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Around Christmas, the new pain started. Muscle spasms and cramps in Miles Murri’s right leg that felt like blasts of lightning, burning and shocking. And in his lower back, the pain was constant, the torturous kind that makes nighttime hours interminable and prevents any chance of a comfortable rest. Miles…

Tammy Bleeker, M.Ed., joined us on April 5, 2021, as Assistant Director for Education and Training Programs. In this position, Tammy will oversee the operations of the Education Office. Tammy comes to us from the Department of Pediatrics in the UF College of Medicine, where she has worked for the…

The Anesthesiology Education Office and the Department of Anesthesiology Leadership are pleased to announce the selection of our three new chief residents for the upcoming academic year. David Hutchinson, M.D., Bill Mallett, M.D., and Nicole Premo, M.D. will serve from April 1, 2021 through March 31, 2022. To be selected,…

The UF Department of Anesthesiology is joining the healthcare community nationwide in honoring the extraordinary physicians who have dedicated their careers to caring for others. National Doctors Day provides an opportunity to thank the physicians who provide the highest quality patient care and to recognize their sacrifices. Doctors work long…

Congratulations goes out to second-year resident Matthew Frakes, DO, for being voted the January Resident of the Month! Residents are nominated by their fellow residents and faculty in recognition of their hard work and one individual each month is chosen for going above and beyond the call of duty.

A simulator built by engineers with the Center for Safety, Simulation & Advanced Learning Technologies (CSSALT) to teach clinicians how to safely perform central venous access (CVA) has traveled to resource-limited environments around the world. Now, after two deployments to Iraq through the Department of Defense, it will…

Congratulations to Amanda Frantz, MD, who has been appointed to serve as an American Board of Anesthesiology (ABA) examiner for the APPLIED Examination. In this position, she will play a critical role in the future of our specialty as part of a select group that helps the ABA identify…

About 15 years ago, Travis Parsons, PhD, was working in the Department of Neurology at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) and pursuing his careerlong interest in epilepsy research. After his first postdoctoral position came to an end, Dr. Parsons soon found his way to Bruce Spiess, MD, who at the time…

Twenty-five physicians have matched with our department to begin their Anesthesiology Residency with us in the upcoming academic year, including three graduates of the University of Florida College of Medicine. This year, our department interviewed approximately 270 candidates for the 20 positions of the categorical rank and five positions…

Injuries to the facial nerve during surgeries of the head, ear, and face lead to the undesirable cosmetic result of a facial droop, dissatisfied patients, and potential malpractice claims. Monitoring the facial nerve during surgery may help, but only if done consistently well. That lack of standard references as a…

Anesthesiology residents now have the option to gain specialized experience with transplants through a dedicated 2-week rotation. Residents in their second and third clinical years who have had cardiovascular, neuro, and pediatric experience are eligible for the rotation. Residents on this rotation will have preference for lung, liver, and adult…

After a nearly 31-year career serving our department in numerous capacities ranging from helping to manage the Critical Care Medicine division and their fellows to assisting faculty, Poppy Meehan officially retired at the end of February. Poppy began her career at the University of Florida in 1990 as an…

Congratulations to all who had articles published in February! Anesthesia & Analgesia Baharloo R, Principe JC, Fillingim RB, Wallace MR, Zou B, Crispen PL, Parvataneni HK, Prieto HA, Machuca TN, Mi X, Hughes SJ, Murad GJA, Rashidi P, Tighe PJ. Slow dynamics of acute postoperative pain intensity time…

For patients experiencing leg and back pain due to lumbar spinal stenosis, a safe, minimally invasive procedure at UF Health called the Vertiflex procedure may help. The Interspinous Spacer Procedure involves a minimally invasive titanium spacer implanted through a tiny tube via a small incision in the lower back.

Residency is an integral period in medical training. We know that our residents work tremendously hard and are a vital part of our healthcare team. They are crucial resources for medical students and their fellow lower-level residents. This day, and every day, we thank our residents for their commitment to…

We are excited to announce that two staff members – Kathy Parrish, MBA, and Christina Hendricks, MA – have been awarded 2020–2021 UF Superior Accomplishment Awards for their outstanding contributions to our department and institution during an especially challenging year.  The Superior Accomplishment Awards recognize faculty and staff who have shown efficiency or economy…

Congratulations to Catherine Price, PhD, ABPP/CN, who has been awarded a prestigious mid-career research award from the International Neuropsychological Society (INS). Dr. Price, an Associate Professor and Paul Satz Term Professor who co-directs the Perioperative Cognitive Anesthesia Network (PeCAN), received the Arthur Benton Award for Mid-Career Research at…

This month we are saying farewell to Robert “Butch” Loeb, MD, an exemplary clinician who is retiring after four years with our department. Dr. Loeb joined the Department of Anesthesiology in March 2017 as a Professor of Anesthesiology in the Division of Multispecialty Anesthesiology. He started his academic career at…

At least five categories of acute postoperative pain trajectories have been identified, and, crucially, these trajectories are defined predominantly by patient factors rather than type of surgery and intraoperative medications, according to new research by the Temporal Postoperative Pain Signatures (TEMPOS) Group. The study, published online in January in…

