Dietrich Jehle, MD, FACEP, RDMS Program Director, Professor & Chair

Dr. Dietrich Jehle serves as the Program Director, Professor, and Chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) in Galveston, Texas.

He earned his medical degree from the University of Virginia in 1979 and completed his residency at the University of Pittsburgh in 1982. Dr. Jehle played an important role in establishing the Emergency Medicine Residency Program at Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh and later helped develop a new residency program in Buffalo, New York, which launched in 1994. During his tenure in Buffalo, he served as Vice Chair of Emergency Medicine at the State University of New York at Buffalo and Clinical Director at Erie County Medical Center (ECMC) for 17 years. In 2008, he was named Associate Medical Director at ECMC and received the Distinguished Physician’s Award that same year. In 2009, he joined ECMC’s Board of Directors.

Dr. Jehle has held several leadership and academic roles nationally. He has served as a Board Examiner for the American Board of Emergency Medicine, a Board member for the New York Chapter of ACEP, and a grant reviewer for the NIH Small Business Innovation Research Program. He has also been a trauma site surveyor for both New York and Illinois.

A pioneer in the use of bedside ultrasound, Dr. Jehle published the first U.S. study on emergency physician use of ultrasound for blunt abdominal trauma. He also authored the first emergency ultrasound studies evaluating gallbladder, aortic, renal, and first-trimester pregnancy conditions. He co-authored several landmark textbooks including Ultrasound in Emergency Medicine (1995), Ultrasonography in Trauma: The FAST Exam (2003), and Emergency Ultrasound of the Eye and Orbit (2011). At SUNY Buffalo, he created one of the nation’s first emergency ultrasound fellowships, as well as a widely attended mini- fellowship in bedside ultrasound.

His research has spanned resuscitation, airway management, and trauma. Notably, he conducted the first animal study on head cooling during cardiac arrest, and the first prehospital study using conjunctival oximetry with arterial lines during air medical transport. He also led the first U.S. emergency medicine study on bougie-assisted intubation.

As Chair of the Technology Committee for the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine (SAEM), Dr. Jehle organized the first LCD-based presentation at a national meeting and co- founded the SAEM Ultrasound Interest Group. In the 1990s, he helped develop one of the country’s busiest emergency telemedicine networks, serving 52 New York state prisons and two federal penitentiaries.

Dr. Jehle served as Founding Program Director for the Grand Strand Medical Center Emergency Medicine Residency in South Carolina in 2016 and was Clinical Professor of Surgery at the University of South Carolina. He also served on the Board of the South Carolina Chapter of ACEP.

In 2021, he was recruited to UTMB as Professor and Chair of Emergency Medicine and Founding Director of its new Emergency Medicine Residency Program. Dr. Jehle lives in Galveston, Texas, and is married with four grown children.

Notable Honors and Awards:

• Recognition of Resident Teaching Award (11/1990)
• Chairman’s Teaching Award (1998)
• National Teaching Award, ACEP (2000)
• Emergency Ultrasound Award, ACEP (2001)
• “Health Care 50” Award, Buffalo Business First (2007)
• ECMC “Distinguished Physician Award” and 2008 Springfest Gala Physician Honoree
• Civilian Hero Award 2009, 100 Club of Buffalo
• “Outstanding Citizen of 2009,” The Buffalo News
• “Advancing Emergency Care” Award, NYACEP (2010)
• Best Intubation Time - ACEP, Washington, DC (10/2017)
• Texas Top Doc – Emergency Medicine - America’s Best Doctors - 2023
• Sigma Xi - Scientific Research Honorary Society - 2025

Additional Roles:

• Director of Stadium Medical Services/NFL Airway Physician - Buffalo Bills for 27 years
• Research and media appearances on crash injury prevention, resuscitation, and ultrasound
• Host of podcast episodes including SUV vs Passenger Car Crashes

References and Publications: 

1. https://medicine.buffalo.edu/education/mdphd/research_and_facilities/research_highlights.host.html/content/shared/smbs/research_highlights/emergency-ultrasound.detail.html
2. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8216513/
3. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11421081/
4. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0735675793901647
5. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3093211/
6. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10874235/
7. https://www.buffalo.edu/news/releases/2006/10/8236.html
8. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20838142/
9. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/emp2.12115

Dr. Dietrich Jehle has been a national leader in emergency medicine residency training for over four decades.

