Eileen Metzger Bulger, MD, FACS, chief of trauma and trauma medical director for adults and pediatrics, Harborview Medical Center, Seattle, WA, begins serving as the new Chair of the American College of Surgeons (ACS) Committee on Trauma (COT) this month. Dr. Bulger was appointed as the next COT Chair in October 2017 by the ACS Board of Regents. She is the 20th Chair of the COT, succeeding Ronald M. Stewart, MD, FACS, of San Antonio, TX.
“We look forward to Dr. Bulger’s exceptional vision and leadership as she directs the COT into its 96th year of working to improve the care of the injured patient. She is the perfect person to lead the COT into its next century of transforming care and reducing injuries across the globe,” Dr. Stewart said.
A diplomate of the American Board of Surgery, Dr. Bulger also is board certified in surgical critical care. She earned a medical doctorate at Cornell University Medical College, New York, NY (1992). She completed a residency in general surgery at the University of Washington (UW), Seattle (1992–1999), where she concurrently completed a two-year National Institutes of Health Trauma Research Fellowship during her years of residency training (1995–1997), and then went on to complete a surgical critical care fellowship at UW in 2000.
Recognized leadership
Throughout her career, Dr. Bulger has mentored many surgical residents in paper and scholarship competitions. For nearly two decades, she has served as the co-principal or principal investigator of a variety of innovative, grant-funded research projects related to trauma care, some of which focus on improving outcomes for crash injury victims, pediatric patients, and older adults.
Since her initial involvement with the COT in 2002, Dr. Bulger has contributed to many COT activities, often serving in a leadership role. She is a Course Instructor for the internationally recognized Advanced Trauma Life Support® (ATLS®) program, and she served as the COT Washington State Chair (2003–2006); Region X Chief (2006–2012); Chair of the Emergency Medical Services Committee (2011–2015); Chair of the Membership Committee (2014–2017); and Executive Committee member (2014–2017).
The COT is dedicated to all phases of injury care, from prevention to rehabilitation. The committee is supported by a network of 65 state and provincial committees, 11 international committees, and five military committees, and the majority of members are ACS Fellows.