The Department of Anesthesiology’s Neuroanesthesiology Fellowship has received international accreditation, becoming only the 20th such program worldwide to receive that distinction from the International Council on Perioperative Neuroscience Training (ICPNT). The strength of the department’s application was the breadth and dedication of the faculty in the Division…

Congratulations to all who had articles published in January! A&A Practice Hamlet KM, Pasternak E, Rabai F, Mufti M, Hernaiz Alonso C, Price CC. Perioperative multidisciplinary delirium prevention: a longitudinal case report. A A Pract. 2021 Jan 14;15(1):e01364. doi: 10.1213/XAA.0000000000001364. PMID: 33443846 Anesthesia & Analgesia Wang T, Sun…

A big welcome to Kimberly Sibille, PhD, MA, as a Joint Associate Professor with the Division of Pain Medicine, and Brent Carr, MD, as Joint Assistant Professor. Dr. Sibille is currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Aging & Geriatric Research as well as Affiliate Faculty in the…

Eleven of our faculty have been awarded the Exemplary Teacher Award for 2020! Eligible faculty are nominated from each department and participate in a college-wide competition. Faculty are selected based on the excellence of their teaching of medical students, residents and fellows, graduate students, and post-docs, as well as mentorship…

We are joining the American Society of Anesthesiologists in recognizing our highly skilled physician anesthesiologists this week. Our physician anesthesiologists are highly trained medical experts who have been working tirelessly through the COVID-19 pandemic to provide our patients with the best possible care as well as helping to keep…

The COVID-19 pandemic has created an immense amount of challenges, and our department has selflessly stepped up to help. Most recently, our department has mobilized to help with the ongoing vaccination efforts at the Springhill 2 site. Each Wednesday, our department is helping to staff this site to keep our…

Congratulations to Professor Brenda G. Fahy, MD, MCCM, who has received a Spring 2021 Faculty Enhancement Opportunity (FEO) award to complete a university-based Sherpa Executive Coaching Program to further her leadership and mentoring skills. Dr. Fahy received $4,666 in FEO funding to attend the fully immersive program, which she…

The UF Department of Anesthesiology is joining healthcare providers nationwide in recognizing the unique skills of Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists during National CRNA Week. As we continue to navigate through the COVID-19 pandemic, let’s reflect on the heroic work of our CRNAs, recognize the power of our community, and…

This month, we said farewell to longtime Professor of Anesthesiology Avner Sidi, MD, who retired after 35 years with the department. Dr. Sidi was a prolific author whose work on simulation, transplantation anesthesia, and other basic science concepts positively impacted the next generation of physicians and our field. He will…

Congratulations to all who had articles published in December! Annals of Thoracic Surgery Corwin HL, Shander A, Speiss B, Muñoz M, Faraoni D, Calcaterra D, Welsby I, Ozawa S, Arnofsky A, Goldweit RS, Tibi P. Management of perioperative iron deficiency in cardiac aurgery: A modified RAND Delphi study.

Congratulations to Anatoly Martynyuk, PhD, Professor of Anesthesiology and Neuroscience, who has been awarded a 2020 Escher Prize in Germ Cell Exposures from the Escher Fund for Autism. The prize…

Nicolai Goettel, MD, DESA, EDIC, joined us as an Associate Professor of Anesthesiology in the Division of Neuroanesthesia on Jan. 4, 2021. Dr. Goettel joins us from the University of Basel in Switzerland, where he served as a Senior Consultant in the Department of Anesthesia, Surgical Intensive Care, Prehospital Emergency…

This month, we are saying farewell to Ramachandran Ramani, MBBS, MD, a Professor of Anesthesiology in the Division of Neuroanesthesia and an internationally known expert on functional MRI, who has retired after­ five years with our department. Dr. Ramani joined us in January 2016 from Yale University School of Medicine.

Congratulations to Professor and Statistician Cynthia Garvan, PhD, who is the coauthor on a Viewpoint article titled “Joy, Suffering, and the Goals of Medicine” published in the prestigious journal JAMA Neurology. The article, published online on Dec. 7, was written with…

As 2020 comes to a close with vaccines arriving and hope abounding for 2021, take a look back with us at all we went through and achieved in the past year in the Department of Anesthesiology. View our annual edition of GatorWorks.

Congratulations to Miguel A. Reina, MD, PhD, who has been named to the Editorial Board of the journal Clinical Anatomy. Dr. Reina, who has been a Professor of Anesthesiology in the School of Medicine at the University CEU San Pablo since 2009, is serving as a yearlong Courtesy Professor in our…

Please join us in congratulating Bryan Ray, MD, and Maggie Green, CAA! Residents and anesthetists are nominated by residents and faculty for their hard work, motivation, and for going above and beyond in their duties. Dr. Ray was chosen as November resident of the month for his endurance and…

A distinguished University of Florida Emeritus Professor of Anesthesiology has been elected to the rank of National Academy of Inventors (NAI) Fellow, the highest professional distinction awarded solely to academic inventors. Richard J. Melker, MD, PhD, who cofounded the medical…

Congratulations to Taran Sangari, MD, MBA, Associate Professor of Anesthesiology, who has been accepted into the 2021 College of Medicine Leadership Development Program! The program is designed for College of Medicine faculty who are current leaders at or above the level of Division Chief or equivalent. Only around…

Congratulations to all who had articles published in November! View post to read all the details.

