Rachel Michelle Skains, MD, MSPH
President-Elect University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB)
Biography
I am honored to be considered for the position of President-Elect of the SAEM Academy of Geriatric Emergency Medicine (AGEM). I am a tenure-track Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) with a joint appointment at the Birmingham Veterans Affairs Medical Center. I earned my MD from Wake Forest School of Medicine, completed my Emergency Medicine Residency at UAB, and received my MSPH in Clinical and Translational Science from the UAB School of Public Health, followed by an AHRQ T32 Postdoctoral Fellowship in Health Services, Outcomes, and Effectiveness Research.
My NIH-funded research program focuses on medication safety, delirium, and cognitive outcomes among older adults in the ED, supported by a NIA GEMSSTAR R03, R21, and multiple pilot awards, with a K23 under review. Within AGEM, I currently serve as Member-at-Large (2024-Present), Chair of the AGEM Grants and Awards Subcommittee (2023-2025), and Chair of the Medication Safety Workgroup for the national Geriatric ED Guidelines 2.0 update (2021-Present). I also chaired the ACEP Expert Consensus Group on Geriatric High-Risk Prescriptions for the CEDR Quality Measure, served as the first Fellow on the ACEP Geriatric Emergency Medicine Section (GEMS) Executive Board, and currently serve as a member of the National VA Geriatric ED Core Committee.
I am running for President-Elect to help advance the visibility, mentorship, and scholarly impact of geriatric emergency medicine within SAEM and beyond. My goals include expanding opportunities for early-career investigators, strengthening interdisciplinary collaborations, and promoting equity and innovation in research and clinical care for older adults.
I am deeply proud of the community AGEM has built—one that values excellence, mentorship, and collaboration. If elected, I will work to ensure AGEM continues to lead national efforts in advancing education, research, and implementation of evidence-based geriatric emergency care.
My NIH-funded research program focuses on medication safety, delirium, and cognitive outcomes among older adults in the ED, supported by a NIA GEMSSTAR R03, R21, and multiple pilot awards, with a K23 under review. Within AGEM, I currently serve as Member-at-Large (2024-Present), Chair of the AGEM Grants and Awards Subcommittee (2023-2025), and Chair of the Medication Safety Workgroup for the national Geriatric ED Guidelines 2.0 update (2021-Present). I also chaired the ACEP Expert Consensus Group on Geriatric High-Risk Prescriptions for the CEDR Quality Measure, served as the first Fellow on the ACEP Geriatric Emergency Medicine Section (GEMS) Executive Board, and currently serve as a member of the National VA Geriatric ED Core Committee.
I am running for President-Elect to help advance the visibility, mentorship, and scholarly impact of geriatric emergency medicine within SAEM and beyond. My goals include expanding opportunities for early-career investigators, strengthening interdisciplinary collaborations, and promoting equity and innovation in research and clinical care for older adults.
I am deeply proud of the community AGEM has built—one that values excellence, mentorship, and collaboration. If elected, I will work to ensure AGEM continues to lead national efforts in advancing education, research, and implementation of evidence-based geriatric emergency care.
