Jody A. Vogel, MD, MSc, MSW

It is an exciting and transformative time within our specialty with both challenges and opportunities related to our workforce, researcher pipeline, medical education, and practice across acute care medicine. In this era, thoughtful and empathic leadership is necessary. As a long-standing leader in the Society, I have led multiple successful initiatives, and am running for the office of Secretary-Treasurer to continue to effectively engage and support members while advancing the mission of the Society and our specialty.

I am Vice Chair for Academic Affairs in the Department of Emergency Medicine at Stanford University. I received a Master of Social Work from the University of Michigan and began my career as a social worker on the midnight shift in the Emergency Department where my interest in our specialty flourished. I subsequently obtained a Doctor of Medicine from Wayne State University School of Medicine, graduating with distinction in biomedical research. I completed residency training at the Denver Health Medical Center, serving as chief resident during my final year of training. Following residency, I completed a research fellowship and served as academic faculty at the Denver Health Medical Center. I am a health services researcher with a history of grant support from the National Institutes of Health and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

Over the course of my career, I have been an active contributor to the Society beginning during residency and extending throughout my time as faculty, including my current service as Member-at-Large on the Board of Directors over the past four years. As a resident, I served as an active member of several committees, the Inaugural Chair of the Resident and Student Advisory Committee (which subsequently became Resident and Medical Students [RAMS]), and as Resident Member of the Board of Directors. As a faculty member, I have had the privilege of serving in many leadership roles in the Society, having led numerous committees and task forces and contributed to multiple annual SAEM strategic planning sessions. Highlights of my contributions to the Society include ten years of dedicated service on the SAEM Program Committee (PC), including two years as SAEM PC Chair, during which I led notable innovations such as: creation of novel program officer events, increased plenary abstracts; creation of the education keynote; expanded pediatric offerings; support for increased lactation areas and onsite childcare; and increased networking events. Because of these successful innovations, during my PC leadership there was a record number of abstract and didactic submissions. In addition, I have been an active member of the ACEP-SAEM Federal Research Funding Workgroup, Research Committee, Equity and Inclusion Committee, Wellness Committee, Awards Committee, Graduate Medical Education Committee, AWAEM, and ADIEM. I serve as a member of the Editorial Board for Academic Emergency Medicine. I was elected to the Nominating Committee 2015–2017 and have been invited to serve on or lead task forces to improve the SAEM Consensus Conference, Academic Emergency Medicine, and SAEM Leadership Forum. Through these excellent experiences and multiple leadership roles, I came to understand the essential role of the Society in improving our delivery of care to patients through education, innovation, and research. Moreover, I came to fully appreciate the benefits of the collaborative relationships developed through the Society which foster the exchange of knowledge and ideas that help improve patient care.

My goals for advancing members and the Society are multifaceted. The first goal would be to advocate for increased high-quality education, networking, and faculty development for all members to facilitate the leadership skills necessary to advance our specialty. The second goal would be to increase mentorship and collaborative research opportunities for investigators with the intent of increasing competitive, successful applications for federal research grants. As part of this process, I would continue to promote increased participation by emergency care investigators in federal study sections, advocate for expanded research training opportunities (R38, T32, K12), and encourage medical scientist training programs as a venue to help streamline clinical and research training and increase PhD-level emergency care investigators. Third, I would continue to encourage active participation by junior faculty and residents within the Society so they may benefit from the Society’s valuable resources as they become the future leaders in our specialty. Early mentorship through the Society is vital for the development of these future academicians who will carry forth the Society’s mission. Fourth, I would continue to promote inclusiveness in the Society’s endeavors, products, and leaders. The goal will be to engage all academicians in the Society in a meaningful way to encourage the novel innovation and discovery that results from diverse perspectives, thereby strengthening our specialty. Finally, I would work to continue to strengthen our relationships with other emergency medicine organizations as collegiality and collaboration is key to our specialty’s success. 

In summary, the Society has played an integral role in my development as an academician. As Secretary-Treasurer, I would encourage and foster opportunities for this same development for others so they may also benefit from the Society’s rich resources. My overall goal would be to strengthen the role of the Society as an influential leader in providing and advocating for emergency care research, education, and grants. I fully appreciate the many outstanding opportunities afforded by the Society, and it would be an honor to serve as Secretary-Treasurer.