Congratulations to Rene Przkora, MD, PhD, who is the lead author on an article published in the ASA Monitor about the ongoing National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded pain treatment research network involving the University of Florida. The article, titled “A Major Step to Improve…

Jenny Barghout, Administrative Support Assistant III, has been a champion for wellness initiatives in the Department of Anesthesiology since 2018, when she helped form the Anesthesiology Wellness Program. Over the past few years, Jenny has become a Wellness Partner with GatorCare, cowritten a winning proposal for a department wellness fund,…

With support from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) through a leadership grant recently awarded to Catherine Price, PhD, and matching pilot funding support from UF, the Perioperative Cognitive Anesthesia Network (PeCAN) is now expanding its integrated approach to perioperative cognitive care. The overall goal is to…

The Pain Medicine Division at UF Health is offering a novel therapy for the management of sacroiliac joint pain called sacroiliac joint fusion. The minimally invasive procedure can provide fusion and stabilization of the sacroiliac joint in eligible patients when indicated nonsurgical treatment has not provided relief. Sacroiliac joint…

Two members of our department’s STatistics in Anesthesiology Research (STAR) Core will be presenting at the virtual Research Reproducibility 2020: Educating for Reproducibility conference from Dec. 2 to 3. The free conference is geared toward anyone interested in research reproducibility and training approaches, including educators in higher education, K-12, and…

Congratulations to Rene Przkora, MD, PhD, who has been re-elected to serve another 2-year term as Council Member for Pain Medicine of the Association of Anesthesiology Subspecialty Program Directors of the Society of Academic Associations of Anesthesiology and Perioperative…

Congratulations to all who had articles published in October! Anesthesia & Analgesia Berkow L, Kanowitz A. In response. Anesth Analg. 2020 Nov;131(5):e238. doi: 10.1213/ANE.0000000000005166. PMID: 33094987 No abstract available. Annals of Thoracic Surgery Plowman EK, Chheda N, Anderson A, Allen J, DiBiase L, Vasilopoulos…

Annually, the UF Department of Anesthesiology joins healthcare providers nationwide to celebrate these exceptional health care providers during National Nurse Practitioner Week. Our nurse practitioners work hard every day to treat, diagnose, prescribe, and educate patients so they live healthier lives. We are especially grateful to all of our…

Congratulations to Associate Professor Patrick Tighe, MD, MS, who is a coeditor of the new Second Edition of the Military Advanced Regional Anesthesia and Analgesia Handbook published Oct. 9 by Oxford University Press. The thoroughly revised and updated second edition contains illustrated, step-by-step guidance for…

The department is pleased to announce that Lauren C. Berkow, MD, FASA, has been promoted to Chief of the Division of Neuroanesthesia. Since joining us in 2016, Dr. Berkow, Professor of Anesthesiology and Director of Anesthesia Supplies and Equipment, has made substantial contributions to our institution’s sustainability and…

Colleen G. Koch, MD, MS, MBA, has been named dean of the University of Florida College of Medicine, becoming the 10th dean and the first woman to hold the appointment in the college’s 64-year history. Dr. Koch, who currently serves as a Professor and Chair of the Department of Anesthesiology…

Our department has announced the appointments of Miguel A. Reina, MD, PhD, and Henry Rosenberg, MD, as Courtesy Professors effective Oct. 1 through Sept. 30, 2021. Dr. Reina has been a Professor of Anesthesiology in the School of Medicine at the University CEU San Pablo since 2009. He has been…

Third-year residents Joseph Aburahma, MD, Bill Mallett, MD, and Jay Nwokolo, MD, each scored in the top 10% of the American Board of Anesthesiology BASIC Examination in August, 2020. Scoring in the top ten percent among those who took the exam is a testament to the hard work and dedication…

With funding and in collaboration with a group from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), a team of UF researchers is working to refine the genetic markers of malignant hyperthermia (MH) using whole exome sequencing.   Ultimately, the project aims to make a genetic analysis a more reliable way to diagnose a person’s genetic susceptibility to malignant hyperthermia (MH), which is…

Yahya Ayhan Acar, MD, has joined us for a yearlong Simulation Fellowship in the Center for Safety, Simulation, and Advanced Learning Technologies (CSSALT). Dr. Acar is Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine in the Department of Emergency Medicine at University…

Please join us in congratulating, Julie Holroyd, MD, our resident of the month for August! Residents were nominated by their fellow residents and faculty for their hard work, motivation, and going above and beyond in their duties. Fourth-year resident Julie Holroyd, MD, received the most nominations of any individual in…

The UF Health team behind the local PulsePoint Respond mobile app initiative, which aims to increase the survival rate from cardiac arrest in the Gainesville community, has received national recognition for its creative and effective marketing approach.  The PulsePoint community launch team received a …

