Austin is a Senior Inspector with the U.S. Marshals Service, Operations Support Division, Operational Medical Support Unit (OMSU). He serves as a program manager and the training officer for the 113 medics that compromise the OMSU. Prior to joining the OMSU, Austin served as a Senior Inspector and Team Leader with the U.S. Marshals Carolinas Regional Fugitive Task Force in Charlotte, NC. Austin was responsible for leading a team of U.S. Marshals and Task Force Officers during high-risk fugitive enforcement operations. Additionally, Austin served as the lead Task Force medic responsible for planning, developing, and delivering tactical medical training for the Task Force’s 15 teams and approximately 130 operational personnel.
Austin obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree from the Ohio State University and his Master of Science degree from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Austin has eleven years of federal law enforcement experience with the U.S. Marshals Service and the U.S. Department of State, Diplomatic Security Service serving in New York, Washington, DC, and North Carolina.
Dr. Colwell has practiced Emergency Medicine at UCSF School of Medicine since 2016. Prior to that, he was in the Department of Emergency Medicine at Denver Health from 1998 to 2016. He completed his undergraduate work at the University of Michigan and then went to medical school at Dartmouth Medical School, graduating in 1992. He completed his residency in Emergency Medicine at the Denver Affiliated Residency in Emergency Medicine (Denver General) in 1996 and worked at the University of Michigan from 1996 to 1998 before accepting a job as the Associate Medical Director of EMS at Denver General (now Denver Health) in July of 1998. He was promoted to Medical Director of the Denver Paramedic Division, Denver 911 System and Denver Fire Department in 2000 and was in that role for 10 years before taking over as Chief of Emergency Medicine at Denver Health in 2009. He was the physician at the scene for the Columbine High School shootings and treated victims of the Aurora Theater shooting in the Emergency Department. His academic interests including publications and national speaking have focused on trauma and EMS issues in addition to Disaster Planning and MCI management.
Dr. Colwell has served on the faculty of ACEP Scientific Assembly since 2005. He is an editor for EMRAP’s Corependium textbook in Emergency Medicine as well as Roberts and Hedges Clinical Procedures in Emergency Medicine and is also a contributor to Rosen’s Emergency Medicine Concepts in Clinical Practice textbook, Harwood-Nuss’ Clinical Practice of Emergency Medicine, and Up-To-Date, among others. He has received numerous teaching awards including the 2021-2022 ACEP Outstanding Speaker of the Year award and the Corey M. Slovis Award for Excellence in Education given by the U.S. Metropolitan Municipalities EMS Medical Directors Consortium in 2015. He has also served on the Board of the National Association of EMS Physicians (NAEMSP) from 2023 to 2025. His primary focus is on Trauma and EMS and he is board certified by the American Board of Emergency Medicine in both Emergency Medicine and EMS.
Travis Deaton, MD, CAPT, MC, USN, Chair, Committee on Tactical Combat Casualty Care; Force Surgeon, I Marine Expeditionary Force
Captain Deaton graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1999. He completed his medical studies at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, MD. Following an internship in Internal Medicine at Naval Medical Center San Diego (NMCSD), CAPT Deaton earned the Surgeon General’s leadership award while completing the US Navy Flight Surgeon course. He was assigned to Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 36 in Okinawa, Japan and was subsequently promoted to Group Surgeon after multiple successful deployments throughout the Pacific Command region.
CAPT Deaton attended Dive Medical Officer training in 2007, and then reported to 1st Reconnaissance Battalion at Camp Pendleton, CA. During this tour, he completed combat deployments to Al Anbar and Nineveh Provinces, Iraq, as well as Helmand and Kandahar Provinces, Afghanistan. Upon returning to residency in Emergency Medicine at NMCSD, he graduated in 2013 after serving as Academic Chief Resident. He then reported to Okinawa, Japan as the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit Surgeon, and led the Shock Trauma Platoon on deployments with the Bonhomme Richard Amphibious Ready Group. During this tour, he served as Vice-Chairman of the III Marine Expeditionary Force Medical Executive Committee, and completed the Air Command and Staff College through the U.S. Air Force.
CAPT Deaton returned to NMCSD in 2015 and assumed positions as the Associate Program Director of the Emergency Medicine Residency Program, Operational Forces Medical Liaison Officer, Executive Medicine Liaison Officer, and Vice-Chair for the Department of Emergency Medicine. In 2018, he was appointed the Academic Chair of Emergency Medicine for the largest volume Emergency Department in the Navy. In 2020, he transitioned to duties as the Division Surgeon, 1st Marine Division followed by his current position as Force Surgeon, I Marine Expeditionary Force at Camp Pendleton, CA.
