Daniel Rusyniak, MD, is the chief medical officer at Eskenazi Health, where he leads clinical quality, safety, physician engagement and patient care effectiveness. Associated with Eskenazi Health and Indiana University School of Medicine since 1999, he has served in multiple leadership roles including vice chair for faculty development, chief of the Division of Medical Toxicology and medical director of the Indiana Poison Control Center. He was also secretary of the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA), where he worked to improve equity and access across health and human services. A practicing emergency physician, Rusyniak has received numerous honors, including the Sagamore of the Wabash, the Indiana Distinguished Service Medal and the State Health Commissioner Award. He holds degrees from Villanova University, Wake Forest University School of Medicine and completed his residency and fellowship at IU School of Medicine.
Rusyniak will present "From Resuscitation to Regulation" at the Airway, Breathing, Celebration CME event as part of the Department of Emergency Medicine residency program's 50th anniversary celebration. He said, "I’ll be focusing on the role and value of emergency medicine physicians within healthcare delivery and policy. As physicians, we can no longer stay on the sidelines and simply be content to cash a check. If we truly care about healthcare and about our patients, we need to be informed, engaged and involved in shaping the systems we work within."
Question: Looking back on your training, what drew you to this residency program, and what experience or moment continues to stand out for you today?
Rusyniak: When I was searching for a residency program, I was looking for several key things: strong critical care training, a broad emergency department patient population in terms of age and complexity and — most importantly — a culture where residents were collaborative, close-knit, and genuinely enjoyed working together.
As for a specific experience that stands out, it’s hard to name just one. Some of my fondest memories are much less about individual clinical moments and more about the time spent together as residents particularly in the call room at Indiana University Health Methodist Hospital. There were countless conversations and events, and an incredible amount of fun and laughter. Those moments of shared experience and camaraderie are what I remember most.
Q: In what ways did this program shape your approach to emergency medicine and influence your career path or leadership journey?
Rusyniak: At the time, the residency was fairly contained within a single hospital system at Methodist Hospital, which meant you became very close with residents in other specialties. Surgery had about three residents per year, medicine had six or seven, pediatrics just a few. Because of that structure, you really got to know everyone.
That experience shaped my understanding of medicine as a truly collaborative effort. By working closely across specialties, you learned firsthand what others were dealing with and how to support one another effectively. That foundation has strongly influenced the way I approach medicine — as a team sport.
Additionally, having a toxicology fellowship available allowed me to pursue that training. The fellowship taught me how to deeply understand an extremely complex subject and, just as importantly, how to simplify it and teach it to others. That process of learning, distilling and teaching has continued to shape how I approach problem-solving and leadership today.
Q: What lesson, value, or habit from residency still guides your work as an emergency physician today?
Rusyniak: Humility. There is nothing quite like working in an emergency department to humble you. I came into residency insecure, graduated perhaps a bit too confident and was ultimately brought back down to earth.
If I had to name the most enduring lessons from my training, they would be humility, teamwork and collaboration. Those traits are absolutely foundational to being an effective emergency physician, and I believe they are among the most important lessons an emergency medicine residency can impart.
Q: As you reflect on your career and the evolution of emergency medicine, what does the program’s 50th anniversary mean to you personally?
Rusyniak: The program’s 50th anniversary is a testament to those who founded it at Methodist Hospital 50 years ago, including pioneers like Brent Furby, Skip Keene, C.T. Fletcher, and Bill Cordell. It also reflects the dedication of the many leaders who carried the program forward and continually improved it, helping it grow into one of the largest and most sought-after residency programs in the country.
Leaders such as Kevin Rodgers, Carey Chisholm, Butch Humbert, Katie Pettit, and so many others have all contributed to this legacy. There are far too many people to name, but what stands out most is how that legacy has been intentionally passed from generation to generation. That continuity is what has sustained the program and what makes me so proud to have been a part of it.
Q: What are you most excited about when you think about the future of emergency medicine and the next generation of physicians?
Rusyniak: I’m hopeful that the future of emergency medicine brings us back to what initially drew people into this field 50 years ago. When emergency medicine first emerged as a specialty, it was about providing immediate care, stabilizing patients and being there for everyone — at all hours and at all levels of crisis.
Over the past several decades, healthcare has evolved in ways that sometimes leave physicians feeling disconnected from those original motivations and more like participants in a large, bill-generating machine. I’m optimistic that through advances in technology and thoughtful policy changes, the next 50 years will bring greater alignment with why most of us chose medicine in the first place.
Q: What advice would you offer to current residents or early-career emergency physicians as they navigate their training and careers?
Rusyniak: Understand healthcare delivery. Understand insurance. Understand Medicare, Medicaid, and state and federal policy. These forces have a greater impact on your day-to-day practice than almost anything else. Even a basic level of knowledge will help you navigate the system more effectively and advocate for both your patients and your profession.
Q: What continues to fuel your passion for emergency medicine?
Rusyniak: Emergency medicine is where the failures of the healthcare system and often of our broader communities and social structures ultimately land. It is the place where everyone comes. The emergency department humbles you as a provider, and it humbles us as patients. Regardless of wealth, status or background, when you’re sick and lying on a gurney, we are all equal. In those moments, we’re reminded of our shared humanity, our vulnerability and our fundamental need for one another. That is what continues to fuel my passion for this work.
