John Austin Lee, MD, MPH

Treasurer

Indiana University Health

I am grateful to be considered for the position of GEMA treasurer, and would be glad to serve the academy in this role for the next year. I've been an active member of GEMA for the past six years, and have served on a variety of GEMA committees including the grants and development team and the basic emergency care initiative. I have relevant experience as an active member on the IFEM finance committee and a leading member of the IFEM revenue generation working group. I have also been GEM member of the SAEM fellowship approval committee for the past 5 years. I appreciate your consideration and the opportunity to serve!

Sonya Naganathan, MD, MPH

Member-at-Large

University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center

Chathuri Kaushila Thilakasiri Modarage, MD

Member-at-Large

Oxford University Hospital NHS Trust

I am writing to express my strong desire to join the esteemed Society for Academics in Emergency Medicinem, Global Emergency Medicine Academy. It is with great enthusiasm that I present my candidacy for this prestigious organization, and I believe that my background, experiences, and dedication to the field of emergency medicine make me a valuable candidate.

As an emergency physician from Sri Lanka currently pursuing a combined fellowship in simulation and emergency medicine at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust, I have had the privilege of working in diverse healthcare settings and collaborating with professionals from around the world. My commitment to the advancement of emergency medicine is reflected in my active participation in various international organizations and committees.

I am honored to serve as the European Resuscitation Council Young representative for Basic Life Support and as a member of the Science and Education Committee of Basic Life Support in ERC since 2021. Additionally, I contribute my expertise to the ILCOR task force on first aid, furthering the cause of emergency care on a global scale. My dedication to professional growth is evidenced by my membership in the Royal College of Emergency Medicine and my role as a council member of the Sri Lankan Society of Critical Care and Emergency Medicine. In addition to the MBBS degree and MD in Emergency medicine I hold a diploma in Disaster Management from faculty of Medicine University of Colombo. I am currently pursuing a Post Graduate Certificate in Simulation at Brighton and Sussex University.

My research publications in the field of medical education and resuscitation reflect my commitment to advancing knowledge and improving patient outcomes. Notably, I have worked with the Society for Academics in Emergency Medicine (SAEM), contributing to the publication of "A toolkit for decolonizing global emergency medicine education." This project underscores my commitment to fostering inclusive and equitable education in the field.

Furthermore, my teaching commitments span a wide range of educational programs, from being a visiting lecturer at the University of Moratuwa to serving as a committee member of the Simulation Center at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Colombo. I am deeply involved in training healthcare professionals, including emergency nurses and ambulance service personnel, in life-saving skills such as BLS, ILS, and ALS. Moreover, I am proud to have contributed to the development of the National Ambulance Service's curriculum, "Suwaseriya."

One of my key passions is creating opportunities for women in emergency medicine, and I am proud to have been recognized with the global travel award of the Academy of Women in Emergency Medicine in 2020. I believe that diversity and inclusivity are essential for the continued growth and success of our field, and I am dedicated to fostering an environment where all voices are heard and valued. As a member of the IFEM Special Interest Group in Gender, I actively contribute to the global efforts to promote gender equality and inclusivity in emergency medicine.

In conclusion, I am deeply committed to advancing the field of emergency medicine through research, education, and advocacy, both locally and on a global scale. My extensive experience, combined with my passion for the field and dedication to inclusivity, makes me an ideal candidate for membership in the Society for Academics in Emergency Medicine Global Emergency Medicine Academy.

I look forward to the opportunity to contribute to the academy's mission and collaborate with fellow members to further advance emergency medicine worldwide. Thank you for considering my application.

David Rudolph, MD

Member-at-Large

Johns Hopkins

My name is David Rudolph, a current PGY4 and incoming International Emergency Medicine and Public Health Fellow at Johns Hopkins. I graduated from the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine with Global Health Distinction in 2020 and in residency have fostered passions for HIV prevention and treatment in domestic and global settings. I am running for Member at Large because as I get more involved with global health, it impresses on me the importance of continued engagement and advocacy for equitable global health work. As a former chief resident who has done global health rotations in 4 continents, I have acquired skills in being a reliable ambassador while empathizing with the needs and mediating the goals of multiple stakeholders.

Katie Wells, MD, MPH

Member-at-Large

The University of Vermont

My name is Katie Wells. I am running for the GEMA Member-At-Large position to get more directly involved in GEMA’s mission. I have been involved with GEMA since matriculating into Emergency Medicine residency, and I currently serve on the Decolonizing Committee and the Global Engagement Committee. My original journey in medicine had been geared toward a career as an international trauma surgeon. I matched into an academic seven-year general surgery program and was asked to join a WHO Global Surgery committee as an intern. That soon developed into being the first fellow for the University of Utah’s Center for Global Surgery, the first global surgery fellowship in the country. I spent two years working in Mongolia, focusing on surgical and trauma system development and research with the Mongolian Ministry of Health and the national hospital system. During my fellowship, I obtained an MPH from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, focusing on disaster medicine and refugee health. During that time, I switched my focus to emergency medicine. While I loved operating, I realized that I loved learning about and developing elements of health systems more and felt that emergency medicine was a better fit. After applying to a GEMA showcase in Dallas, Texas, I found my people in Global EM. I met many people who advocated and networked for me at that event while applying for residency. GEMA was my launching pad as I went back into the match for Emergency Medicine. I have always felt indebted to this organization and to SAEM for giving me my first systems of support to build a career in Global EM. Therefore, I want to be more directly involved in its development and leadership. Since first joining GEMA, I have finished my global health fellowship, completed my residency in EM, and was recruited to the University of Vermont to start the first program in International Emergency Medicine, where I am currently the Director of International Emergency Medicine, as well as the University of Vermont Health Network Emergency Department Director of Health Equity. I was also recently selected as the inaugural Director of Social Medicine for the University of Vermont Larner College of Medicine. I am responsible for building curriculum and research in health equity and social justice while overseeing student involvement in social medicine programs. Since joining Vermont, we have built partnerships working alongside our Ugandan colleagues, and supported the development of the first Ugandan curriculum for emergency care nursing for the country, built a Rural Emergency Care Systems (RECS) rotation built for practitioners working in the international context which we piloted this year with Ugandan partners with the plan to expand this for our other international partners, built a partnership with AFEM and South African partners to explore equitable GH partnerships, built our first institutional multidisciplinary Global Health Equity fellowship starting this year, amongst many other initiatives.

Additionally, during COVID, I worked supporting local infrastructure building here in Vermont with the development of the first collaborative immigrant health program called the Immigrant Health Initiative (IHI), bringing in members of over 20 different University of Vermont Health Network departments, over 50 community partners and created the first salary funded hospital network immigrant community liaison position held explicitly by a member from our refugee community. We have also been working collaboratively with community and medical center partners to change statewide policy focused on immigrant health. We are growing our faculty exponentially, as well as our research capacity and our international collaborations with three other countries. I have had the privilege of learning from so many mentors and leaders in the Global Emergency medicine space, and I feel that my skill set in advocacy, network building, and strategy could serve GEMA well as it continues its growth into a group to meet the moment of change and sustainability in this decolonizing period. I would love to work directly as part of GEMA leadership to facilitate collaboration with other international EM organizations to create consensus and systems of accountability toward building equity in global EM partnerships.

If elected I would love to work with GEMA to push forward more research and scholarship focused on building equitable global health partnerships. I would like to lead GEMA in these efforts and liaise with other international EM organizations to facilitate building systems of accountability and change in current global EM practices.