Q&A with Savannah Vogel, MD (she/her), assistant professor of emergency medicine, Division of Emergency Critical Care.
Dr. Savannah Vogel grew up in Deerfield, Wisconsin, and earned a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry from Lawrence University before earning her medical degree from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health in 2020. She completed her emergency medicine residency at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where she served as chief resident, followed by a critical care fellowship at the University of Maryland Medical Center, where she served as chief fellow.
Vogel practices both emergency medicine and critical care, including in the medical and neuro intensive care units. Her academic interests include medical education and preparing emergency medicine trainees to care for critically ill patients
Q: Why did you choose emergency medicine?
I chose emergency medicine because I loved the undifferentiated patient. It is the one field left where you have the skills to assess and treat patients at any point in life, regardless of what is known or unknown about their history.
I love being able to speak the language of all fields of medicine and help patients and families navigate difficult moments in life or the challenging health care system.
Q: Do you have a particular area of clinical or research focus? What about it interests you?
In addition to practicing emergency medicine, I am also a critical care medicine physician and practice in the Medical ICU and Neuro ICU. I love that, in addition to emergency medicine, I get to spend part of my clinical time caring for patients in a more longitudinal manner.
In the ICU, I get to manage and treat complex problems that we only briefly touch on in the emergency department (ED), and I also get to build relationships with families and help them walk the difficult path of being a support person to the critically ill. Extra-clinically, I hope to use this skill set to advance resident and fellow education in emergency medicine and critical care.
Q: What attracted you to UW–Madison?
I feel so lucky to have found my dream job in my hometown! I went to medical school here, and this department is the reason I chose emergency medicine. I had no knowledge or specific interest in the field, but when I rotated as a Phase 2 student, I could quickly see myself in the field thanks to the engagement and encouragement from faculty.
While I had always hoped to move back closer to home after my training, my interview at UW–Madison blew me away. I was so impressed by the culture here. Faculty have a shared vision for excellent patient care and education while also maintaining a strong personal life and connection to community. Everyone genuinely loves their job here!
On top of that, I get to practice in both emergency medicine and critical care — a hybrid model that can be tricky to find.
Q: Do you feel your work relates to the Wisconsin Idea? If so, please describe how.
Nowhere is the Wisconsin Idea more obvious than our work in the ED. We care for our community in an immediate way — treating their emergencies. On top of that, we are training the next generation of physicians in the medical students who rotate through and the residents who train with us, and these physicians will go on to care for the people of Wisconsin using the foundation we have set.
Q: What’s something interesting about your area of expertise that will make us sound smarter at parties?
People love to ask about stories from the ER at parties. Most of them are not really appropriate to share, but my favorite thing to share is what makes me most proud to be in our field, and that is our breadth of skills, both from a medical sense and interpersonally.
We can truly go from delivering a baby to fixing a broken leg to counseling a teenager with a sexually transmitted infection about safe sex to delivering difficult news, and then wrap up our shift with an education pearl for our students. Then we go home and make dinner and be parents or friends or whoever we are outside of this job.
Q: What is your favorite thing to do in Madison?
We love so much of Madison, but I was most excited to be back to running here. There are so many pretty trails and spots to go, but my favorite spot right now is near our house along Lake Mendota.
We also love the Dane County Farmers’ Market, and whenever we have visitors, that is our go-to stop. We get spicy cheese bread and coffee and give them a free tour of the State Capitol building!
Q: Do you have any personal hobbies, interests or secret talents?
In my free time, I spend time with my husband, my two-year-old son and our dog — a black lab named Carmen. When I truly have downtime, I love to read. I pretty much exclusively read fiction, but you will occasionally catch me reading nonfiction related to medicine.
We also love to travel and be outdoors. My favorite place in the world is the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in northern Minnesota. Other favorite trips have been to Italy and Switzerland, and any time I can go skiing in the mountains.
Q: If you could have dinner with one person — passed, alive or fictional — who would it be, and where would you make reservations?
I would, without a doubt, choose Taylor Swift. In addition to being a huge fan of her music, I think she is such an incredible businesswoman and leader and would love to spend a meal chatting over a glass of wine with her! I would pick Eno Vino because I love showing off Madison to people, and the views there are my favorite.