CAPT Deaton’s personal decorations include the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Joint Service Commendation Award with Combat Device, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, Joint Service Achievement Medal with Combat Device, Army Achievement Medal with Combat Device, Combat Action Ribbon, Sea Service Deployment Ribbon and numerous unit and campaign awards. He is authorized to wear the Fleet Marine Force Warfare, Navy Flight Surgeon, Dive Medical Officer and Navy Parachutist Devices. CAPT Deaton is an Assistant Professor of Military and Emergency Medicine at the Uniformed Services University, a Fellow of the American Academy of Emergency Medicine and a Fellow of the Academy of Wilderness Medicine. CAPT Deaton is married to the former Jennifer Barnes of San Diego, CA. They have two children and are both active in the local community.
Antonio R. Fernandez, PhD, NRP, Principal Research Scientist, ESO
Antonio has been a certified EMS provider for over 20 years. He became an EMT in 2003 and has been a nationally certified paramedic since 2005. He was the second person to successfully complete the National Registry of EMTs EMS Research Fellowship where he earned his PhD in Epidemiology/Public Health at THE Ohio
State University. After the fellowship, he spent 10 years at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where he was an Assistant Professor and Director of EMS Research for the EMS Performance Improvement Center. He is currently ESO's Principal Research Scientist.
Ryan Fransman, MD, Trauma, Emergency General Surgery and Surgical Critical Care, Emory University School of Medicine – Grady Memorial Hospital
Dr. Fransman is also the Medical Director for the Baltimore Police Department SWAT and Grady Air Ambulance, and Trauma Lead for the Prehospital Whole Blood Initiative. Prior, he was the Associate Medical Director for Baltimore Fire and EMS. He received his Bachelors of Science in Nursing from the University of Technology Sydney, and his Medical Doctorate from Medical University of the Americas.
His primary clinical focus is trauma surgical intervention and surgical intensive care. His articles have been published in Journal of Patient Safety and Risk Management, Urology, and The American Surgeon.
Frank Guyette, MD, MPH, Medical Director, STAT MedEvac; Professor of Emergency Medicine, University of Pittsburgh
Frank has spent more than 30 years in Emergency Medicine and EMS and has devoted his academic career to acute resuscitation research. He serves as the Medical Director for the nation’s largest non-profit critical care transport group. His areas of expertise are in the recognition of shock, prehospital resuscitation, and patient and provider safety. Frank has examined these issues with funding from the DoD, NIH, NIOSH, National Association of EMS Physicians, the Resuscitation Outcomes Consortium (ROC), DARPA and NASA.
Jay A. Johannigman, MD, FACS, FCCM, Trauma, Acute Care and Surgical Critical Care Surgeon for the University of Virginia and Methodist Mansfield Medical Center in Dallas, Texas; Senior Reserve Advisor, Office of the President, Uniformed Services
Dr. Johannigman assumed this position upon retirement from the U.S. Army Reserves and working at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio Texas. He served as the last Senior Medical Commander in Operation Resolute Support for GEN Austin Miller with clinical duties at Bagram Air Base and Headquarters Kabul, Afghanistan. Prior, he served as the Director of the Institute of Military Medicine at the University of Cincinnati and the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. He also served as the director of Trauma, Surgical Critical Care & Acute Care Surgery at University Hospital in Cincinnati, Ohio from 2001 to 2017. During Dr. Johannigman's tenure as Division director the group grew from four surgeons to a multidisciplinary group of over forty medical professionals spanning services across two verified trauma centers to include trauma, acute and elective general surgery, and surgical critical care.
Dr. Johannigman is a native Cincinnatian and graduate of St. Xavier High School. He completed his undergraduate studies at Kenyon College and graduated Medical School from Case Western Reserve University. He subsequently completed a general surgery residency at University Hospital, Cincinnati, Ohio. From 1988 to 1990, Dr. Johannigman completed a Surgical Critical Care and Trauma Fellowship, also at University Hospital. Dr. Johannigman entered active-duty military service at the U.S. Air Force Wilford Hall Medical Center in 1990. During the ensuing years, he served as Director of the Surgical Critical Care Service as well as Associate Director of the hospital’s Trauma Service. During this same period of service, Dr. Johannigman led the development of the United States Air Force Critical Care Air Transport Team (CCAT). CCATT teams have transported over 8,000 critically injured service members since the initiation of combat operations in 2001.
