Yale's New Cardiac Anesthesiology Chief on Fellowship Training and the Future of Perioperative Care

This role, like many of the others that I've had here at Yale, found me rather than me finding it. What drew me in the most was the evolving care needs of our patients. We have many growing service needs in pain management and cardiac surgery procedures. I am honored to help our team raise the standard of care.

I’m focused on what I can do to help support growth of the division in pursuit of this mission. We’re at a crossroads in adult cardiothoracic anesthesia. This is clear as we grow into intensive care and procedural cardiology. We need to rise to the challenge to ensure our patients in the intensive care unit and beyond receive the highest quality of care.

I’ve witnessed the needs of our patients and service lines grow rapidly in my time here at Yale. I graduated just over a year before the pandemic. This tumultuous time profoundly shaped the first few years of my career.

Watching our medical center and health care system respond to these demands made a strong impression on me. I am very proud of the work our team has done to support the growth of cardiac care at Yale New Haven Health.

Something that has always impressed me about anesthesiology is our ability to work as a team. We also build strong systems of care. I think we tend to undersell what the field has to offer across health care networks as architects of systems-based care. The way we respond to emergencies and act as a team seamlessly in the most challenging of circumstances is something I really cherish about anesthesia.

When I think of anesthesia leading patient safety, I think of building strong care systems. I also think about developing high-functioning teams. These teams must adapt to both single emergencies and larger challenges. One example is the pandemic, which can stress the whole health care system overnight.

Performing cardiac surgery and other high-acuity cases safely in community settings takes much more work behind the scenes. Many people do not see or realize it. To be able to extend the care, and to do it safely, should be exciting for everybody.

There are many demands on the service line and it's growing in many ways. I am eager to help us grow on all fronts. In places like the interventional cardiology lab, we support more cases each day. We need to make this support a routine part of care.

We are also expanding to support the electrophysiology team and to meet their evolving procedural care needs. Their rapid adoption of new technologies is very exciting and challenges us to find the safest ways of caring for adult and pediatric patients as the procedures themselves evolve.

Our training as cardiac anesthesiologists provides a valuable foundation for both the clinical care and the attributes necessary to manage patients with complex and rapidly evolving situations. This is very helpful as we expand into novel environments to support new activities anywhere in the hospital system.

I'm a former trainee of the program, and now I serve as fellowship director and division chief of the whole clinical service line. First and foremost, my experiences as a homegrown trainee have had the biggest impact on my leadership. I learned the system from within. Many faculty members still working in the division and institution mentored me.

I came to Yale after residency training in a region with a very different patient population and health needs. Coming to Yale showed me how care needs can differ across systems. It also showed me why understanding the wider health system matters for high-quality care.

Remaining closely involved with the cardiac anesthesia fellowship since my first days on staff continues to teach me. As a former fellow, I learned how to care for patients at the bedside. I also learned how to build strong clinical training for future leaders from the faculty who mentored me. Growing these leaders supports not just our fellowship programs here at Yale but expands our values across the United States and the world as our graduates enter the workforce.

Yale is a very special place for cardiac anesthesia and cardiac surgery. Our tradition of cardiac anesthesia really goes back to some of the foundational work in the field. Cardiac surgery at Yale will always fill a special niche of cutting-edge care.

Keeping pace with our surgeons and cardiologists to provide the safest care during this era of rapid growth is every bit as thrilling as it sounds. Carrying forward Yale's legacy of cardiac anesthesia in this environment is one of the greatest privileges of my career.

Finally, from my first days on campus, our community’s wide reach has always impressed and humbled me. Our network reaches far beyond our own campus. Now, having graduated eight classes of residents and fellows and seeing them out setting the world on fire, watching them become leaders very early on in their careers because of the same clinical experience that I had, is something I'll always hold as truly extraordinary.