
Alise Frallicciardi, MD
Hartford Hospital, University of Connecticut
Christian Fromm, MD
Maimonides Medical Center
Chris A. Ghaemmaghami, MD
University Of Virginia Health Sciences Center
Maryanne F. Greketis, CMP
Society For Academic Emergency Medicine
Eric A. Gross, MD
University of California at Davis
Todd A. Guth, MD
University of Colorado School Medicine
Jeffrey A. Holmes, MD
Maine Medical Center, Tufts University School of Medicine
Jason Hoppe, DO
University of Colorado Denver-Emergency Medicine
Jonathan S. Jones, MD
University of Mississippi Medical Center
Gabor D. Kelen, MD FRCP(C)
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Carolyn Kluwe Holland, MD
University of Florida, Gainesville
Ryan L. LaFollette, MD
University of Cincinnati College of Medicine
Hollynn Larrabee, MD
West Virginia University School of Medicine
Luan Lawson, MD
The Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University
Jo Anna Leuck, MD
John Peter Smith Hospital
Douglas W. Lowery-North, MD, MSPH
Emory University School of Medicine
Brandon Maughan, MD, MHS
University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
Erin E. McDonough, MD
University of Cincinnati College of Medicine
Henderson D. McGinnis, MD
Wake Forest University School of Medicine
Zachary Franklin Meisel, MD, MPH, MSc
Penn Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine Faculty
Joseph Miller, MD
Henry Ford Hospital
Joel L. Moll, MD
Virginia Commonwealth University
LaTanya Morris
Society For Academic Emergency Medicine
Lewis Nelson, MD
New York University School of Medicine
Jason T. Nomura, MD
Christiana Care Health System
Charissa B. Pacella, MD
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Medical Education
Daniel J. Pallin, MD, MPH
Brigham And Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School
Alexis Pelletier-Bui, MD
Cooper Medical School of Rowan University
Ali S. Raja, MD, MBA, MPH
(Program Committee Chair)
Massachusetts General Hospital Harvard Medical School
Kevin G. Rodgers, MD
Indiana University School of Medicine
Laura Roff Hopson, MD
University of Michigan
Robert Rogers, MD
University of Kentucky Department of Emergency Medicine
Sarah E. Ronan-Bentle, MD
University of Cincinnati College of Medicine
Brett A. Rosen, MD
Harbor-University of California Los Angeles Medical Center
Todd A. Seigel, MD
Permanente Oakland Medical Center
Kinjal N. Sethuraman, MD, MPH
University of Maryland School of Medicine
Sneha Shah, MD
University of Massachusetts
Richard H. Sinert, DO
SUNY Health Science Center at Brooklyn
Howard A. Smithline, MD
Baystate Medical Center, Tufts University School of Medicine
Lorraine G. Thibodeau, MD
Albany Medical College
R. Jason Thurman, MD
Vanderbilt University School of Medicine
William F. Toon, EdD, NRP
Loudoun County Fire & Rescue
Jody A. Vogel, MD
Denver Health Medical Center
Jenna Wheelhouse, MD
Brown University, Rhode Island Hospital
Shawn London, MD
Hartford Hospital, University of Connecticut
July / August 2015
35
PEDIATRIC EMERGENCY PHYSICIANS
The Department of Emergency Medicine at Albany Medical College is recruiting pediatric
emergency physicians to join our academic faculty. Candidates must be fellowship trained and boardcertified eligible in pediatric emergency medicine and will enter at the assistant or associate professor
level based on experience and qualifications.
Albany Medical Center – comprised of the medical college and hospital – is northeastern New York’s
only academic health sciences center. Albany Medical College is one of the nation’s oldest medical
schools, founded in 1837. The 714-bed Albany Medical Center Hospital is the only Level 1 Trauma
Center in the region and is the busiest trauma center in the state. As the primary referral center for
the region, the hospital received over 10,000 transfers last year.
The Department of Emergency Medicine has a well-established residency program that began over
25 years ago and has faculty who are fellowship trained in ultrasound, clinical research, toxicology,
sports medicine, emergency medical services, critical care medicine and pediatric emergency medicine.
We have a busy, high-acuity emergency department with an annual census of over 70,000 patients.
Albany Medical Center is located in the capital of New York State, with easy access to the
metropolitan areas of New York City, Boston and Montreal. The Capital Region offers safe
communities and excellent schools. There is also close proximity to numerous outdoor activities
(skiing, hiking, climbing, camping, etc.) in the Adirondack and Catskill mountains.
