Sophia Spadafore, MD
Mount Sinai School of Medicine
What are your 2 key goals as an EMRA board member?
To engage EMRA members interested in policy to become involved in the EMRA Representative Council and ACEP Council, and to mentor EMRA members who are interesting in becoming active with the AMA.
How will you support EMRA members - and how can they support the specialty?
I will provide my time and experience to anyone interested in policy and advocacy, hold meetings with EMRA members at AMA meetings, and provide assistance in the policy making process with anyone interested.
Why is serving in a leadership role important to you?
When I was first beginning my journey in medicine I had no idea how to get involved with policy and advocacy work, and it was a few dedicated leaders showing me the way that allowed me to get where I am today. I want to now be the leader who finds those who have the drive and passion and show them how to move medicine in the right direction.
What do you see as the biggest challenge for the specialty in the next 5 years?
I see emergency medicine as the ultimate safety net, we turn no one away and take care of those others shun. As access to care becomes more fragmented we will be seeing more patients without insurance, without primary care follow up, without access to specialists, and with no other options. Although it is fulfilling to take care of these patients I personally become burned out when I see the same people over and over again getting sicker and sicker because they cannot access better care than an emergency department. I see the policy sphere as an answer to that burnout.
Reason you chose emergency medicine:
I love waking up every day not knowing what my day will be like. I love helping people in need every single day. I love not turning patients away because they have nowhere else to go. I love the support we give each other when we cannot save a patient, and the joy we share when we can. I love waking up every day knowing I get to work as an emergency physician.
Favorite procedure (to date):
Intubation
Most-used app on your phone:
MDCalc
Beach or mountains?
Beach. Although I do love a good powder day.
Last song stuck in your head:
“On My Own” from Les Miserables
What goes on pizza?
Always cheese, sometimes sauce, usually garlic, vegetables by whim