He will assume the new, one-year role as Chair in June of 2026.
In this capacity, Dr. Markwalter will serve in a number of leadership roles, which include overseeing interest group meetings, managing educational/mentorship activities, and promoting scholarly output.
Dr. Markwalter is an Assistant Professor in the UNC Department of Emergency Medicine, in a dual clinical role with the UNC Palliative Care and Hospice Program.
The new role with SAEM reflects Dr. Markwalter’s long-standing passion for physician education, and providing patient-centered care for serious illness.
His primary areas of interest include narrative medicine, ED-based advance care planning, transitions to hospice from the ED, embedded palliative care consultation in the ED, and palliative care education for emergency medicine physicians. He is also a contributor to content at PalliEM.org.
About SAEM’s Palliative Medicine Interest Group:
Our mission is to advance the EM specialty by equipping emergency department (ED) teams with the necessary skills, tools, and scientific knowledge to effectively address the needs of patients and families facing serious illnesses or requiring end-of-life care in the ED. We invite you to learn more via this link.
Note for SAEM members: Dr. Markwalter will be co-leading a palliative care workshop at the SAEM 2026 annual meeting. The workshop is May 21st, from 8:00 a.m. until 12:00 p.m. Please mark your calendars, and sign up for the workshop when you register for the conference.