Welcoming our Program Director, Dr. Jason (JR) Pickett
Dr. Pickett's addition to our team marks a significant milestone for the fellowship and division. His extensive background as Assistant Program Director for the EMS fellowship at Dell Medical School, University of Texas at Austin, and his leadership roles within Austin/Travis County EMS, Austin Fire Department, and the Texas Ranger Division Special Operations Group, coupled with nearly two decades of service in the US Army, and a 30 year career in EMS as an EMT, Paramedic, instructor, and Medical Director, equip him with a profound understanding of tactical and operational pre-hospital medicine. Prior to his time in Austin, JR was the Director for the Center for Prehospital and Operational Medicine at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, where he did his residency training. His passion for education and advancing EMS will undoubtedly enrich our division. We are excited to have him assume the role of Program Director in July of 2024! Dr. Brant-Zawadzki, our previous Program Director, will remain as a core faculty and will be aiding in the transition.
The University of Utah's ACGME-accredited EMS fellowship accepted an EMS fellow for the first time starting in the 2020-2021 academic year, building on the foundations of a prior unaccredited fellowship. The goal of this one year fellowship is to provide the teaching and both field and administrative experience necessary for a physician to practice confidently and independently in any EMS system after graduation.
We offer a variety of direct prehospital care experience with the primary site being Salt Lake City Fire Department, an urban, fire-based EMS service. Additional experience will come from Unified Fire Authority, Mountain West Ambulance (rural), AirMed (HEMS), and Summit County EMS (rural). We also offer the opportunity to gain exposure to search and rescue and EMS in National Parks via our relationship with Grand Teton National Park EMS and Teton County Search and Rescue in the Jackson, WY area.
Field care will occur through structured ride alongs during the early part of the fellowship then through a combination of ride alongs and dedicated response vehicle use after the initial period of orientation and exposure. Fellows who have specific interests in urban, rural, air, or wilderness EMS will be allowed to place emphasis on any of these experiences during the year.
The fellow will gain administrative experience through CQI processes with SLCFD and AirMed, protocol development at all participating agencies and at the State level, and State and local committee meetings. The fellow will be required to participate in original research and will also participate in sentinel event investigations, mass gathering planning, and disaster preparedness work during the fellowship.
The fellow will have a planned start date of August 1st to allow time off after completing residency for travel, relocation, and well-deserved R&R. If you want a varied EMS experience that will prepare you to be a medical director in any setting, all while working and living in a fantastic place, please get in touch with us.
Contact Information
Jason R. Pickett, MD
Fellowship Director
jr.pickett@hsc.utah.edu
Dan DeFilippo
Programs Manager
dan.defilippo@hsc.utah.edu
