SAVE THE DATE -- 2026 VetCOT Annual Conference April 24-26, 2026, in Las Vegas!
SAVE THE DATE -- 2026 VetCOT Annual Conference April 24-26, 2026, in Las Vegas!
Dr. Hasan B. Alam is an academic surgeon with board certifications in General Surgery and Surgical Critical Care. With nearly 25 years as a physician-scientist, Dr. Alam has gained international recognition as a trauma surgeon, educator, and surgical leader. His clinical interests revolve around the areas of trauma, emergency general surgery and surgical critical care. He has held various academic and clinical leadership roles at institutions across the country including the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Georgetown University Medical School, Harvard Medical School, and the University of Michigan School of Medicine. Dr. Alam was recruited as the Loyal and Edith Davis Professor and Chair of the Department of Surgery at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and Surgeon-in-Chief at the Northwestern Memorial Hospital in September 2020. His research interests are in the areas of novel resuscitation strategies, hemorrhage control, modulation of cell protective strategies, consequences of septic shock, and traumatic brain injury.
TJ Connellan is a Senior Flight Paramedic for the State of New Jersey’s Medevac program with over 25 years of dedicated service in the pre-hospital and healthcare industry. TJ has a robust skill set that includes expertise in EMS Education, EMS Operations, Flight Medicine, and EMS Supervision, 911 Public Safety Telecommunications as well as proficiency in Social Media Marketing, Public Outreach initiatives, Law Enforcement, and Emergency Management. TJ has developed the first in New Jersey multi discipline, multi-agency, and fully operational Advanced Life Support K9 Medevac program, the “K9 Kona Medevac Program” and holds credentialing in K9 TECC and K9 ALS instructorships.
Dr. David Conway is a staff Criticalist and Associate Medical Director at Red Bank Veterinary Hospital in New Jersey. He was residency trained at Tufts University following a rotating internship at Michigan State University and veterinary school at Ohio State University. He has been a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care since 2022. With a keen interest in trauma care and pre-hospital care for working K9s, he joined a group of dedicated colleagues to form AMU K9 in 2025 as a nonprofit training and education resource for the police, EMS, and veterinary communities.
Dr. Edward Cooper received his veterinary degree from the University of Pennsylvania followed by a small animal rotating internship at Michigan State University. He then completed a residency in small animal emergency and critical care and obtained a Master of Science degree in veterinary clinical sciences care at Ohio State University. After completing his residency and successfully obtaining board certification in Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care, Dr. Cooper remained at the Ohio State University and currently holds the position of Professor – Clinical. In addition, he has served as section head for the small animal emergency and critical care service at the Ohio State University Veterinary Medical Center since 2010. Dr. Cooper’s principle clinical and research interests include trauma, fluid therapy, hemodynamic monitoring (with emphasis on microcirculation) and feline urinary obstruction. He has authored numerous peer-reviewed articles and invited book chapters in these areas and others.
Bryan Cotton, MD, is a board-certified and fellowship-trained surgeon specializing in critical care. He treats acutely injured adults and children as well as critically ill post-operative patients. His patient philosophy is to provide excellent quality care. Cotton is a professor in the Department of Surgery at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston and John B. Holmes Professor in the Clinical Sciences. His research work includes optimizing the management of hemorrhagic shock, establishing best practices for massive transfusion protocol activations, and early detection and treatment of the acute coagulopathy of trauma. Outside of work, Cotton enjoys spending time with his six kids, youth football, and art, and is a self-described Star Wars geek.
Dr. Edwards, DVM, MS, DACVECC, completed ROTC and earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Illinois. He was commissioned as a 2nd lieutenant in the army and served as an infantry and signal corps officer for 5 years. After this stint in the military, he attended the University of Georgia where he earned his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree. He then reentered the army and completed a one-year rotating internship at the Department of Defense Military Working Dog Center at Lackaland Air Force Base, TX. He went on to serve in a number of assignments in Arizona and Georgia as well as a deployment with the 10th Mountain Division to Iraq as the Division’s Agricultural advisor and Veterinarian. He returned to the University of Georgia to complete a combined master’s degree and a residency in veterinary emergency and critical care medicine. Upon completion of his training, he became a diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care and subsequently led the busiest Veterinary Treatment Facility in the Department of Defense based in Okinawa, Japan.
