Newsletters

POSTED: June 19th, 2026
POSTED IN: 2026 EM Pulse Q2, EM Pulse - The Official Newsletter of MOCEP, forum, Forum Topic,

During the 2026 Missouri Emergency Medicine Symposium, MOCEP was proud to recognize several outstanding members of Missouri’s emergency medicine community. This year’s awards reflected a refreshed recognition program designed to honor excellence across many areas of emergency medicine, including student achievement, resident research, education, community practice, innovation, leadership, and lifetime service.

Medical Student Academic Excellence Award: Katelyn Young

The Medical Student Academic Excellence Award recognizes a medical student who has demonstrated outstanding academic achievement and enthusiasm for emergency medicine. This year’s recipient, Katelyn Young, is a third-year medical student at Kansas City University.  She was nominated by Dr. Donnell Lazaro for many achievements, including having honored nearly all of her third-year shelf exams and being actively involved in the military medicine specialty track, the EM Club, and several other student organizations. She has also helped lead POCUS teaching sessions through KCU and co-leads the pulmonary/critical care interest group, using her passion for teaching to support and encourage her fellow students. Katelyn has accepted a position as an OMM fellow at KCU for the 2026–2027 school year, where she will continue developing her skills as an educator and future physician.

Resident Research Award: Bryce Lord, MD

The Resident Research Award honors a resident whose scholarly work contributes to the advancement of emergency medicine. This year’s recipient, Dr. Bryce Lord from UMKC, was nominated by Dr. Kevin O’Rourke. Dr. Lord has demonstrated a strong commitment to improving emergency medicine care delivery through systems-based innovation, particularly in EMS oversight, disaster preparedness, and mass gathering medicine. His work following the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl parade shooting helped identify important lessons for future disaster response and patient care. Dr. Lord will present related scholarly work as an abstract at AAEM this year, reflecting his dedication to meaningful research with real-world impact.

Resident Academic Excellence Award: Pooja Patel, MD

The Resident Academic Excellence Award recognizes a resident who demonstrates excellence in patient care, academic medicine, leadership, and service to their training program. This year’s recipient, Dr. Pooja Patel, is a Chief Resident at UMKC and was nominated by Dr. Kevin O’Rourke. Dr. Patel is known for providing compassionate, thoughtful care in high-acuity and emotionally complex situations. She has also taken an active role in resident education, including the development of creative learning tools that strengthen both clinical knowledge and team-building. Her current work on a procedural sedation escape room reflects her commitment to critical thinking, teamwork, and patient safety.

Excellence in Education Award: Chelsea Broomhead, MD

The Excellence in Education Award honors an emergency medicine educator whose work has made a meaningful impact on learners and the specialty. This year’s recipient, Dr. Chelsea Broomhead, was nominated by Dr. Catherine Parker from the University of Missouri–Columbia. Dr. Broomhead serves as Assistant Professor of Clinical Emergency Medicine, Assistant Simulation Director, and Assistant Medical Education and Simulation Fellowship Director for Emergency Medicine at the University of Missouri–Columbia. Her leadership in curriculum development, simulation, and bedside teaching has strengthened education for learners at multiple levels. Her work in ECG interpretation, emergency airway management, and on-shift teaching tools has helped build clinical reasoning, confidence, and consistency in emergency medicine education.

MOCEP Trailblazer Award: Alex Croft, MD

The MOCEP Trailblazer Award recognizes innovation, creativity, and forward-thinking contributions to emergency medicine. This year’s recipient, Dr. Alex Croft, was nominated by Dr. Doug Char from Washington University. Dr. Croft has brought tremendous energy to simulation education, expanding simulation efforts across the hospital, medical school departments, and prehospital agencies. His work includes Operation Cobra, a joint preparedness exercise with the St. Louis Zoo, St. Louis Fire Department, and Barnes-Jewish Hospital focused on rare snake envenomation. Through his research and simulation leadership, Dr. Croft has advanced patient safety, emergency response, care delivery, and healthcare operations in creative and practical ways.

Community Physician Excellence Award: James Osgood, MD

The Community Physician Excellence Award honors a physician whose clinical excellence, leadership, and service have made a meaningful impact in community emergency medicine. This year’s recipient, Dr. James Osgood, was nominated by Dr. Margaret Goodrich from the University of Missouri–Columbia. Dr. Osgood has shown unwavering dedication to emergency care across rural mid-Missouri, including his leadership as Medical Director of the Community Medicine Group within the emergency medicine department. He has overseen emergency care at Moberly Regional Medical Center since 2016 and at Capital Regional Medical Center since 2021. His long-standing work in quality improvement, peer review, and physician development has helped elevate emergency care in the communities he serves.

Presidential Citation of Merit Award: Evan Schwarz, MD, FACEP, FACMT

The Presidential Citation of Merit Award was presented to Dr. Evan Schwarz in recognition of his exceptional service and lasting contributions to MOCEP and emergency medicine in Missouri. Dr. Schwarz made a profound impact during his time on the MOCEP board, helping strengthen the organization’s voice and presence across the state. His contributions included regular Toxicology Corner articles, conference presentations on timely toxicology topics, and significant advocacy work, including leadership related to Missouri’s Prescription Drug Monitoring Program. MOCEP was grateful for the opportunity to recognize Dr. Schwarz for his years of service, leadership, and dedication to emergency physicians and patients in Missouri.

RR Hannas Award: Peter Panagos, MD

The RR Hannas Award recognizes outstanding service and excellence in emergency medicine across Missouri. This year’s recipient, Dr. Peter Panagos, has been a MOCEP member since 1999 and is widely known as a clinician, educator, and researcher. As Chief of the Division of Neurovascular Emergencies at Washington University, Dr. Panagos has helped shape stroke and neurological emergency care for nearly two decades. He was the first non-neurologist to join the neurology team at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and later led the hospital-wide stroke team. His work helped integrate emergency medicine residents directly into stroke care, expand advanced imaging protocols, and support tele-stroke capacity across the BJC system. His leadership has had a lasting impact on both patient care and emergency medicine education.

Lifetime Achievement Award: Richard Griffey, MD

The Lifetime Achievement Award honors a career of sustained and meaningful contributions to emergency medicine. This year’s recipient, Dr. Richard Griffey, was nominated by Dr. Joan Noelker and recognized for his remarkable impact on quality improvement, patient safety, research, and education. Dr. Griffey co-developed the Quality Improvement program in the Emergency Department at Barnes-Jewish Hospital, helping enhance patient care and safety through a continually evolving QI process. His contributions also include research on the SQUID protocol, national leadership through ACEP’s Quality Improvement and Patient Safety Section, service with the Clinical Emergency Data Registry, and work as a subject matter expert with the AMA and National Quality Forum. With 25 years as an attending physician, Dr. Griffey’s career reflects an enduring commitment to advancing emergency medicine.