A low-risk, minimally invasive procedure offered at UF Health can help patients experiencing low back pain due to spinal stenosis, while reducing recovery time. The short outpatient MILD® procedure to treat lumbar spinal stenosis is approved by the FDA and covered by Medicare nationwide. It requires only a small incision…

Congratulations to all who had articles published in September! A&A Practice Gray CM, Adaralegbe AO, Kumar S. A case report of high cervical spinal cord stimulation for chronic otalgia and tinnitus. A A Pract. 2020 Jul;14(9):e01261. doi: 10.1213/XAA.0000000000001261. PMID: 32909723 American Journal of Medical Quality…

Congratulations to Assistant Professor Basma Mohamed, MBChB, who has joined the patient education section of the Education Committee of the Society of Neuroscience in Anesthesiology and Critical Care (SNACC). Dr. Mohamed expressed interest to the chair of the education committee and highlighted her work in the Perioperative Medicine Division.

A preoperative anemia clinic opened in mid-August to identify and optimize patients with anemia prior to planned surgery as part of UF Health’s ongoing Patient Blood Management Program.   Anemia is a preventable problem that is easily detected during a patient’s evaluation for surgery. The presence of anemia, when…

Every year from October 6 -12, we join healthcare providers nationwide in recognizing the unique skills of our Physician Assistants during National PA Week. Our PA’s have stepped up during this challenging time of COVID-19 and proven themselves to be flexible, collaborative, adaptable, and most importantly ESSENTIAL. On behalf…

Congratulations to Jiepei Zhu, MD, PhD, who has been awarded an Intergovernmental Personnel Act (IPA) grant to go on a yearlong assignment assisting with traumatic brain injury (TBI) research at the Malcom Randall VA Medical Center. Dr. Zhu will serve as the Co-Investigator on the research study of Kevin Wang,…

Congratulations to Rene Przkora, MD, PhD, who has been appointed to a 1-year term as a member of the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) Abstract Review Subcommittee on Chronic and…

Fritz-Gerald Charles, MD, earned his undergraduate degree in Pre-Health Professions from Florida Atlantic University before attending UF’s College of Medicine. He also earned a Bachelor of Science in Nuclear Medicine Technology from Barry University in 2009, and an Associate of Arts in Pharmacy from Broward College in 2006. Now a third-year resident,…

This month we said goodbye to a longtime member of the Anesthesiology family as Marilyn Blackwell, Staff Assistant in Financial Services, retired after 34 ½ years with our department. Marilyn served our department through five chairs and numerous changes, always with a big smile, good cheer, and willingness to help.

Congratulations to Sem Lampotang, PhD, FSSH, FAIMBE, Gordon L. Gibby, MD, MSEE, David Lizdas, BSME, and their team, who have been honored with a UFInnovations of the Year award for the PanVentTM low-cost, open-source ventilator they created during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The award from UF Innovate…

Rene Przkora, MD, PhD, is a coauthor on new guidelines published by the American Burn Association for managing acute pain in adult burn patients. The guidelines, published online on Sept. 4 in the Journal of Burn Care and Research, are the first time the guidelines…

Congratulations to Mary Jane Michael, RN, MS, CCRC, Clinical Research Manager, who has been elected to a 2-year term as Secretary on the Leadership Board of Sigma Theta Tau, the International Nursing Honor Society, representing the Alpha Theta Chapter at UF. The goal of…

Congratulations to fourth-year resident Milu Thakkar, MD, who has been selected to participate in the 2020 American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) Resident Component House of Delegates as a Florida Resident Delegate. As a member of the governing council, the ASA Resident Component House of Delegates will provide Dr. Thakkar with exposure to…

John Santiago, MD, joined us as Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology in the Division of Multispecialty Anesthesiology on Sept. 15. Dr. Santiago joins us from Kaiser Permanente Mid-Atlantic Permanente Medical Group in Virginia, where he served as an Anesthesiologist at Tysons Corner Ambulatory Surgery Center, Virginia Hospital Center, and Reston Hospital…

Lauren Smajdor, MD, earned her undergraduate degree at the University of Florida before attending UF’s College of Medicine. Now a fourth-year resident, Dr. Smajdor received the CA2 Division of Acute Pain Award at our 2020 graduation ceremony. She also…

Congratulations to all who had articles published in August! Annals of Thoracic Surgery Tinica G, Tarus A, Bacusca A, Furnica C, Chistol RO, Robicsek SA. “Carpe diem” professor – in memoriam of Francis Robicsek (1925-2020). Ann Thorac Surg. 2020 Aug 3:S0003-4975(20)31285-6. doi: 10.1016/j.athoracsur.2020.05.173. Online ahead…

September is Pain Awareness Month, and the 2020 theme is #MyPainPlan, which focuses on the importance of an individualized, multidisciplinary, multimodal approach to pain care. At UF Health, we are committed to preventing and treating acute and chronic pain through various techniques. If you have pain that’s interfering…

Matthew Meroney, MD, joined us as Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology in the Division of Pain Medicine on Sept. 1 after completing his Pain Medicine Fellowship in our department. Dr. Meroney earned his medical degree at Eastern Virginia Medical School in Norfolk, Virginia, where he also completed an intern…

