Chair's Message
May 2024
Recently, Dr. Cinnamon Sullivan (chief of global health for the Emory Department of Anesthesiology) and Dr. Nadine Naguib (senior anesthesiology resident) departed Atlanta for Ethiopia. Another Emory Anesthesiology global health team was close behind them, headed to Egypt. Thanks to Dr. Sullivan, the Emory Department of Anesthesiology has established one of the most unique and robust anesthesiology global health programs. Teaching, clinical service, infrastructure development, and research are all part of our global health initiatives. From advanced airway management courses to teach-the-teachers point of care ultrasound workshops to clinical care in remote and under-resourced locations, our faculty, staff and trainees strive to have an impact around the world. In Africa, South and Central America, Europe, and Asia.
Another unique aspect of the Emory Department of Anesthesiology is the size and scope of its critical care program. Thirty-three physicians in our department are fellowship trained in and practice critical care medicine. Led by Dr. Craig Jabaley, our critical care team has established one of the most successful veno-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) services in the world, a service that became Emory Healthcare’s highly successful coronavirus disease (COVID-19) ECMO service during the recent pandemic. Dr. Jabaley and the Emory anesthesiology critical care team are now responsible for numerous intensive care units (ICUs) throughout the Emory Healthcare system, including the new sixteen-bed 4T north cardiovascular ICU at Emory University Hospital.
Another unique aspect of the Emory Department of Anesthesiology is that we have one of the largest, oldest, and most successful Anesthesiologist Assistant training programs in the United States. This fifty-year-old Master of Medical Science training program is led by Dr. Katie Monroe (academic program director) and Dr. Gaurav Patel (clinical program director) as well as several other Emory Department of Anesthesiology faculty, including the immediate past president of the American Academy of Anesthesiologist Assistants, Jennifer Stever.
Innovation and exceptional clinical care are two foundational elements of the Emory Department of Anesthesiology. I am grateful for all the individuals who contribute to the programs that make this department so remarkable.
Andrew J. Patterson, MD, PhD