Message From Dr. Scott Reeves

The Department of Anesthesia's “can-do” mentality along with all that our beautiful city has to offer creates a wonderful environment in which to train, work and live.

Read The Chair's Message

Message From the Chairman

The Department of Anesthesia and Perioperative Medicine (founded in 1956) is a vital part of the oldest medical school in the south, the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC), which was formed in 1824. Situated in beautiful, historic Charleston, South Carolina, MUSC is a wonderful place to train and to work. Anesthesiology residents rotate through the University Hospital which consists of 21 operating rooms and 12 off-site anesthesia locations; Rutledge Tower, our outpatient ambulatory surgical center with nine operating rooms; Ashley River Tower which houses eleven operating rooms and seven peripheral locations; and the Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center with five operating rooms. Recently, we opened the Shawn Jenkins Children’s Hospital/ Pearl Tourville Women’s Pavilion with 10 operating rooms and 10 off-site anesthesia locations as well as 3 ambulatory surgical centers within the Charleston metropolitan area. All of our facilities offer state-of-the-art monitoring and equipment in spacious rooms.

Teaching is a priority of the department. The faculty is extremely diverse with extensive fellowship training in adult and pediatric cardiothoracic, pediatric, critical care medicine, regional anesthesia, and chronic pain management. Our residents come from throughout the United States. Our caseload is such that residents are able to complete their case number requirements for American Board of Anesthesiology (ABA) certification by the end of their CA-2 year, allowing them the opportunity to concentrate on areas of interest throughout their CA-3 year. In addition, Adult Cardiothoracic, Critical Care, Pediatric, and Regional Anesthesiology fellowship opportunities are available.

The department is significantly engaged in research activities. One area of particular emphasis is the field of patient safety (Human Factors Engineering) whereby the department has three South Carolina Smart State endowed chairs. Dr. Catherine Tobin is the Lewis Blackman Endowed Chairman for Patient Safety and Medical Simulation. Our residents and medical students have a significant opportunity to learn how to handle rare, high-risk events in a safe simulated environment. Dr. Ken Catchpole is the Endowed Chair of Clinical Practice and Human Factors and leads the Medical University Hospital and department’s efforts in quality assurance, infection control, and team building. As a joint recruitment with Clemson University, Dr. Anjali Joseph is the Endowed Chair in Architecture+Health Design and Research. These three Smart State endowed chairs allows us a unique opportunity to study and modify the environment in which we work to improve patient and employee safety and satisfaction.

The department has a significant basic science research presence looking at the mechanisms of addiction under the leadership of Mike Scofield, PhD. Our clinical research initiatives are led by Sylvia Wilson, MD the J.G. Reves’ Endowed Chair of Anesthesiology Research. Residents have the ability to contribute to a wide range of research projects with faculty mentors in the areas of regional, obstetrics, cardiac, and pediatric anesthesiology. The department also has a large portfolio of Enhanced Recovery After Surgery initiatives.

Our “can-do” mentality along with all that our beautiful city has to offer creates a wonderful environment in which to train, work, and live.

Dr. Scott Reeves

Scott Reeves, M.D., MBA
Professor and Chairman
Department of Anesthesia & Perioperative Medicine