UCSF Department of Emergency Medicine Shares Research at 2026 SAEM Annual Meeting

The UC San Francisco Department of Emergency Medicine reconvened with colleagues across the field of emergency medicine to share new research, clinical insights, and innovations at the 2026 Society for Academic Emergency Medicine (SAEM) Annual Meeting, held May 18 – 21 at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis in Atlanta, Georgia. Members of our department delivered 25 presentations spanning a broad range of emergency medicine topics, with contributions from faculty, fellows, residents, and research staff as co-authors (full list below). Several also served as co-authors on work presented by collaborators from other institutions.

In addition to the department's scholarly contributions, Margaret Lin-Martore, MD, received the Marianne Gausche-Hill Mentorship in Education Award in recognition of her contributions to the Pediatric Emergency Medicine Interest Group of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine. This award recognizes “an individual who has demonstrated exceptional mentorship and impact in education and teaching within pediatric emergency medicine."

Congratulations to our presenters, co-authors, and award recipient for their exceptional contributions and achievements!

DEM Presentations at SAEM26

A full list of the UCSF Department of Emergency Medicine’s (DEM's) presentations and activities at the annual meeting appears below.

Monday, May 18

1. Figuring Out the Fiberoptic: Mastering Airway Skills (Workshop; pre-registration required but closed now)

•    DEM participant: Kayla Enriquez

Tuesday, May 19

2. Timely Identification and Treatment of Posterior Circulation Stroke: Strategies and Research Targets

• DEM presenting author: Debbie Madhok

3. Driving Sustainable Quality Improvement: Long-Term Outcomes of an Emergency Department Triage Redesign

• DEM presenting author: Steven Straube
• DEM co-authors: Jaskaran Bains, Hemal Kanzaria, Toff Peabody

4. Decreased Time to Imaging and Surgery After Implementation of an Acute Traumatic Spinal Cord Injury Pathway

• DEM presenting author: Malini Singh
• DEM co-authors: Jaskaran Bains, Hemal Kanzaria, Toff Peabody

5. Emergency Medicine Physician Perceived Impact of Unmet Social Needs on Emergency Care

• DEM presenting author: Anika Dhingra
• DEM co-authors: Michael Duke, Melanie Molina

6. Automated Calculation of PECARN Trauma Rules from Clinical Notes Using a Large Language Model

• DEM presenting author: Kush Narang
• DEM co-authors: Aaron Kornblith, Newton Addo, Leisha Devisetti

7. Trends in Hospitalization, Cardiac Testing, and Outcomes for Chest Pain Patients, 2007-2021

• DEM presenting author: Andrew Chou
• DEM co-authors: Renee Hsia

8. Reducing EMS On-Scene Times to Improve Prehospital STEMI Care

• DEM presenting author: Elizabeth Avakoff
• DEM co-authors: Eric Silverman

9. Medication Management of Early Pregnancy Loss in an Urban Texas Emergency Department

• DEM presenting author: Emily Ager

10. Impact of Anti-Immigrant Rhetoric and Policies on Perceived Safety and Emergency Department Utilization

• DEM presenting author: Omeed Miraftab-Salo

• DEM co-authors: Jasmanpreet Kaur, Anna Claire Fernandez, Jacob Perez, Mireya Arreguin, Josh Perez, Therese Santiago, Claudia Tang, Kelly Gocke, Melanie Molina

   

11. Leaning Into the Gray: Navigating Uncertainty in Pediatric Emergency Care

• DEM presenting author: Dina Wallin

   

12. Impact of Federal Anti-Immigrant Rhetoric and Policies on Emergency Department Visits

• DEM presenting author: Francesco Sergi
• DEM co-authors: Rahael Borchers, Melanie Molina

13. A National Study of Tetanus Vaccine Knowledge, Receipt, and Acceptance Among Emergency Department Patients

• DEM presenting author: Francesco Sergi

14. Providing Financial Incentives to Residents Does Not Improve ED Length of Stay

• DEM presenting author: Esther Chen
• DEM co-authors: Newton Addo, Christopher Peabody, Malini Singh, Christopher Colwell, Steven Straube
   

15. Effectiveness of a Novel Emergency Department Psychiatric Care Model in Reducing Length of Stay

• DEM presenting author: Meghan Hewlett
• DEM co-authors: Newton Addo, Elizabeth Kwan, Rebekah Manno, Jahan Fahimi, Daniel F. Becker, Maria Raven

Wednesday, May 20

16. Federal Funding Disruptions and the Emergency Medicine Research Pipeline: A National Analysis of NIH Awards

• DEM presenting author: Pranav Kaul
• DEM co-authors: Hemal Kanzaria, Melanie Molina, Ralph Wang  

17. Between a Rock and a Hard Place: Applying Ethical Frameworks to Immigration-Related Stressors in the Emergency Department

• DEM presenting author: Dina Wallin

18. Trends in Psychedelic Related Emergency Department Visits During Oregon Drug Policy Reform

• DEM presenting author: Ralph Wang

19. Unlocking the Injured Brain: Biomarkers, Imaging, and Precision Pathways in Traumatic Brain Injury Care

• DEM presenting author: Debbie Madhok

20. Temperature and Emergency Department Utilization Among US Veterans

• DEM presenting author: Anu Ramachandran
• DEM co-authors: Anita Vashi

21. Impact of Emergency Clinician Admit Tendencies for Chest Pain on Downstream Care and Outcomes

• DEM presenting author: Andrew Chou
• DEM co-authors: Renee Hsia

22. Best Medical Education Papers of 2025

• DEM presenting author: Esther Chen

Thursday, May 21

23. These Studies Will Change Your Practice (and Teaching): Pediatric Emergency Medicine Edition 

• DEM presenting author: Dina Wallin
   

24. Developing and Implementing Trauma-Informed Simulation Training for Emergency Department Procedures

• DEM presenting author: Michael Clery (co-presenter)

25. Trends in Emergency Department Utilization for Early Pregnancy Loss, 2019-2024

• DEM presenting author: Emily Ager
   

SAEM26 Presentations Involving DEM Co-Authors

The following presentations were given by presenters outside DEM but feature co-authors from our department:

Tuesday, May 19

1. Naloxone and Clinical Outcomes in Opioid-Associated Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrests in California

• Presenting author: David Dillon
• DEM co-authors: Ralph Wang

Wednesday, May 20

2. From Principle to Practice: Implementing Trauma-Informed Communication for Trauma Resuscitations

• DEM co-authors: Michael Clery
   

Thursday, May 21

3. What to Do When Immigration and Customs Enforcement Is at Your Door: Navigating Bedside Interactions and Policy

• Presenting author: Ashley C. Rider
• DEM co-authors: Elaine Hsiang, Vidya Eswaran, Dina Wallin

4. Bridging Programs, Building Leaders: The Regional Chief Residency Experience

• Presenting author: Ashley C. Rider
• DEM co-authors: Rosny Daniel, Chris Fee, Evelyn Porter