CAL/AAEM Emergency Medicine Western Region Conference

Presented By: California Chapter Division of AAEM (CAL/AAEM)

Join emergency medicine physicians, residents, medical students, and future EM professionals from across California for a full day of connection, advocacy, education, and career development.

Programming will feature timely advocacy updates, professional and financial development sessions, residency and fellowship guidance, and opportunities to connect with emergency medicine leaders and independent physician groups across the state.

Whether you’re a practicing physician, resident, medical student, or pre-med exploring emergency medicine, this conference is designed to support and connect attendees at every stage of training and practice.

Event Details
  • Location: Great Hall at Eleanor Roosevelt College, UCSD
  • Date: Saturday, October 17, 2026
  • Time: 8:00am – 5:00pm PT
EVENT SCHEDULE

8:00 am – 8:30 am: Coffee and Registration

MORNING SESSION (ALL TRACKS)

8:30am – 9:00am: Introduction & Welcome
Dr. Faith Quenzer; Dr. Lev Libet; Jessica Zhao, President of EMS Club at UCSD

8:30am – 9:30am: AAEM & National Advocacy
Dr. Vicki Norton, President of AAEM

  • What is Corporate Practice of Medicine
  • How AAEM Is Fighting Against CPOM
  • What Are Our Next Steps as a Specialty?

9:30am – 10:00am – What is CAL/AAEM? History of CAL/AAEM
Dr. Faith Quenzer; Dr. Bill Durkin

10:00am – 10:30am: State and Federal Advocacy as an EM physician
Dr. Bill Durkin; Dr. Taylor Nichols

  • Experience in Washington as an EM physician advocate – Dr. Bill Durkin
  • How to influence and advocate at the State Level – Dr. Taylor Nichols

10:30am – 11:00am: What Can I Do to Preserve Physician Autonomy in Medicine?
Dr. Lisa Moreno

11:00am – 12:00pm: Independent EM-Lead Physician Groups
Dr. Daniel Nelson

  • Tools for Maintaining an Excellent Independent Practice
  • 30 min Q and A Session

12:00pm – 12:50pm: Lunch at the Great Hall
During Lunch: Airway Stories with Dr. Nikita Joshi

ATTENDING AFTERNOON TRACK

1:00pm – 2:00 pm: Mass Casualty in Lebanon
Dr. Antoine Kazzi

2:00pm – 3:00pm: Practice in Addiction Medicine as an EM physician
Dr. Taylor Nichols

3:00pm – 3:30pm: Medical Malpractice
Dr. Mark Langdorf

  • Documentation that can lead to legal liability

4:00pm – 5:00pm: Money Talks: Wait, I do not need $402,000 to open up a 401K?
Dr. Robert Katzer

EMCEES
  • Dr. Lev Libet | Vice President, CAL/AAEM
  • Jessica Zhao | President EMS Club at UCSD/Board of Directors
  • Dr. Faith Quenzer | President, CAL/AAEM
TRACK 2: MED TRACK – PREPARING FOR SUCCESS IN EM RESIDENCY

1:00pm – 1:30pm: Why AAEM Resident Student Association (AAEM RSA)?
President/Western Regional Coordinator for AAEM RSA

  • Introduction
  • Advocacy
    • What to look for in a residency? 
    • Competition for cases/procedures?
    • NPPs? 
  • Resources offered through AAEM RSA

1:30pm – 2:00pm: The Successful EM Residency Application
Dr. Victor Cisneros; Dr. Lev Libet 

  • How to prepare for EM rotations
  • Away Rotations
  • SLOE Updates

2:15pm – 3:00pm: Financial Wellness
Slay Your Finances

  • Making money, but not bank, yet…
  • Budgeting and saving when you don’t make that much
  • Medical Debt – What not to do
  • HR 1 – California resources for medical debt

3:00pm – 4:30pm: Join in with the Procedural Group

  • Group A: Beginning/Advanced Suturing
  • Group B: EM Cases and Scenarios 
  • Group C: EM POCUS

4:30pm – 5:30pm: Residency Fair

TRACK 3: PRE-EM TRACK

1:00pm – 1:50pm

  • Benefits of Joining AAEM as a Pre-Med (5-10 min)
  • Benefits of Joining EMS Club at UCSD (5- 15 min)
  • Successful Med School Application
    • Speaker TBA
      • Curriculum
      • AMCAS
      • Secondary Applications
      • Interviews

2:00pm – 5:30pm: The EMS Club at UCSD and UCSD SOM to Provide

  • 1400 – 1450: CPR/AED/First Aid Training Classes
  • 1500 – 1550: Primary/Secondary Surveys in EMS/EM
    • +/- Large Disaster Simulation 
  • 1600 – 1650: Basic Suturing/Advanced
  • 1700 – 1730: Naloxone

4:30pm – 5:30pm: Residency Fair
So-Cal Region | 4 Corners: AZ, NM, UT, CO

Registration Fees
  • $25 for CAL/AAEM Members
  • $35 for Non-Members

Please note: All students and residents, regardless of membership status, will receive an automatic $25 refund upon attending the conference.

Not a member of CAL/AAEM? Attendings can join through the AAEM portal, and residents or students can join through the AAEM/RSA portal to receive free conference registration and year-round professional benefits.

Register Now!

Contact Information