Kelli O'Laughlin, MD, MPH
Member-at-Large University of Washington
Candidate Statement
My name is Kelli O’Laughlin and I would like your vote for the SAEM Board of Directors Member-at-Large position. As academic emergency physicians, we pay a lot of attention to what is going on in the USA. This is of course important and appropriate. However, at this critical point in time, with rapidly warming climate, conflict and humanitarian crises, and gaps in essential health services globally, it is essential that we broaden our focus and look worldwide. We must consider how to best develop and support academic emergency medicine leaders around the world and how to best shape science, education, and the practice of emergency medicine and acute care globally. I am a physician scientist with an expertise in public health and research in humanitarian settings with more than 15 years of experience working in sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East. If elected as Member-at-Large of the SAEM Board of Directors, I will learn from other leaders within SAEM and broaden my own perspective to better understand the potential role of SAEM in global health. I will then use this knowledge to help guide SAEM to be more effective globally, with a focus on reaching underserved areas of our specialty worldwide. My goal is to expand SAEM’s reach so that we are developing and supporting academic leaders and shaping the future science, education and practice of emergency and acute care globally.
From 2020-2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, I served as the President of the Global Emergency Medicine Academy (GEMA) of SAEM. While many GEMA members worked to support colleagues around the world as we all tried to optimize medical resources and care during the pandemic, within GEMA we became acutely aware of the lack of representation of our global colleagues within SAEM. Those of us based in the USA were supported by robust domestic institutions including SAEM. We were able to collaborate and share the resources needed during a time when many others were left with less opportunity to do so. Since that time, leaders within GEMA worked to ensure that access to the SAEM membership and annual conference for colleagues from low and middle-income countries were more affordable. We also began the Committee on Global Engagement to ensure we had focused attention on extending opportunities to our global emergency medicine colleagues. Additionally, GEMA leadership continued to partner with representatives from the Academy for Women in Academic Emergency Medicine (AWAEM) to provide scholarships for colleagues from low- and middle-income countries to attend the SAEM annual conference.
I believe my education, qualifications and experiences to date support my candidacy for this position. I am an Associate Professor at the University of Washington. I received a medical degree from Oregon Health and Science University, training in emergency medicine at UCLA (Ronald Reagan/Olive View), an MPH from the Harvard Chan School of Public Health, and I completed a research fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital. I am board certified in emergency medicine and appointed to both the Departments of Emergency Medicine and Global Health at the University of Washington. I work in the emergency departments at Harborview Medical Center and the University of Washington Montlake. I am a physician scientist with expertise in global public health. My recent research has included work to improve the health of refugees in sub-Saharan Africa, to monitor and evaluate the health impacts of COVID-19 in the USA, to promote COVID-19 vaccination among vulnerable populations accessing care in the emergency department, and to use a telephone surveillance system to collect COVID-19 symptom and exposure data and disseminate public health information in refugee settlements across Uganda. In addition to being a leader in GEMA, I have been an active member of the Academy for Women in Academic Emergency Medicine (AWAEM) and the Academy for Diversity and Inclusion in Emergency Medicine (ADIEM). Thank you for considering voting for me for Member-at-Large of the SAEM Board of Directors.
From 2020-2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, I served as the President of the Global Emergency Medicine Academy (GEMA) of SAEM. While many GEMA members worked to support colleagues around the world as we all tried to optimize medical resources and care during the pandemic, within GEMA we became acutely aware of the lack of representation of our global colleagues within SAEM. Those of us based in the USA were supported by robust domestic institutions including SAEM. We were able to collaborate and share the resources needed during a time when many others were left with less opportunity to do so. Since that time, leaders within GEMA worked to ensure that access to the SAEM membership and annual conference for colleagues from low and middle-income countries were more affordable. We also began the Committee on Global Engagement to ensure we had focused attention on extending opportunities to our global emergency medicine colleagues. Additionally, GEMA leadership continued to partner with representatives from the Academy for Women in Academic Emergency Medicine (AWAEM) to provide scholarships for colleagues from low- and middle-income countries to attend the SAEM annual conference.
I believe my education, qualifications and experiences to date support my candidacy for this position. I am an Associate Professor at the University of Washington. I received a medical degree from Oregon Health and Science University, training in emergency medicine at UCLA (Ronald Reagan/Olive View), an MPH from the Harvard Chan School of Public Health, and I completed a research fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital. I am board certified in emergency medicine and appointed to both the Departments of Emergency Medicine and Global Health at the University of Washington. I work in the emergency departments at Harborview Medical Center and the University of Washington Montlake. I am a physician scientist with expertise in global public health. My recent research has included work to improve the health of refugees in sub-Saharan Africa, to monitor and evaluate the health impacts of COVID-19 in the USA, to promote COVID-19 vaccination among vulnerable populations accessing care in the emergency department, and to use a telephone surveillance system to collect COVID-19 symptom and exposure data and disseminate public health information in refugee settlements across Uganda. In addition to being a leader in GEMA, I have been an active member of the Academy for Women in Academic Emergency Medicine (AWAEM) and the Academy for Diversity and Inclusion in Emergency Medicine (ADIEM). Thank you for considering voting for me for Member-at-Large of the SAEM Board of Directors.
