I took a non-traditional route into the freestanding emergency department industry. I was born in Auburn, AL and grew up in Huntsville, AL.  I first went to optometry school at the University of Alabama-Birmingham. Following optometry school, I was commissioned in the US Navy where I served for seven years. At that point, I decided to return to school and received my MD from The University of Alabama.

My residency was in emergency medicine at Brooke Army Medical Center. I loved the fact that emergency physicians were the last of the ‘Old Time Doctors.’ In the old days, doctors were very well versed in many fields of medicine and could treat most ailments. With so much specialization these days, this is not typically the case. Although as an emergency physician, you have to know something about everything, which has driven me to continue to learn and grow as a physician throughout my career.

During my time as an Army Physician, I was stationed at Ft Hood as a Brigade Surgeon for 3rd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division. I deployed to Hurricane Katrina with the Air Cavalry Brigade in 2005 and then deployed with 3rd brigade to Iraq from Sept 2006 - Dec 2007. Following deployment, I served as Chief of the Emergency Department at Martin Army Hospital in Ft Benning, GA.

When I separated from the Army, I moved with my family to Austin, Texas. I loved the city after spending some time there during my residency and knew that it was where I wanted to raise my children. After I began working full time in one of the hospital systems in the city, I became frustrated with the constant push to see more and more patients in the hospital ER faster and faster with minimal resources. In a hospital ER, physicians get burned out and patients suffer. The physician cannot spend the time he needs with the patient to truly form a relationship and take care of them as they should be taken care of.

Being an owner and medical director of Austin Emergency Center Anderson Mill allows me to provide patients with care the way I believe it should be done - without a rush or the intent of just making money. We are very liberal at our freestanding emergency department (FSED) and provide care to many patients who are unfunded or have Medicare or Medicaid. We are truly part of the community here and provide an important service to them. We are able to change policies and adjust to the needs of our patients and community without going through the administrative bureaucracy of the hospital.

TAFEC is a wonderful organization that allows emergency physicians involved in FSEDs to share knowledge and continue to grow the FSED industry. They provide resources for us as well as advocating on our behalf at the local and state level.