Leadership

President’s Message

After Drs. Heather Hammerstedt and Jessica Kroll have ably led Idaho ACEP for several years, I will take a turn as chapter president. By way of introduction, I am the ED medical director at Kootenai Health in Coeur d’Alene. For those in southern Idaho, Kootenai Health is the regional referral center for northern Idaho, western Montana and eastern Washington. I assumed this role three years ago after working as a CMG regional medical director in Houston, TX for six years. I trained in Massachusetts and New York and worked in Massachusetts for several years before my family and I relocated to Texas.

My goal is for Idaho ACEP’s leadership to broadcast its members’ voices. Please let us hear directly from you so we can accurately represent you. State-level issues where our voices will be important over the coming year include implementation of Medicaid cuts, preservation of high quality medical education for Idaho residents, and potentially amending involuntary hold laws.

While I am always receptive to emails about Idaho ACEP issues, the best way for us to communicate is in person. Last year, Idaho ACEP helped plan the second annual Northwestern Ski Symposium at Sun Valley in conjunction with the Montana and Wyoming chapters. Speakers included Dr. David Talan, principal investigator of the CODA trial and Dr. Leon Adelman who presented on recent CMG bankruptcies. We look forward to the 2026 Ski Symposium in Jackson Hole. This will be a great opportunity to communicate with our colleagues regionally about emergency medicine and, equally importantly, to get out of the department. I hope to see many Idaho emergency physicians there, and I encourage anyone interested in presenting to be in touch.