Airway is a storytelling event for residents and faculty to share their personal experiences of being a physician. When Airway began in 2015, it started as a local event among Emergency Medicine residency programs in New York City. These events help physicians reflect on their practice, cultivate a sense of empathy, and develop a support network of trusted colleagues.  

Over the past three years, Airway has expanded to other cities across the U.S., including many EM conferences on the state and national levels. Meet your AIRWAY co-hosts!

Click a link below to listen to recordings of Airway Stories from CORD Academic Assembly.

AK Kalantari MD—APD, Dept of EM, Penn State, College Station, PA.  AK talks about the challenges of change in career, and how life falls into place as a result.  She is a great believer in self-reliance, thinking independently, and maintaining a healthy work-life balance.  As a result, she is an excellent role model for learners and junior faculty alike. Bio

Taylor Surles MD—EM4, Dept of EM, Kings County, NYC.  Taylor regales us with the tales from the “dynamic” inner city work setting that is Kings County Hospital in Brooklyn.  Anyone who says you don’t need a stiff spine and iron will…not to mention a universal handcuff key…in the ER, obviously hasn’t worked at County.  Undoubtedly, Taylor is well-prepared to work anywhere in the world, with a sense of humor and a well equipped utility-belt. Bio

Theresa Chan MD—Assistant Professor, Dept of EM, McMaster University, Ontario, Canada.  The ineffable Dr. Chan recounts her tortuous path to greatness in the world of EM medical education.  She reminds us that professional discovery can often mean bringing out true passions, being creative and sometimes taking risks. Bio

Colleen Smith MD—APD, Dept of EM, Elmhurst-Mount Sinai, NYC.  Dr. Smith discusses how she maintains balance between nurturing a career in academic medicine and growing a family with young children.  Not surprisingly, she draws natural parallels between parenthood and clinical care in the ER.  She also offers practical advice on how to navigate residency and early career if you want to start a family. 

Abbas Husain MD—APD Dept of EM, Staten Island University Hospital, NYC
Laura Melville MD—Dir of Research, Dept of EM, NY Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital, NYC.  Join us for a group discussion of how demographics can be very different across one urban landscape, and how the concept of “neighborhood” can exist around your ER no matter where you practice.  Drs. Hussein and Melville talk about the connections one makes into their community with their work in the ED. Bio

Loice Swisher MD—Dept of EM, Drexel University, Phila, PA.  Loice recounts the beginnings of her professional interest in physician wellness and raising awareness in physician suicide.  She touches on how she redefined her professional life—midcareer—to help the colleagues who need help the most.  She serves as an example of one who goes beyond her own expectations to become a giant presence in hearts and minds of many in the EM community. Bio

Pik Mukherji MD—APD, Dept of EM, Northwell Long Island Jewish, NYC.  Pik lends us his expertise on how residents and residency has changed in the almost two decades since he graduated.  He gives us a perspective of how “senior faculty” does not equal “too old” in pushing technology and innovative programming in a modern EM residency. Bio

Rob Huang MD—APD, Dept of EM, Univ of Michigan, MI.  Dr. Huang breaks down the scariest experiences he’s had since starting his career, and here’s a hint one of them has nothing to do with a patient in the ER.  He lifts the lid off of Imposter Syndrome, and how in doing so one can become a better mentor.  Rob is a natural storyteller, and despite his all-star trajectory, he does not forget what it is like to be continually tested by his work. Bio

Sharon Bord MD—Faculty, Dept of EM, Johns Hopkins Univ, MD.  Sharon talks about the challenges confronting the opiate crisis in Baltimore, and offers a sober assessment on how real-life encounters with addiction do not often provide a Hollywood ending.  She also offer glimmers of hope with insight and experience, and tells us where she finds sources of inspiration.

Christina Shevni MD—APD, Dept of EM, UNC, NC.  Dr. Shevni is an editor for Change of Shift in Annals of EM, and takes great interest in medical student education.  She talks about how writing unexpectedly became central to offering balance to her work, despite her alleged introverted nerdiness.  As a result she gives hope to those of us who are wondering if we have a voice to describe the drama of our work. 

Joshua Silverberg MD—Clerkship Co-Director, Dept of EM, Jacobi Medical Center, NYC.  Dr. Silverberg attempts to explain how a coffee-averse EM doctor can actually exist, let alone working only at nights during his first three years out of residency.  He reminds us that being a nocturnist does not preclude him from being an educator, and provides insight into how a religious person can navigate the EM lifestyle.