He played a significant role in developing the Emergency Medicine Residency at Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh, PA in 1982. In 1990, he relocated to Buffalo, New York, to establish a new Emergency Medicine Residency Program at the University at Buffalo, which began in 1994. He served as Associate Program Director (APD), Vice Chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at SUNY Buffalo, and Clinical Director of Emergency Medicine at Erie County Medical Center (ECMC) for 17 years. Dr. Jehle also held the position of Tenured Professor of Emergency Medicine and became ECMC’s Associate Medical Director in 2008. That same year, he was honored with the Distinguished Physician’s Award and was subsequently appointed to ECMC’s Board of Directors in 2009.

In January 2016, Dr. Jehle was named Founding Program Director of the Emergency Medicine Residency Program at Grand Strand Medical Center in South Carolina, where he also served as Clinical Professor of Surgery at the University of South Carolina.

In 2021, Dr. Jehle was recruited to the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) in Galveston to serve as Chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine and Founding Program Director of the new Emergency Medicine Residency Program.

Dr. Dietrich Jehle is a nationally recognized leader in emergency ultrasound. He has co- authored several foundational textbooks on bedside ultrasonography, including:

• Ultrasound in Emergency Medicine (1995), the first textbook in the field
• Ultrasonography in Trauma: The FAST Exam (2003), published by the American College of Emergency Physicians
• Emergency Ultrasound of the Eye and Orbit (2011), the first text dedicated to emergency ocular ultrasound

Dr. Jehle also authored pioneering studies in the use of ultrasound by emergency physicians in the U.S. He published the first research on emergency ultrasound for blunt abdominal trauma, and led early studies using bedside ultrasound to assess gallbladder, aortic, renal, and first-trimester pregnancy pathology.

As Director of Emergency Ultrasonography at SUNY Buffalo, Dr. Jehle established one of the country’s first full-time emergency ultrasound fellowships in the 1990s. He later helped create a second fellowship in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, in 2020.

In recognition of his contributions to education and innovation in the field, the American College of Emergency Physicians honored Dr. Jehle with:

• The National Teaching Award (2000)
• The Emergency Ultrasound Award (2001)

Selected Publications:

1. Heller M, Jehle D (eds). Ultrasound in Emergency Medicine. W.B. Saunders, 1995 (1st ed.); Center Page, Inc., 2002 (2nd ed.).
2. Jehle D, Heller M. Ultrasonography in Trauma: The FAST Exam. ACEP, 2003.
3. Jehle D (ed), Bouvet S, Braden B, et al. Emergency Ultrasound of the Eye and Orbit. Grover Cleveland Press, 2011 (2nd printing, 2018).
4. Jehle D, Davis E, Evans T, et al. Emergency Department Sonography by Emergency Physicians. Am J Emerg Med. 1989; 7(6):605–611.
5. Jehle D, Guarino J, Karamanoukian H. Emergency Department Ultrasound in the Evaluation of Abdominal Trauma. Am J Emerg Med. 1993; 11(4):342–346.

Dr. Dietrich Jehle has made significant contributions to airway management in emergency medicine. He funded and led the first U.S. emergency medicine study on the use of bougies as an adjunct for intubation, which was published in Annals of Emergency Medicine in 2000.

For 27 years, Dr. Jehle provided medical care for the Buffalo Bills home games and served as the Buffalo Bills NFL’s game day on-field airway physician for a number of years. His extensive experience in prehospital and sideline airway management reflects his leadership in both clinical care and innovation. In 2017, he recorded the fastest intubation time in a competition at the National ACEP Scientific Assembly, demonstrating his technical expertise.

Over the past eight years, Dr. Jehle has taught numerous difficult airway courses, training hundreds of physicians in advanced airway techniques.