Trina Emerson joined the Department of Anesthesiology as Practice Manager of UF Health Pain Medicine Springhill in March. She came to us with a strong background in healthcare administration, having most recently served as Senior Clinical Financial Manager at Florida Cancer Specialists. Below, we caught up with her about…

Originally from Miami, Lida Esfandiary, MD, earned her undergraduate degree in biology at the University of Florida in 2014 before attending UF’s College of Medicine. In her final year of medical school, she earned the prestigious J.S. Gravenstein Award…

Lauren Berkow, MD, is the author of a new topic, “Complications of airway management in adults,” published in the database UpToDate® in July. The topic discusses potential complications during or…

The pterygopalatine fossa block simulator, built over the past year with a grant from the I. Heermann Anesthesia Foundation (IHAF), is now ready for validation with trainees. Ultimately, it could be used to train providers in several UF Health locations on as many as eight other head and neck blocks.

The Pain Medicine Division has been awarded a grant from Medtronic to support fellows in attending cadaver courses required during their training. The funds will be used by the six Pain Medicine fellows throughout the year to attend various educational courses. With the support from Medtronic,…

Pablo Pizarro Rosario, MD, joined us on Aug. 17, 2020, as an Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology in the Division of Critical Care Medicine. He has more than 30 years of military service and joins us from the Naval Medical Center Portsmouth in Virginia, where he has served as a staff…

Congratulations to Alicia McLeod, MD, for being elected to the University of Florida College of Medicine Housestaff Council Executive Committee! The Housestaff Council provides input to the Graduate Medical Education office on many issues and the Executive Committee guides some of the financial decisions for money used for housestaff. Dr.

Sixteen fellows from the Departments of Anesthesiology, Emergency Medicine, Neurology, and Surgery had the opportunity to practice core critical care skills on simulation equipment during a multidisciplinary 3-day boot camp August 12-14. The 3 didactic days included lectures, interactive problem-based learning discussions, task training, team training, and simulation. Scheduling…

Andrea Macias Mendoza, MD, joined us on Aug. 3, 2020, as an Assistant Professor in the Division of Multispecialty Anesthesiology. She earned her medical degree from New York Medical College; she completed her Anesthesiology Residency this year at Saint Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston, New Jersey. She is a member…

Three Department of Anesthesiology faculty members have received Faculty Enhancement Opportunity (FEO) awards to attend an intensive 2-week undersea and hyperbaric medicine diving course in California, with the goal of expanding treatment for a range of diving- and aviation-related conditions at UF Health. Assistant Professor Derek Covington, MD, Professor…

Please join us in congratulating our residents of the month for May and June! These residents were nominated by their fellow residents and faculty for their hard work, motivation, and going above and beyond in their duties. The resident of the month for May is fourth-year resident Dominik Ochocinski, DO.

As of July 10, UF Health CRNAs are now eligible to receive continuing education credits (CEUs) by attending Friday morning CME lectures, providing a convenient and flexible option to obtain required credits. Among other requirements, CRNAs need 100 CEUs every 4 years to maintain certification. They can obtain these credits…

Six anesthesiologists began their Multidisciplinary Pain Medicine Fellowship with us this summer. Please help us welcome them to the team! Justin Alfonso, MD Residency Specialty: Anesthesiology Residency Institution: University of Florida Jacksonville Medical Education: American University of Antigua In his free time, Dr. Alfonso enjoys playing a variety of sports…

Adrian J. Maurer, MD, joined us on Aug. 1, 2020, as an Assistant Professor in the Division of Acute Pain Medicine. Dr. Maurer joins us from our Acute & Perioperative Pain Medicine Fellowship, which he completed over the past year. He earned his medical degree at the University of Oklahoma…

UF Health will become a study site of an NIH-funded research initiative aimed at comparing non-opioid treatments for managing knee pain associated with osteoarthritis.  The multicenter randomized controlled trial, called “A sequenced strategy for improving outcomes in persons with knee osteoarthritis pain (SKOAP),” will seek to optimize evidence-based approaches to managing pain associated with knee osteoarthritis and identify phenotypes that…

Congratulations to all who had articles published in July! Addiction Zhou L, Bhattacharjee S, Kwoh K, Tighe PJ, Reisfield GM, Malone DC, Slack M, Wilson DL, Chang CY, Lo-Ciganic WH. Dual-trajectories of opioid and gabapentinoid use and risk of subsequent drug overdose among medicare beneficiaries in the united…

Welcome to our new Combined Cardiothoracic Critical Care Medicine Fellow and Pediatric Anesthesiology Fellow! Combined Cardiothoracic Critical Care Medicine Ahmad Parniani, MD Residency Specialty: Anesthesiology Residency Institution: Penn State Medical Education: University of Louisville In his free time, Dr. Parniani likes to travel. He enjoys bowling and billiards and…

Basma Mohamed, MBChB, has received a Faculty Enhancement Opportunity (FEO) grant to complete a yearlong Perioperative Medicine Fellowship at Duke University. Dr. Mohamed, an Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology, will complete the fellowship remotely while at UF. The FEO award will cover the full $45,000 tuition for…