Dr. Kelly Hall has a passion for improving trauma patient care through collaborative clinical and translational research. She was a faculty member at the University of Minnesota for 14 years where she also earned her DVM, Emergency and Critical Care training for board certification and master’s in clinical research. Dr. Hall is honored and proud to be a part of the ACVECC Veterinary Committee on Trauma (VetCOT) with its multi-disciplinary and multi-institutional approach to improve trauma patient care. Dr. Hall joined the Critical Care Services team at Colorado State University in September 2019 and is enjoying being part of a team striving to contribute to and help advance all we do in the critical care space. Primary drivers of Dr. Hall’s philosophy, whether on the clinic floor, on the basketball court, in the classroom or advancing research collaborations include Angela Duckworth’s research on “grit”, Carol Dweck’s research on “growth mindset” and John Wooden’s “pyramid of success”.
Coming Soon…Dr. Inaba is a Professor of Surgery, Anesthesia and Emergency Medicine at the University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine. He is the Vice Chair of the Department of Surgery, and the program director for the General Surgery Residency training program. He is also the Chief of Surgery and the Medical Director of Perioperative Services at the Los Angeles General Medical Center. He has lectured extensively, having given more than 500 lectures around the world. After completing his term as a Director of the American Board of Surgery, he was appointed to the ACGME Surgery RC and is a member of numerous surgical societies, leading critical initiatives such as the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma Stop the Bleed program. Under his leadership, this program has now exceeded 5 million students around the world. In addition to his role at USC, Dr. Inaba has led humanitarian surgical teams to Haiti, Nepal and Ukraine. He is also a sworn Reserve Police Officer, and the Medical Director for the Los Angeles Police Department, currently assigned to Metropolitan Division.
Dr. Linklater grew up and graduated veterinary school in Canada, he moved to the U.S. to complete his advanced training, and became a Diplomate of ACVECC in 2009. He has been the lead of the Emergency department at a multispecialty hospital for more than 20 years in Wisconsin, mentoring more than 100 interns and residents, serving in such roles as Medical Director, Director of an ER internship and residency program and Director of a VECCS-certified and VetCOT-certified trauma center. He has authored more than 60 peer-reviewed publications including two veterinary textbooks, and has provided hundreds of lecture hours at national and international conferences. Recently, he has moved to Colorado to join Veterinary Specialists of the Rockies. He recently completed a non-fiction book, “Tails from the ICU”. His professional interests include trauma, surgery, coagulopathies and transfusions. In his free time, he enjoys traveling, skiing, curling, cycling, hiking and spending time with his family.
Dr. Erin Mays is a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care and has special clinical interest and research experience in trauma resuscitation, transfusion therapy, and disorders of coagulation. Following graduation from University of Illinois in 2008, she was commissioned as an Officer in the U.S. Army Veterinary Corps. After over five years on active duty and 22 months in Iraq and Afghanistan, Erin returned to academia to pursue her passion for critical care medicine at NC State University where she completed a residency. She worked in private practice and industry research before joining the University of Illinois ECC faculty team. She remains active in research and publication in the area of hemostasis, trauma, and novel transfusion strategies and she continues her military service in the Army Reserves.
Dr. Lynch is an Emergency and Critical Care faculty member at NC State University, where he has worked since 2017 and currently serves as Co-Director of the Feline Health Center. He graduated from the University of Bristol in 2009 and completed an ECC residency at Tufts University in 2015, becoming a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care that same year. His clinical and academic interests include hemostasis, hematology, and trauma. He is also passionate about veterinary education and serves as the Director of Competency-Based Education at NC State.