Selected Publication:

1. Moscati R, Jehle D, Christiansen G, et al. Flex-Guide Endotracheal Tube Introducer for Failed Intubations: A Variant of the Gum Elastic Bougie. A Case Series and Literature Review. Ann Emerg Med. 2000;36(1):52–56.

Dr. Dietrich Jehle has been a pioneer in resuscitation research, contributing several early and influential studies that advanced prehospital and in-hospital emergency care.

He conducted the first animal study investigating protective head cooling during cardiac arrest, as well as the first study evaluating the use of conjunctival oximetry in prehospital care, utilizing arterial lines during helicopter transport.

His research laid the foundation for modern approaches to neuroprotection and advanced monitoring in critical care and emergency transport.

Key Research Studies & Grants:

1. Protective Head Cooling During Cardiac Arrest (1984–1985) –
   Faculty Investigator, ASRI – $10,000
2. Cardiopulmonary Bypass for Prolonged Cardiac Arrest (1985–1986) –
   Principal Investigator, ASRI & Bard Cardiopulmonary – $20,000

Selected Publications:

1. Brader E, Jehle D, Mineo M, Safar P. Protective Head Cooling During Cardiac Arrest and Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation: The Original Animal Studies. Neurology International. 2010;2:e3:14–19. Abstract, Annals of Emergency Medicine 1985;14(5):510.
2. Shufflebarger C, Jehle D, Cottington E. Transconjunctival Oxygen Monitoring as a Predictor of Hypoxemia During Helicopter Transport. Am J Emerg Med. 1986;6:501– 503.
3. Jehle D, Fiorello A, Brader E, Cottington E, Kozak R. Hemoconcentration during Cardiac Arrest and CPR. American Journal of Emergency Medicine 1994;12(5):524- 526.

Dr. Dietrich Jehle has made significant contributions to trauma and crash injury research. He was appointed a Trauma Site Surveyor for both New York and Illinois, recognizing his leadership in emergency and trauma systems development.

His research in motor vehicle crashes has influenced public policy and injury prevention strategies, particularly during his leadership in a major federally funded transportation injury research initiative.

From 1998 to 2005, Dr. Jehle served as Site Director, Investigator, and Board Member for the Center for Transportation Injury Research, a joint project between the University at Buffalo Department of Emergency Medicine and Calspan (CUBRC). Funded at approximately $2 million per year through the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century, this program significantly advanced the understanding of crash-related injuries.

Selected Publications:

1. Lerner EB, Jehle D, Billittier A, et al: The Influence of Demographic Factors on Seatbelt Use by Adults Injured in Motor Vehicle Crashes. Accident Analysis and Prevention 2001;33:95-8.
2. Mayrose J, Jehle D: Vehicle weight and fatality risk for sport utility vehicle vs. passenger car crashes. Journal of Trauma 2002;53(4):751-753.
3. Jehle D, Wagner D, Mayrose J and Hashmi U: Seat belt use by police: Should they click it? Journal of Trauma - Injury Infection & Critical Care 2005;58(1):119-120.
4. Mayrose J, Jehle D, Hayes J, Tinnesz D, Piazza G, Wilding G. Influence of the Unbelted Rear-Seat Passenger on Driver Mortality: “The Backseat Bullet”. Acad Emerg Med. 2005;12(2):130–134.
5. Jehle D, Connolly S, Godzala M, Cole A. Speed Kills? Not Always: The New York State Thruway Experience. J Trauma. 2010;69(3):708–714.
6. Jehle D, Gemme S, Jehle C. Influence of Obesity on Mortality of Drivers in Severe Motor Vehicle Crashes. Am J Emerg Med. 2012;30:191–195. Epub Dec 2010.
7. Jehle D, Doshi C, Consiglio J, Karagianis J, Jehle G: Obesity and Seatbelt Use: A Fatal Relationship. American Journal of Emergency Medicine. 2014;32(7):756–760. Epub Jan 22, 2014.
8. Jehle D, Arslan A, Doshi C, O’Brien C. Car Ratings Take a Back Seat to Vehicle Type: Outcomes of SUV vs. Passenger Car Crashes. HCA Healthcare J Med. 2021;2(4).