The International Anesthesia Research Society recently named Edward Nemergut, an associate professor of anesthesiology and neurological surgery at the University, as its 2010 Teaching Recognition Award Recipient for Innovation in Education. The award recognizes his contributions to medical education, including his creation of an interactive medical website called OpenAnesthesia.
The award "is designed to honor outstanding educators who have surpassed traditional teaching methods with the implementation of a novel and innovative educational tool," said Lowry Champion, director of Awards & Research Programs at IARS.
George Rich, chair of the University's anesthesiology department, recognized Nemergut's innovation.
"It's great that they recognize what he's done to further education," Rich said. "He's constantly looking at new ways to adopt our styles to the techniques that best suit this generation."
OpenAnesthesia.org, a site that follows the format of a "wiki" page, allows anyone with access to the page to contribute or revise its content. The concept of a free, collaborative repository of information is a familiar one to many anesthesia residents who have grown up using such resources as Google and Wikipedia, but the site's emphasis on active discussion and sharing of knowledge among all users marks a dramatic shift from the traditional, lecture-based model of learning.
"I don't think anyone's ever done this before in medicine, at least not to the extent that we have," Nemergut said. "We get about 90,000 page views a month and deliver about one gigabyte's worth of knowledge everyday."
Nemergut, who is also the program director of Anesthesiology Residency, said his goal with the website was to create an environment where everyone could interact and make meaningful contributions to the education of all. Such a system would help move away from sole dependency on the older generation to distribute "pearls of wisdom" in the hope that some may be caught by the younger students.
This does not, however, prevent authorities in the field from passing on their expertise. One of the main features of the page is an "Ask the Expert" column where users can send in questions, from which Nemergut will select five or six to be answered in a half-hour video segment by experts such as Peter Pronovost, a professor at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, who was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time Magazine in 2008.
Nemergut characterizes his award as a recognition that the spirit of innovation within education promoted by Jefferson lives on, and he sees this as a challenge to continue his work.
"The basic theme is making knowledge more accessible," Nemergut said.
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