Rene Przkora, MD, PhD, is a coauthor on a new paper in the journal Pain Medicine describing innovative solutions to help maintain the quality of pain fellowship programs during the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The authors convened a panel of pain program directors who…

Five anesthesiologists and two emergency medicine physicians began their Critical Care Medicine Fellowship with us this summer. Please help us welcome them to the team! Jacqueline Boehme, MD Residency Specialty: Anesthesiology Residency Institution: Brigham & Women’s Hospital Medical Education: Harvard Medical School Dr. Boehme has a passion for the…

The Department of Anesthesiology awarded four research grants to support anesthesiology faculty research. Fifteen applications were submitted and four proposals were selected and approved by leadership. The winners are Prodip Bose, PhD, Penny Reynolds, PhD, Richa Wardhan, MD, Anthony Cometa, MD, Brandon Lopez, MD, and Adam Wendling, MD.

Albert Robinson, III, MD, Associate Professor of Anesthesiology, has taken the helm as President of the College of Medicine Faculty Council after serving as President-Elect this past year. Sonia Deshmukh Mehta, MD, Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology, is embarking on the second year of her…

After four years of extensive work by an international panel of experts that included Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology Penny S. Reynolds, PhD, the updated and revised ARRIVE 2.0 (Animal Research: Reporting In Vivo Experiments) guidelines have been published on July…

Four anesthesiologists began their Adult Cardiothoracic Anesthesia Fellowship with us this summer. Please help us welcome them to the team! Jordan Brewer, MD Residency Specialty: Anesthesiology Residency Institution: University of Florida Medical Education: University of Texas When Dr. Brewer is not working, he enjoys getting outdoors either to run…

Sandra Victor, MD, joined our department as Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology in the Division of Pain Medicine on July 1 after completing her Pain Medicine Fellowship with us. Dr. Victor earned her medical degree at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, and she completed her Anesthesiology…

Congratulations to all who had articles published in June! American Journal of Transplantation Wallen TJ, Arnaoutakis GJ, Beaver T, Pelaez A, Chandrashekaran S, Shahmohammadi A, Emtiazjoo AM, Spiess B, Pipkin M, Machuca TN. Successful Bridge to Lung Transplantation with Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement. Am J Transplant. 2020 Jun 7.

Five anesthesiologists began their Acute and Perioperative Pain Medicine Fellowship with us this summer. Please help us welcome them to the team! Andrey Bilko, MD Residency Specialty: AnesthesiologyResidency Institution: Penn StateMedical Education: Penn State In his free time, Dr. Bilko enjoys being outside, especially near the water, where he…

Twenty-five physicians began their Anesthesiology Residency with us this summer, including six graduates of the University of Florida College of Medicine. Please help us welcome them to the team! Interested in joining our residency program? Find out how to apply here. First-Year Residents (PGY-1/Intern) Affan Ahmad, MD…

UF Health Pain Medicine specialists are ready to provide services that meet the needs and preferences of all patients throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, whether they would like to be seen for an in-person visit following CDC guidelines or via telehealth.  Our specialists use teams of experts to diagnose and treat…

Congratulations to Amanda Frantz, MD, Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology, who has been awarded a $42,110 grant from the I. Heermann Anesthesia Foundation, or IHAF. The yearlong grant titled “Exploration of Biomarkers and Clinical Assessment of Patients Undergoing Total Knee Replacement Surgery and Their Perioperative Outcomes” will begin Sept. 20.

Emeritus professor Charles Parker Gibbs, MD, passed away on June 25, surrounded by his loving family under the care of Haven Hospice in Gainesville, FL. He was 84. Dr. Gibbs’ influence as a physician and educator left an indelible mark on the University of Florida College of Medicine and beyond…

Congratulations to our 24 graduating residents of the Class of 2020, who were honored during two virtual celebrations this year, and our 16 graduating fellows, who received sendoffs in small groups.

Congratulations to Nelson “Nic” Algarra, MD, and David Corda, MD, who have been promoted to Associate Professor effective July 1. Dr. Algarra, who is also Assistant Program Director for Clinical Operations, joined UF in 2014 from the University of Kansas. Dr. Corda, who is also Chief of the Division of…

Two members of our department’s Statistics in Anesthesiology Research (STAR) Core have published new research in the journal Military Medicine showing poor methodological quality in animal research studies, pointing to problems in clinical research translation and ethical issues for animal use. Penny Reynolds, PhD, Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology, and…

Congratulations to all who had articles published in May! Annals of Work Exposures and Health Schirmer A, Sessions R, Gravenstein N, Rand K, Oli M, Cooper LA, Sappenfield JW. Isolation gowns as a potential work hazard. Ann Work Expo Health. 2020 May 6. pii: wxaa047. doi: 10.1093/annweh/wxaa047. [Epub ahead…

A pilot study led by Assistant Professor Richa Wardhan, MD, describing a simple way to modify respirator masks for healthcare providers who fail fit tests has been published in A&A Practice. The study, titled “Does a Modified Adhesive Respirator Improve the Face Seal for Health Care Workers…

Updated Dec. 2024 Email our CRNA & CAA chiefs to join our team…

Professor of Anesthesiology Bruce Spiess, MD, FAHA, has received a $15,000 grant from the University of Florida Research Foundation Commercialization Fund to commercially develop point-of-care blood tests to detect a protein that plays an important role in anticoagulation.