Dr. Mann is a native of Kentucky where he obtained an AAS (1977) in Veterinary Technology and completed pre-veterinary requirements at Morehead State University in 1978. Dr. Mann received his DVM from Ohio State University in 1982, completed a 13-month small animal medicine and surgery rotating internship at the University of Missouri-Columbia (MU) in 1983, and completed a small animal surgical residency and MS in veterinary medicine and surgery at Texas A&M University in 1986. Dr. Mann served as an assistant professor in small animal surgery at Auburn University from 1986 to 1988. He joined MU in 1988 as an assistant professor, passed the board certification examination of the American College of Veterinary Surgeons in 1989, was promoted to associate professor with tenure in 1994, passed the board certification examination of the American College of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care in 1995, and was promoted to full professor in 2006. Dr. Mann held the position of adjunct associate professor of surgery in the cardiothoracic surgery division at the MU School of Medicine from 1997 to 2007. In 2007 Dr. Mann was appointed as an adjunct professor in the Department of Surgery at the MU School of Medicine. Currently, Dr. Mann is Director of Small Animal Emergency and Critical Care Services at the MU Veterinary Health Center.
M.
Travis Maynard, Ph.D. is a Professor in the Management Department and
Senior Associate Dean of Academic Programs at the Colorado State University
(CSU) College of Business. Travis earned his Ph.D. from the University of
Connecticut in 2007. Travis has conducted extensive research in the area of
organizational team effectiveness with a special emphasis on the role that team
context has on team interactions and outcomes. In particular, Travis has
conducted several research projects examining teamwork within healthcare
settings. Travis’ experiences with healthcare teams has led
him to become increasingly interested in teamwork in extreme contexts.
Accordingly, he has conducted research projects involving teams stationed
Antarctica as well as teams within military contexts. Likewise, Travis and his
colleagues are working on a project with NASA examining team adaptation and
resilience and are starting several projects that will examine teamwork in
other extreme contexts. As a result of his cutting-edge research as well as his
teaching activities, Travis has received a variety of awards including being
named a Fulbright Scholar as well as a Global Teaching Scholar at CSU.
Dr. Eric Monnet graduated from veterinary school in Maisons Alfort, France in 1985. He worked for four years in a Paris private practice performing small animal medicine and surgery. In 1994, Dr. Monnet completed a small animal surgery residency at Colorado State University and concurrently finished a Master of Sciences degree. In 1997, Dr. Monnet received his PhD in Clinical Sciences studying cardiac efficiency in dogs. In 2003, he became a fellow of the American Heart Association. He is a founding fellow of the MIS soft tissue ACVS fellowship. Dr Monnet is a professor in small animal surgery (General Surgery) at Colorado State University. He has authored over 150 articles and 50 chapters in various surgical textbooks. Dr. Monnet was the founding president in 2001-2003 of the Society for Veterinary Soft Tissue Surgery and in 2002-2004 of the Veterinary Endoscopy Society. He is the textbook’s editor of “Disease Mechanisms in Small Animal Surgery” (3rd edition). He is also the editor of the textbook “Small Animal Soft Tissue Surgery” (1st and 2nd editions). He is the editor with Dr Orton of the textbook “Small Animal Thoracic Surgery”. He is the editor with Dr. Smeak of the textbook” Gastrointestinal Surgical Techniques in Small Animals.”
Dr. Rozanski is a graduate of the University of Illinois and completed further training at the University of Minnesota and Pennsylvania. She currently works at Tufts University in the Critical Care department.
