I am a critical care anesthesiologist interested in improving healthcare communication. 

I consider myself to have at least nine jobs (in alphabetical order):

  1. *Mom and partner-in-crime

  2. Administrator

  3. Anesthesiologist

  4. Intensivist

  5. Mentor

  6. Researcher

  7. Teacher

  8. University citizen

  9. Writer

1. *Mom:

I am the proud mother of two girls. Let's call them Tsunami and Bear. And I wouldn't be able to do anything without my husband, my partner in crime.

2. Administrator

I am the Executive Director of the Penn Implementation Science Center and I direct Penn’s Implementation Science Certificate program. In these capacities, I lead strategic planning, plan and manage budgets, and supervise an amazing group of research and administrative staff.

3. Anesthesiologist:

I am board certified in anesthesiology. In this capacity, I mostly take care of patients undergoing general surgery. I still marvel at the magic of anesthesia, especially epidurals.

4. Intensivist:

I am board certified in critical care medicine. As part of a multidisciplinary team, I take care of patients on life support, and help their families cope with sometimes devastating illness. I really enjoy attending in the trauma ICU, but any ICU is great!

5. Mentor:

I mentor an intrepid group of faculty, fellows, graduate students, residents, medical students, undergrads, all of whom are interested in research that improves patient care and patient outcomes. I have more than 80 lifetime mentees that have conducted amazing work.

6. Researcher:

I am an implementation scientist interested in achieving behavior change in health care. Most of the work that I lead has been focused on teamwork and communication with a special focus on handoffs. Over the past five years, I have had the opportunity to apply implementation science to maternal health, health equity, and environmental justice. I tend to use mixed methods, a blend of quantitative and qualitative techniques that have more explanatory power than either approach in isolation.

7. Teacher:

I teach medical students, residents and fellows about anesthesia and critical care. I try to emphasize the importance of compassion, respect, interprofessional practice and the skeptical use of scientific evidence. In the classroom, I teach graduate students about implementation science, the discipline concerned with improving the uptake of evidence-based practice.

8. University citizen:

I love being a part of the academy. I am a part of several interdisciplinary institutes and centers that bring together scholars of different disciplines to answer important questions. I am also a member of committees concerned with equity, inclusion, and academic freedom.

9. Writer:

I've been writing since college. Whether it's scholarly manuscripts, tongue in cheek op-eds, or perspectives on my experiences in medicine, I consider writing to be a vital way to connect with others.

ME TALKING:

In December 2012, then-Penn undergrad Deelan Ayhan interviewed me about my experiences with patient care and medical training. I'm including excerpts of this interview below.

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