Candidates should send a current curriculum vitae and letter of interest to:
Christopher King, MD, FACEP
Chair, Department of Emergency Medicine
Albany Medical College
47 New Scotland Ave.
Albany, New York 12208
518.262.3443
kingc1@mail.amc.edu
36
July / August 2015
www.amc.edu
University of Rochester, Rochester, New York
Department of Emergency Medicine
Division of Research
Academic, VA, and Community Opportunities
The Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Rochester, is
seeking academic faculty with a focus on research. The ideal candidates will
be board certified in Emergency Medicine or hold a PhD, have experience
with research and grant pursuit, as well as academic interests that can
contribute to the overall mission of the department.
The Department of Emergency Medicine has an active research program
with multiple funded government and industry studies, a well-developed
patient enroller program and established support structure. Additionally, the
University of Rochester has a highly regarded emergency medicine residency
and multiple fellowship programs. Strong Memorial Hospital (SMH) is the
area academic medical center and is the regional referral and Level 1 trauma
center. It has a full complement of specialist consultant services, as well
as ED-based social workers, pharmacists, and child-life specialists. SMH
sees over 100,000 patients per year, including 28,000 pediatric patients. The
new Golisano Children’s Hospital at Strong is set to open in the summer
of 2015. Our multiple ED sites, institutional support, and existing research
infrastructure offers a robust network for success.
Rochester, New York, located in Upstate New York, offers excellent schools,
a low cost of living, and many opportunities both professionally and
personally. We have easy access to Canada, including metropolitan Toronto,
the Great Lakes, the Finger Lakes and the northeastern United States.
Interested applicants please contact:
Michael Kamali, MD, FACEP
Chair, Department of Emergency Medicine
Michael_Kamali@URMC.Rochester.edu
585-273-4060
Located in beautiful Milwaukee, WI, the MCW Department
of Emergency Medicine is growing!
Our ED at Froedtert Hospital is completing an expansion in January
2016, and we are increasing our daily physician coverage hours.
We are recruiting for two faculty to complete our coverage. The
Department also seeks faculty who are interested in joining our
Zablocki Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VA) staffing complement,
which will be initiated in August, 2015. We are adding two positions
to our faculty in order to provide Monday-Friday, daytime coverage
at the VA. Additionally, the Froedtert Health System is opening
a free-standing ED at the Moorland Reserve Health Center. We
are recruiting six faculty for single provider coverage at this new
community ED, to be opened in July, 2016. All faculty members
could have clinical responsibilities at one or more of these sites.
The Department of Emergency Medicine at MCW has nationally and
internationally recognized experts in EMS and Disaster Medicine,
Toxicology, Injury Prevention and Control, Cardiac Resuscitation,
Global Health, Ultrasound, Medical Education, and Process
Improvement. The Department is ranked in the top 20 NIH funded
departments of emergency medicine. Interested applicants should
submit a curriculum vitae and letter of interest to Dr. Stephen
Hargarten, Department Chairman and MCW Associate Dean, at
hargart@mcw.edu.
2015 Midwest Regional SAEM Meeting
Hosted by Mercy St. Vincent Medical Center EM Residency Toledo, OH
Abstracts will open August 3 through August 28, 2015 via http://www.saem.org website
Schedule:
September 24, 2015
Mercy College of Ohio
2221 Madison
Toledo, OH
6-7 pm Dinner, “Meet Your Colleagues”
7-9 pm Advanced Airway & Ultrasond Skills
September 25, 2015
The Toledo Club
235 14th Street
Toledo, OH
9 am-4 pm
Invited Speakers: D. Mark Courtney, MD, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
“Mentorship: Trends, Tools and Techniques for Both Mentors and Learners”
Richard Schwartz, MD, Georgia Regents University
“Medical Devices Development – Concept to Commercialization”
Lunch program:
Medical Student – Residency Mixer: Midwest EM Residency Programs
More information, contact:
Michael C. Plewa, MD
michael_plewa@mercy.com
419-251-4204
July / August 2015
37
The University of California, Davis School of Medicine, Department of Emergency
Medicine is conducting a faculty search for emergency medicine physicians in either
a clinician/educator or clinician/researcher track. Candidates must be residency
trained in Emergency Medicine with board certification/preparation and be eligible
for licensure in California. At least one year of post-training clinical experience and/
or fellowship training is preferred. Candidates are expected to enter at the Assistant/
Associate level, commensurate with experience and credentials. Emergency Medicine
faculty members at UC Davis who have preference for night shifts work fewer clinical
shifts each month.
