People

Melissa Erin Parsons, MD

University of Florida College of Medicine Jacksonville

Dr. Melissa Parsons is a Program director and an Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine at the University of Florida College of Medicine - Jacksonville. She received a Bachelor's degree in Biology at the University of Florida in Gainesville and attended medical school at UF as well. Dr. Parsons completed her Emergency Medicine residency at the University of Florida College of Medicine - Jacksonville and stayed on as faculty, serving as the Assistant Medical Director at their community hospital prior to transitioning into an educational role as Associate Residency Director and now Program Director for the Emergency Medicine residency program at UF-Jacksonville. She co-chairs the University of Florida-Jacksonville’s Women in Medicine and Science organization as well as organizing the residency program’s simulation and wellness efforts. Her professional interests include gender disparities in medical education, physician infertility and physician wellness.

Robert Tanouye

Amos Shemesh

David Bodnar

Gerardo C. Chiricolo, MD

Vice Chairman and Director, Division of Emergency Ultrasound

New York-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital

Dr. Gerardo C. Chiricolo is an emergency medicine physician in Brooklyn, New York and is affiliated with New York-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital. He received his medical degree from Universidad Autonoma de Guadalajara and has been in practice between 11-20 years.

Penelope C. Lema, MD, FPD-AEMUS

Columbia University Department of Emergency Medicine

Dr. Penelope (Penny) Lema is the Vice Chair of Faculty Affairs and an Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons. She completed her Emergency Medicine Residency and Emergency Ultrasound Fellowship at Northshore University Hospital at Manhasset (now Northwell), where she served as Chief Resident. Dr. Lema has been a nationally recognized leader in Emergency Medicine and within Emergency Ultrasound. She is the past Chair of the ACEP Emergency Ultrasound Section, past Treasurer and Board of Director of SCUF, and current Secretary-Treasurer and member of the Board of the NY Chapter of ACEP. She is an active member of SAEM AEUS and AWAEM. Dr. Lema is a passionate educator and advocate for Emergency Medicine, dedicated to inclusion and equity in medicine and faculty professional development.

Peter Steel

Matthew McCarty

Brenna Farmer

Manish Sharma

Marie-Laure Romney

Nicholas Gavin

Scott Mackey

Currently the Chief Medical Informatics Officer, UMCNO and practicing attending physician in Emergency Medicine.

Jeffrey Elder

Dr. Jeffrey Elder is a Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine in the Section of Emergency Medicine at LSU Health Sciences Center in New Orleans and serves as the Co-Director of the Division of EMS and Disaster Medicine.  He is also the Medical Director for Emergency Preparedness at University Medical Center in New Orleans and EMS Medical Director for St. Tammany Fire District No. 1 (Slidell Fire).  He previously served as the Director and Medical Director of New Orleans EMS.  A graduate of LSU School of Medicine, Dr. Elder began his career in EMS while training as a resident in Emergency Medicine at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center. While working with some of the best paramedics in the country, he learned how advances in prehospital medicine can drive in-hospital emergency medical care. He is board certified in both Emergency Medicine with subspecialty board certified in Emergency Medical Services by the American Board of Emergency Medicine. 

Peter DeBelieux

Dr. Peter DeBlieux, completed medical school at Louisiana State Health Science Center, completed internship in Internal Medicine LSUHSC Department of Medicine, residency and Chief residency in Emergency Medicine LSUHSC Charity Hospital, completed Pulmonary Critical Care fellowship LSUHSC Section of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at LSUHSC Charity Hospital.  Former Program Director of the LSUHSC Charity Hospital Emergency Medicine Residency for ten years and former Director of Resident and Faculty Development for ten years.  Appointments with both LSUHSC as Clinical Professor of Medicine and Tulane University Medical School as Clinical Professor of Surgery.  Attending in Emergency Medicine and the Medical Intensive Care Unit of LSUHSC Charity Hospital for over 30 years.  Former Chief Medical Officer and Director of Quality and Patient Safety at University Medical Center, New Orleans.  Currently he is Chief Experience Officer at University Medical Center, New Orleans directing patient satisfaction, employee engagement and Provider engagement.

David Beran

Board certified Emergency Physician, Medical Director of the ED

University Medical Center, New Orleans

Jennifer Avegno

Dr. Jennifer Avegno is a New Orleans native who received her undergraduate degree from the University of Notre Dame, a Master of Arts in Sociology from Tulane University and her MD from LSU School of Medicine – New Orleans.  She completed her residency at LSU/Charity Hospital Emergency Medicine and joined the faculty at both LSU and Tulane shortly after graduation.  As an academic faculty member, Dr. Avegno served as Associate Residency Director and Director of Undergraduate Emergency Medicine Education for both LSU and Tulane Medical Schools.  In 2017, she established the Division of Community Health Relations & Engagement in the LSU Section of Emergency Medicine, and as its director worked with institutional, governmental, and other community organizations to facilitate innovative programming, interdisciplinary partnerships, and improved population health outcomes.  Her clinical, program, and research interests include the role of social determinants of health, particularly access and barriers to care; health equity; violence intervention/prevention; sexual assault and human trafficking; and homelessness.  In 2018, she was appointed as the Director of the Health Department for the City of New Orleans, where she leads a dedicated team of public health professionals in addressing critical health needs for the community.

Rhea Begeman

Director, Administrative Operations

University of Illinois College of Medicine at Chicago

Christopher Tedeschi

Christopher Tedeschi, MD, MA, FAWM is Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine at Columbia University Medical Center and director of emergency preparedness for the Department of Emergency Medicine at Columbia. His interests include disaster preparedness and response, as well as wilderness and environmental medicine. Dr. Tedeschi sits on the editorial board of the Journal Wilderness and Environmental Medicine, and is a Fellow of the Academy of Wilderness Medicine.  He has worked in disaster preparedness and response locally and internationally, with an interest in media coverage and ethical, legal and social issues during public health emergencies. 

Michelle Hughes, MD

Secretary

University of Wisconsin

I completed medical school at University of Maryland and Emergency Medicine Residency at the University of Chicago. I completed my simulation fellowship at Rush/Cook County and have been Medical Director of Simulation at University of Wisconsin since 2020. I am the fellowship director as well and now have taken over Faculty and APP maintenance of credentialing. I have been a member at large of the SAEM Sim Academy for the last 1.5 years and a part of the education subcommittee. Have also started becoming more involved with AWAEM as the simulation liaison and hoping to continue to build that relationship. Have been able to be involved and learn about the inner workings of the Sim Academy, have been able to collaborate with many members of the Sim Academy as well as have built relationships with simulationists nationally.. Hoping to continue to push forward the agenda of collaboration and projects, especially engaging new resident and fellow members. Hoping to increase awareness of the academy and membership, as well as facilitate more collaboration nationally. Would love to continue to build the network of simulationists, not only for projects but also for mentorship. Have started to do some work with simulation in the realm of DEI and would hope to continue to collaborate with ADIEM in this working group that has been formed.