Dr. Johannigman is a member of numerous professional organizations, including a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons, a member of the Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma, a member of the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma and the Western Trauma Society. He served as the Chief of Region 5 Committee on Trauma for the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma and now serves as the Liaison to the ACS for the TCCC (The Committee on Tactical Combat Casualty Care). Dr. Johannigman is an original member of the Committee on Tactical Combat Casualty Care and participates as a member of the Committees on EnRoute Care and Surgical Combat Casualty Care.
Dr. Johannigman recently retired after 46 years of service in the Medical Corps of the United States Army Reserves. His most recent deployment was as Senior Medical Advisor to the Commander of Operation Resolute support as well as DCCS at Craig Joint Theater Hospital (October 2020 to June 2021). Prior to this most recent deployment Dr. Johannigman completed seven previous combat tours to southern Iraq and Afghanistan. Dr. Johannigman has been awarded the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star, the Army Commendation medal, and the Air Force Meritorious Service Award amongst other decorations. With the Air Force he served as a Flight Surgeon. His current assignment is serving in an advisory role to The Uniformed Services Health Sciences University in Washington DC.
Dr. Johannigman maintains an active clinical practice across the surgical disciplines of trauma, surgical critical care, emergency general surgery as well as an elective practice in general surgery. Dr. Johannigman has active research interests in pulmonary failure, critical care monitoring and controlled loop ventilation. He is the funded principal investigator on several active protocols and leads a robust research effort. He has participated in the publication of over one-hundred peer reviewed publications, eighteen book chapters and one hundred abstracts. Dr. Johannigman resides in Cincinnati Ohio and is the proud father of two young adults, Taylor and Evan.
Paul Koch, Paramedic, Chief, and Past President, St Mary’s County Advanced Life Support Unit
Paul Koch is a Paramedic, Chief, and past President with St. Mary's County Advanced Life Support and a Current member of The Lexington Park Volunteer Rescue Squad, both in St. Mary's County, Maryland. He is also a Captain at Southwest Airlines and a retired Naval Officer and Aviator. He is a recipient of the Maryland Star of Life Award for Lifesaving. He holds a Master of Science degree in Aeronautics, and a Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Arts in Aeronautics and Mathematics. Over his 47 years of flying, he has accumulated over 16,400 hours in over 30 different aircraft.
John Lyng, MD, NRP, EMS & Emergency Medicine Physician, Emergency Physicians Professional Associates (EPPA)
Dr. Lyng is Board Certified in EMS Medicine and Emergency Medicine and is a nationally registered Paramedic. He works clinically at a Level 1 trauma center and several suburban and rural emergency departments in Minnesota, and in federal disaster response through Great Lakes-1 Disaster Medical Assistance Team (GL-1 DMAT) under the National Disaster Medical System (NDMS). From 2010-2019 he served as the Medical Director for North Memorial Health Ambulance & Air Care. Dr. Lyng has special interests in best practice guideline development, pediatric emergency medicine, trauma management, and international emergency medicine. He has extensive experience participating local, regional, and national committees that are involved in advancing the field of EMS Medicine and prehospital care, including a 2019 appointment and 2024 re-appointment to the Minnesota State Trauma Advisory Committee (STAC). He has been an active leader at the national and international level through his membership in the National Association of EMS Physicians (NAEMSP), including leadership in several committees. Additionally, he has participated in multiple panels and committees tasked with developing best-practice guidelines pertaining to the practice of EMS medicine. Most recently he served as the Editor-In-Chief of the NAEMSP Prehospital Trauma Compendium, a collection of 18 topic-specific position papers and resource documents that guide the prehospital care of injured patients.
Dr. Lyng’s leadership in both Emergency Medicine and EMS Medicine has been recognized by the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) and the National Association of EMS Physicians (NAEMSP) with conferment of fellowship status in both organizations (FACEP and FAEMS). He has the distinction of being one of the inaugural group of 205 EMS physicians who achieved board certification in EMS medicine in the United States in 2013 and was re-certified in 2023. He has been awarded the Hennepin County (Minnesota) Sheriff’s Office Distinguished Service Award for his role in community opioid overdose awareness programs as well as twice awarded the NAEMSP President’s Award for his work as the Chairman of the NAEMSP Standards & Clinical Practices Committee and for his contributions as an editor and author to the NAEMSP Airway Management Compendium.
