From serving on the Continuing Medical Education Committee, to helping create the COLA Review Course and ACOEP’s Council for Women in Emergency Medicine, Christine F. Giesa, DO, FACOEP-d, has been an important asset to the College for more than 23 years. And this year, as the first mother and second woman, Dr. Giesa will serve as the 20th President of ACOEP’s Board of Directors.

We talked with Dr. Giesa about everything, from her plans for the College’s future to what movie we can find her watching on a day off. Get to know a little bit more about her below!

What are you looking most forward to as serving as ACOEP’s President?
I am most looking forward to working with the board of directors and the membership to help guide the college to 2020 and beyond.

Tell us some things you hope to accomplish during your role as President for the College.
During my role as president for the College, I would like to increase the recognition of ACOEP within the house of emergency medicine. I would like to make it so that everyone thinks to include ACOEP with all the other organizations when there is an issue that impacts all of us. I specifically would like to continue increase our collaboration with ACEP, but at the same time not lose our identity.

What are some of today’s issues that you wish the world of emergency medicine would focus more on?
I wish the world of emergency medicine would focus more on creating better outpatient psychiatric care.  There are a lot of people out there that need help, but cannot afford it, or it takes too long to get an appointment. They come to the emergency department seeking help for their symptoms, but it’s only the ones that are a threat to themselves or others that receive emergent care. As we have seen in recent years, perpetrators of mass shooting events have presented to the emergency department within days of an event. How do we expand outpatient psychiatric services and provide these people with help?

Can you tell us your favorite piece of advice that you learned in medical school or residency that you still remember to this day?
My favorite piece of advice that I learned during residency is, “if it takes too long to explain why you are not going to do something, then you probably should just do it.”

What’s a typical day off for you?
A typical day off for me is hard to describe because it’s never the same. I always make sure that I take time to enjoy something for myself while taking care of everything else.

Favorite book?
The Jungle by Upton Sinclair.

Favorite movie?
My favorite holiday movie is A Christmas Carol. It teaches us that it’s never too late to change one’s behavior. My all-time favorite movie is the Godfather series. My favorite TV series is MASH. I love the creative license that the producers took with many of the episodes. It was genius.

What is one vacation destination that’s on your bucket list?
My one vacation destination on my bucket list is to winter in Alaska, preferably in the area of Talkeetna or Fairbanks, but I will settle for Anchorage.

What’s one piece of your own advice you can pass on to fellow colleagues?
My one piece of advice comes from the infamous Dr. Sidney Freeman: “Ladies and gentlemen, take my advice – pull down your pants and slide on the ice.” Seriously, with all the changes happening around us, it is unnerving not being able to see where ACOEP and emergency medicine will be in 2025. My advice is to be patient. Everything will work out in the end. We got this!

To learn more about Dr. Giesa, and the rest of ACOEP’s board members, please click here.