Anesthesiology leaders across the country are drawing national attention for achievements, innovation and career moves shaping the specialty.
From a lifetime achievement honor for a pioneer in pediatric cardiac anesthesia to the launch of a telehealth ketamine therapy platform, these developments highlight the evolving influence surrounding the field.
Here are four anesthesia leaders making headlines.
- Susan Nicolson, MD, pediatric cardiac anesthesiologist at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, received the 2026 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Congenital Cardiac Anesthesia Society on March 12 at the society’s annual meeting in Denver, recognizing her decadeslong clinical, research and educational contributions to congenital cardiac anesthesia.
- David Mahjoubi, MD, a Los Angeles-based anesthesiologist, launched NutraBrain Clinic, a multistate telehealth platform providing physician-supervised at-home ketamine therapy for patients with treatment-resistant depression, anxiety, PTSD and chronic pain, offering virtual consultations, medical screening and individualized prescriptions.
- Talmage Egan, MD, is stepping down as chair of the department of anesthesiology, perioperative and pain medicine at the Salt Lake City-based University of Utah after 11 years in the role and more than three decades at the university. He will transition to focusing on anesthesiology research.
4. Jaime Ortiz, MD, was appointed chair of the department of anesthesiology at Albany (N.Y.) Medical Center, and will also serve as chief of anesthesiology and a professor at Albany Medical College. He previously served as vice chair for clinical quality, outcomes and research in anesthesiology at Houston-based Baylor College of Medicine.