The University of California, Davis, Medical Center, one of the nation’s “Top 50
Hospitals,” is a 613 bed academic medical center with approximately 80,000
emergency department visits annually, including approximately 17,000 pediatric
visits. The new emergency services facility opened in 2010 and is state-of-the-art.
Our program provides comprehensive emergency services to a large local urban and
referral population as a level 1 trauma center, paramedic base station and training
center. The department also serves as the primary teaching site for a fully accredited
Emergency Medicine (EM) residency program and seven different EM fellowship
programs. Our residency training program began more than twenty years ago and
currently has 42 residents. The Department has a separate area for the care of
children and is one of the leading centers in the Pediatric Emergency Care Applied
Research Network (PECARN).
Salary and benefits are competitive and commensurate with training and experience.
Sacramento is located near the northern end of California’s Central Valley, close to
Lake Tahoe, San Francisco, and the “wine country” of the Napa and Sonoma Valleys.
Sports enthusiasts will find Sacramento’s climate and opportunities ideal.
Interested candidates should submit a letter outlining interests and experience, and
curriculum vitae to:
Erik Laurin, MD, Professor and Search Committee Chair (eglaurin@ucdavis.edu)
UC Davis Department of Emergency Medicine
2315 Stockton Blvd., PSSB 2100
Sacramento, CA 95817
Applications must be received by 12/31/15 to be fully considered. The University of
California is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer.
38
July / August 2015
CALL FOR PAPERS
2016 Academic Emergency Medicine Consensus Conference
Shared Decision Making in the Emergency Department:
Development of a Policy-Relevant Patient-Centered Research Agenda
The 2016 Academic Emergency Medicine (AEM) consensus conference, “Shared Decision Making in
the Emergency Department: Development of a Policy-Relevant Patient-Centered Research Agenda,”
will be held on May 10, 2016, immediately preceding the SAEM Annual Meeting in New Orleans, LA.
Original research papers on this topic, if accepted, will be published together with the conference
proceedings in the December 2016 issue of AEM.
The consensus conference will convene major thought leaders and necessary stakeholders on shared
decision making in acute care. Specifically, the conference will include patients, patient representatives
from national advocacy organizations, emergency physicians, mid-level providers, emergency nurses,
and researchers with expertise in shared decision making and patient-centered outcomes research,
comparative effectiveness research, and health information technology. There will be clinicians across
various disciplines such as emergency medicine, health services research, psychology, and quality
improvement. Finally, the conference will include national policy makers, payer representatives, and
other stakeholders with the expressed goal of developing a multidisciplinary, consensus-based,
high-priority research agenda to improve and optimize shared decision making in the emergency
department.
Consensus Objectives:
1. Critically examine the state of science on shared decision making in emergency medicine,
and identify opportunities, limitations, and gaps in knowledge and methodology;
2. Develop a consensus statement that prioritizes opportunities for research in shared decision
making that will result in practice changes, and identifies effective methodological approaches;
3. Identify and build collaborative research networks to study the use of shared decision making
and patient-centered outcomes research in emergency medicine that will be competitive for
federal funding.
Accepted manuscripts will present original, high-quality research in shared decision making in the
ED, such as clinical decision rules, shared decision making, knowledge translation, comparative
effectiveness research, and multidisciplinary collaboration. They may include work in clinical,
translational, health systems, policy, or basic science research. Papers will be considered for
publication in the December 2016 issue of AEM if received by April 17, 2016. All submissions will
undergo peer review and publication cannot be guaranteed.
For queries, please contact the conference chair,
Corita R. Grudzen, MD, MSHS (corita.grudzen@nyumc.org), or the co-chairs Christopher R. Carpenter,
MD, MSc (carpenterc@wusm.wustl.edu) and Erik Hess, MD (Hess.Erik@mayo.edu).
Information and updates will be regularly posted in AEM and the SAEM Newsletter, and on
the journal and SAEM websites.
July / August 2015
39
2340 S. River Road, Suite 208
Des Plaines, IL 60018
NON PROFIT
ORGANIZATION
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
SAEM
SAEM
Opens
Submissions
for
2015
SAEM
ANNUAL
MEETING
2016 SAEM
Meeting
MAYAnnual
12 – 15, 2015
EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION IS OPEN
Didactic and
REGISTER BY MARCH
13 and Innovations
Abstracts
Pre-Meeting Workshops
August 3 - September 18, 2015
New Orleans
40
July / August 2015
October 12 - November 20, 2015