Zaffer Qasim, MD, FRCEM, EDIC, Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine, Critical Care, and Prehospital Care, University of Pennsylvania Health System
Dr. Qasim currently works as an Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine, Prehospital Care, and Critical Care in the Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, United States. He obtained his medical degree from the University of Karachi. He then completed postgraduate training in Emergency Medicine and Critical Care in the United Kingdom, where he also worked as a Consultant in Emergency Medicine and a BASICS Prehospital Care Physician. He moved to the United States to complete training in Trauma/Surgical Critical Care at the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore, Maryland, before taking up his current role in Philadelphia. His academic interests lie in advanced trauma and endovascular resuscitation, airway management, simulation, and prehospital care.
Anne Rizzo, MD, FACS, DABS, Professor of Surgery, System Surgical Chair, Guthrie Clinic
Dr. Rizzo was born in Buffalo, NY and attended Georgetown University for undergraduate studies. She returned to Buffalo for medical school attending SUNY Buffalo graduating with Thesis Honors. She completed her internship in Surgery in the Buffalo University Consortium and completed her residency at Tulane University. After serving on active duty with the US Air Force she accomplished her Trauma/Surgical Critical Care fellowship at Georgetown/Medstar health.
She has practiced in many states and countries in her travels with the Air Force and participated in the writing of the Surgeon General’s report on the Joint Trauma System in Afghanistan. She retired from the Air Force after 27 years of service. She was with the INOVA health system for 15 years and transitioned to the Guthrie Clinic in 2021 to System Surgical Chair and President of Surgical Services due to the tremendous opportunities and fabulous culture of the Guthrie system. Her participation with the American College of Surgeons dates to her days as a resident and she has participated on the Board of Governors, the Board of Governors Executive Committee, Women in Surgery, Region 13 Trauma Committee, Surgical Chairs Committee and the Military Health Partnership. She just completed a term as the 2nd Vice President for the ACS, participates on the Verification Review Committee, a member of the Excelsior Society, Academy of Master Surgeon Educators and is the past Chair of the Quality committee and TQIP conference for the Committee on Trauma.
She is a champion for medical education, resident training, patient quality and mentorship in surgery. She has four children, all on active duty in the Air Force. She is married to MGEN(ret) Michael Fantini.
Rachel Russo, MD, MS, FACS, Assistant Professor in Residence, University of California Davis
Dr. Rachel Russo is a trauma surgeon and translational scientist at UC Davis with expertise in combat casualty care. A former Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Air Force, she has led multidisciplinary research and operational efforts to improve outcomes after battlefield injuries. Her work spans advanced resuscitation strategies, targeted therapeutics, and large animal models of trauma. Dr. Russo also contributes to national efforts in trauma system development and emergency preparedness, focusing on military-civilian integration and mass casualty response.
Rebeka Stephen, DO, Emergency Medicine | EMS Fellow; Department of Emergency Medicine University at Buffalo
Dr. Rebeka Stephen is an Emergency Medical Services fellow at the University at Buffalo. She completed her Emergency Medicine residency at the University of Nevada Las Vegas. She currently serves as an Associate Medical Director for Western New York regional EMS agencies, working closely with ground and air medical services to advance prehospital patient care and safety.
Mallory Williams, MD, MPH, FACS, FICS, FCCP, FCCM, Chair, Department of Trauma and Burn, John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County
Dr. Wiliams is a proven leader in trauma and quality in surgery. He has led multiple ACS Level I trauma centers successfully through verification and participated in 2 state system consultations. He is a graduate of the Executive Patient Safety Program of the Institute of Healthcare Improvement and has led several highly successful quality initiative in surgery.
Dedicated to enriching medical education, Dr. Williams earned the teacher of the year award at the University of Toledo College of Medicine for both surgery residents and medical students. He was elected as an Associate Member of the ACS Academy of Master Surgeon Educators. He has published over 70 peer-reviewed manuscripts, given over 100 national and international invited lectures and is one of the editors of Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Surgery: Practical Management of Dilemmas. He is the recipient of the 2024 Arthur M. Shipley Award of the Southern Surgical Association. He is a vocal advocate for policies and interventions to address violence and inequities in underserved communities.
Cordelie Witt, MD, MPH, FACS, Trauma and Acute Care Surgeon, UCHealth Medical Center of the Rockies
Dr. Witt practices trauma surgery, acute care surgery, and surgical critical care at UCHealth Medical Center of the Rockies and is an Assistant Clinical Professor at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. She attended medical school at the University of Michigan Medical School and went on to complete her General Surgery residency at the University of Washington and Harborview Medical Center, followed by a Surgical Critical Care fellowship at the University of Colorado and Denver Health Medical Center. She also holds an MPH in Epidemiology and is engaged in trauma outcomes research including ongoing work on utilization of epinephrine in the care of patients sustaining traumatic cardiac arrest.