As the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated across the United States in early April, supplies of personal protective equipment, or PPE, were becoming increasingly scarce in many hospitals. China, however, where the pandemic began earlier in the year, was beginning to see the downside of the curve. This spurred Yong G.

Updated December 2024 Opportunities to Join our Team…

Dianne M. Fontanez-Nieves, MD, joined us on June 1, 2020, as an Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology in the Division of Multispecialty Anesthesiology. Dr. Fontanez-Nieves was most recently an Associate Consultant in the Department of Anesthesiology at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. She earned her medical degree from the Universidad Central…

Congratulations to Stephanie Gore MSN, RN, CCRN, our Patient Safety and Quality Officer, for being selected as the winner of the fourth annual Rebecca Y. Lovely Outstanding Service Award! Stephanie had several nominations for this award expressing the energy and positivity that she brings to the department. Below are a…

The UF Department of Anesthesiology is joining healthcare providers nationwide in recognizing the unique skills of Certified Anesthesiologist Assistants (CAAs) during National CAA Week. As members of our anesthesia team, our CAAs play a vital role. They provide specialized knowledge, skillful expertise, and high-quality patient care techniques to ensure the…

Professor of Anesthesiology and Statistician Cynthia Garvan, PhD, has been awarded a $10,000 grant from the University of Florida Research Foundation Commercialization Fund to develop the “Strategies to Orient, Learn, and Achieve in Research – (SOLAR)” project. The award will be used to develop a web application…

Please join us in congratulating our residents of the month for March and April. These residents were nominated by their fellow residents and faculty for their hard work, motivation, and going above and beyond in their duties. The resident of the month for March is fourth-year resident Matt Gunst, MD.

Please join us in welcoming Joni Brown, APRN-C, back to our department as she re-joins our Pain Medicine Division in the Springhill pain clinic. Joni holds a dual Bachelor of Science in Nursing/Master of Science in Nursing as a family practice Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioner from the University of Florida…

Lauren Berkow, MD, FASA, has been elected to the University of Florida Faculty Senate as a representative for the College of Medicine. Dr. Berkow’s term will begin in August and last for three years. In addition to Dr. Berkow, four other faculty members were elected this year to represent…

Second-year resident Holden Brown, MD, and a group of his medical school colleagues recently obtained a patent for a simple arm support device designed to improve image quality, patient safety and comfort during imaging procedures. Patients undergoing procedures that involve medical imaging such as CAT scans…

Two initiatives created by our department over the past two months in response to the COVID-19 pandemic have garnered significant media attention, including mentions in national outlets such as the Los Angeles Times, National Geographic, and Fox News.

Revered Professor Nikolaus Gravenstein, MD, has been selected for the 2020 University of Florida College of Medicine Faculty Council Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of his more than three decades of contributions to our department, specialty, and institution. The award recognizes the most outstanding members of…

Rene Przkora, MD, PhD, has been appointed as a new member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Association of University Anesthesiologists (AUA). Membership appointments to the board are for a 3-year term, after which time members can reapply for membership.

The week of May 6 – May 12 is National Nurses Week. This week commemorates Florence Nightingale’s birthday, the founder of modern nursing, and this year we are especially grateful for all of our amazing nurses at UF Health who are on the frontlines, risking their lives, during the COVID-19…

In this unwelcome season of troubled times, we regret to share the sad news that we have lost a member of our College of Medicine family. Today, Maria Irwin, M.D., unexpectedly passed away. She was 48. Maria joined UF Health in 2006 as an anesthesiology resident after completing her medical…

Congratulations to all who had articles published in April! Anesthesia & Analgesia Berkow L, Kanowitz A. COVID-19 putting patients at risk of unplanned extubation and airway providers at increased risk of contamination. Anesth Analg. 2020 Apr 16. doi: 10.1213/ANE.0000000000004890. [Epub ahead of print] Huffmyer JL, Fahy BG.

Rene Przkora, MD, PhD, and the Pain Medicine Fellowship have been awarded grants from the Abbott Medical Device Grant Committee and Medtronic to support education in pain medicine. The funding will help our fellowship train the next generation of leaders in…

University of Florida anesthesiology and engineering experts have teamed up to create a face shield for health care workers that can be easily and rapidly produced. “We got creative at a time when the availability of personal protective equipment was unknown to make sure all of the people on the frontlines are safe,” said Stephanie Gore, M.S.N., R.N., CCRN, department of anesthesiology’s patient safety and quality officer .

The Department of Anesthesiology was honored with the Golden Apple Award for Clinical Science for the second year in a row during the College of Medicine’s virtual Senior Student and Faculty Awards ceremony on May 7, 2020. The Golden Apple Award is voted on by the graduating class as the…

The UF Department of Anesthesiology joins the International Association of Administrative Professionals to recognize the unique skills of our administrative professionals during National Administrative Professionals’ Day on Wednesday, April 22, 2020. We know this year has brought unprecedented changes in how we work as well as personal challenges for many.