Dr. Claire Sharp is an Associate Professor in the School of Veterinary Medicine at Murdoch University, and a board-certified Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Emergency & Critical Care. Claire enjoys leading a busy clinical service as the Section Head of Emergency and Critical Care at The Animal Hospital at Murdoch while teaching both undergrads and postgrads and pursuing innovative research (in the remaining time!). Claire is a much sought-after expert in the ECC field and continuing education sector and takes an active lead in the Australian and international Veterinary ECC communities. Claire is particularly fascinated by the immunology associated with sepsis, as well as immune mediated diseases such as IMHA and ITP. (Board term ends June 30, 2028)
Christy Tomcik Walker, BS, MVCC, RVT, VTS(ECC) is a Veterinary Technician Specialist in Emergency and Critical Care at Four Seasons Veterinary Specialists in Loveland, Colorado. She began her veterinary medicine journey in California in 2002 and achieved her VTS (ECC) in 2010. In 2025, she earned a master’s degree in veterinary clinical care (MVCC) from Lincoln Memorial University. Over the years, Christy has developed a strong professional interest in veterinary trauma medicine with a particular focus on trauma physiology, treatment, and their impact on patient outcomes. She also has a keen interest in multidisciplinary team dynamics during trauma stabilization and is an advocate for inclusive, effective communication among all members of the veterinary care team. Outside of veterinary medicine, Christy enjoys spending time with her husband and their menagerie of 5 cats and 2 beagles and loves seeing the Colorado Rocky Mountains in the distance every day.
Dr. Jason Turner, MD, FACS is a general surgeon and Trauma Medical Director at WVU Medicine Berkeley Medical Center, where he also serves as Chief of Surgery and co-Medical Director of the ICU at an ACS Level III Trauma Center. He is an Assistant Professor of Surgery with clinical interests in acute care surgery, trauma systems, and critical care. His work focuses on advancing high-quality, efficient, and evidence-based care in community and rural settings.
Dr. Tracy Webb received her DVM degree from The Ohio State University followed by a small animal medicine and surgery internship and an emergency and critical care residency at Angell Animal Medical Center. Tracy then completed a PhD in Pathology (Immunology) at Colorado State University where she is an Associate Professor in the Department of Clinical Sciences and manages veterinary and translational regulatory affairs in the Office of the Vice President for Research. She is a Distinguished Fellow in the National Academies of Practice and involved in various efforts to support and perform quality and sustainable research to improve patient outcomes.
Dr. Wilson earned her MD from Baylor College of Medicine, Texas. She completed her Surgical Residency and Surgical Critical Care Fellowship in the Michel E. DeBakey Department of Surgery at Baylor College of Medicine. She serves as Vice-Chair for the Department of Surgery at WVU and Chief, Division of Trauma, Acute Care Surgery and Critical Care. She was named the Skewes’ Family Chair in Trauma, the first endowed Chair in the department. She has contributed to over 35 professional societies. Currently she serves on the Board of Directors for Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma, the largest professional trauma society. She is involved in the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma. She is the Chair of the WV Committee on Trauma and the National Chair for the Rural Trauma Team Development Course. She is a member of the Rural Committee on Trauma and serves as an ACS trauma center reviewer as part of the Verification and Review program. Dr. Wilson has published or participated in, nearly 100 Peer Reviewed Publications, Book Chapters, Abstracts, Clinical Research Papers and Competitions.
Page Yaxley is a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care and is currently an Assistant Professor in Small Animal Emergency and Critical Care Medicine at The Ohio State University, College of Veterinary Medicine. Following internship, Dr. Yaxley completed a residency in emergency and critical care medicine at Michigan State University. During her residency, she became interested in medical ethics, quality and end of life care, in addition to her interest in critical care medicine. After completing her residency, she founded Veterinary Hospice Care at MSU, the country’s 2nd veterinary hospice affiliated with a teaching institution from 2011-2014. She is an active member of the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine and is a founding member and co-president of the Veterinary Society for Hospice and Palliative Care, the first hospice organization exclusively for veterinarians. She has been the recipient of many teaching awards, most notably the Zoetis Distinguished Veterinary Teacher Award, and the John Lyman Jr. Award for Clinical Teaching.
