A DAY IN THE LIFE
Hugh Shoff , MD , UofL Health Associate Chief Medical Officer and
Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine , speaking with WLKY on COVID-19 vaccination site and testing center .
Resident emergency physicians : Austin Sowers , MD , Jonathan Boland , MD , and Jacob Wells , MD , serving as the team physicians under attending supervision for the Martha
Layne Collins High School Football Team .
( continued from page 7 ) social issues in one given week . Each hat donned requires a certain skill set and mentality , whether you are providing medical support for an Antarctica expedition , with an Urban Search and Rescue Team ( USAR ), or on a radio discussing how to resuscitate a pediatric patient in a rural emergency department .
I ’ m consistently inspired by my colleagues and their accomplishments , it ’ s difficult to keep track of the many activities and appointments they immerse themselves in . You will find my colleagues on SWAT teams , in rotary and fixed wing ambulances or directing dive teams and disaster relief teams . They serve as medical directors of large metropolitan emergency medical services agencies , entire states and small rural , remote agencies . You may find colleagues at base camp at Mount Everest tending to ill climbers , wilderness rescue teams or on the backs of snowmobiles with the Ski Patrol . Other colleagues serve as CEOs , CMOs , Directors of Operations , Directors of Quality or Directors of Transfer Centers as well as serving in roles to advance the specialty such as Board Examiners or Delegates to the KMA . Other colleagues work not only to direct quality improvements in the department but continue to advance the use of ultrasound technology or telemedicine , meanwhile working to staff a medical tent for large music festivals and events in the community . Some colleagues serve as airway physicians for the National Football League , serve as medical directors for the NASCAR Safety Team or serve as the team physician for local school teams . Some colleagues oversee poison control centers , some provide toxicology consultation to assist physician colleagues with complicated toxicological cases . Some colleagues even work in remote areas of the world serving as the only physician for 200 miles or offer their experience to help governments establish emergency medicine in nations that do not yet offer the specialty . While some would believe that these are full-time jobs , often this is just another hat in our daily work . The common theme , despite these other jobs , is you will still find these physicians in your local emergency department working shifts .
The specialty is a conglomerate of diverse individuals with fascinating interests in the house of medicine within and outside the hospital walls . It brings me joy in my own practice to serve in different roles in medicine , and it provides me the experience and opportunity to be a better physician each day . Although at times the work can be taxing and challenging , wearing these many hats offers me an outlet to use what
Daniel O ’ Brien , MD , University of Louisville Professor of Emergency Medicine , serving in his role as Police Surgeon for Louisville Metro Police Department .
I trained so hard to cultivate outside of the traditional practice of medicine . In my own practice , I am blessed to have the opportunity to care for those who seek medical attention in the emergency department . I am also blessed to help care for my community through the direction of prehospital care , to help train law enforcement officers in basic casualty care , to serve in committees to improve the quality and experience patients receive and to serve my community in a multitude of different ways .
Dr . Kuzel is a Clinical Instructor of Emergency Medicine and Fellow of Hospital Administration and Clinical Operations at the University of Louisville School of Medicine . Dr . Kuzel also serves as the Assistant Medical Director for Bullitt County Emergency Medical Services and Medical Director for Flaherty Volunteer Fire Department in Meade County .
8