Sylvain Doré, PhD, recently served as the guest speaker at a medical science scholarship banquet for high school seniors given by a nonprofit foundation that raises awareness of adverse brain conditions. The Sia Brain Awareness Scholarship Foundation began in 2011 in memory of Sia Christine Yorker, who died at age…

Rene Przkora, MD, PhD, president of the Association of Pain Program Directors, recently took advantage of an online platform to address the needs and opportunities for pain medicine training programs as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The crisis has presented numerous challenges, but also…

University of Florida-led international project to rapidly design and build a low-cost, DIY ventilator using hardware store parts is meeting preliminary milestones toward being approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for Emergency Use Authorization in case it is needed in the battle against COVID-19

Jerome H. Modell, M.D., D.Sc. (Hon.), whose remarkable influence as a physician, teacher, researcher, administrator and generous philanthropist has left an indelible mark on our academic health center as well as throughout the world, passed away Tuesday, April 14, 2020, after a brief hospitalization for a chronic illness. He was 87.

Congratulations to all who had articles published in March! Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology Liu L, Kelly MG, Yang XR, Fernandez TG, Wierzbicki EL, Skrobach A, Doré S. Nrf2 Deficiency Exacerbates Cognitive Impairment and Reactive Microgliosis in a Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Neuroinflammatory Mouse Model. Cell Mol Neurobiol. 2020 Mar…

For the safety and convenience of our patients, the University of Florida Department of Anesthesiology’s Pain Medicine Division has successfully embarked on offering telehealth appointments. The appointments offered via a secure video chat or phone call allow patients to receive medical treatment from pain faculty physicians while adhering to…

Congratulations to Keith Howell, MD, who has achieved a Clinical Informatics Sub-Specialty Certification from the American Board of Preventative Medicine. This certification recognizes physicians who improve patient care through analyzing, designing, implementing, and evaluating information and communication systems. Dr. Howell, who joined us as an Associate Professor…

We are pleased to announce Kayser Enneking, MD, Professor of Anesthesiology, Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation and Medical Director of the UF Health Presurgical Clinic, has been selected by the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine Board of Directors as an ASRA Trailblazer Award recipient. ASRA’s Trailblazer Awards are designed to…

Our department is now ranked #29 in the country among all anesthesiology departments for NIH research funding in the 2019 Blue Ridge Institute for Medical Research rankings. The ranking is a jump from 2018, when the department was ranked #36. Among principal investigators in Anesthesiology, Rene Przkora, MD, PhD, Professor…

Samsun Lampotang, PhD, FSSH, the Joachim S. Gravenstein Professor of Anesthesiology and Director of the Center for Safety, Simulation & Advanced Learning Technologies, has been inducted into the 2020 College of Fellows of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE) for his contributions to the…

With masks used by health workers battling the coronavirus in short supply, the University of Florida Health’s department of anesthesiology has developed masks that can be produced in large quantities using materials already found in hospitals and medical facilities.

As a University of Florida mechanical engineering student decades ago, Samsun Lampotang, Ph.D., helped respiratory therapist colleagues build a minimal-transport ventilator that became a commercial success. So, when the coronavirus pandemic hit and he heard the desperate international plea for thousands more ventilators, the longtime UF professor of anesthesiology set out to build a prototype using plentiful, cheap components that could be copied from an online diagram and a software repository.

Congratulations to our department residents, who performed strongly overall on the American Board of Anesthesiology’s February 2020 administration of the In-Training Examination. Overall, our senior residents scored at or very close to the 90th percentile nationally. In addition, three of our senior residents achieved the highest possible scaled score of…

Twenty-five physicians have matched with our department to begin their Anesthesiology Residency with us in the upcoming academic year, including six graduates of the University of Florida College of Medicine. For the categorical match, our department submitted a ranking list of around 150 senior medical students from across the country…

As the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic continues to escalate, experts are warning of a dire shortage of blood as donors stay home and blood drives across the country are canceled. People should continue to donate blood while taking appropriate precautions and following guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and…

Congratulations to all who had articles published in February! Archives of Gynecology and Obstetrics Wendling AL, Byun SY, Koenig M, Vasilopoulos T. Impact of oral carbohydrate consumption prior to cesarean delivery on preoperative well-being: a randomized interventional study. Arch Gynecol Obstet. 2020 Jan;301(1):179-187. doi: 10.1007/s00404-020-05455-z. Epub 2020 Feb 5.

A multipronged approach targeting pharmaceutical waste generated during anesthesia care has seen success by improving the efficiency of medication delivery and implementing new strategies for safely disposing of controlled substances.   The Department of Anesthesiology is seeking to reduce waste from upstream to downstream,…

The Center for Safety, Simulation, and Advanced Learning Technologies (CSSALT) has started an Open Source Ventilator Project to address the predicted worldwide ventilator shortage due to the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the most recent study, there are about 62,000 ventilators in hospitals…