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New faculty member brings expertise in wilderness medicine
Meet Dr. Isabel M. Algaze Gonzalez
New Emergency Medicine faculty member Dr. Isabel M. Algaze Gonzalez was born in Puerto Rico at the same hospital where she completed her residency training in emergency medicine.
Algaze earned her bachelor of arts degree in biology from the University of Puerto Rico's Rio Piedras Campus, and her medical degree from the University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine. A natural adventurer who acquired a taste for exploring and a passion for nature early in life, Algaze also completed a two-year fellowship in wilderness medicine from Harvard Medical School at the Massachusetts General Hospital.
Algaze is trained in primary hyperbaric medicine, avalanche medicine and mountain medicine, and serves as an emergency medical teams coordinator for the Pan-American Health Organization. She joined in the relief efforts after the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, and she has worked in multiple sport events (cycling, hockey, snowboarding and free-skiing) as the site physician.
Algaze also has traveled with field experts and explorers to seven countries and nine locations as the expedition doctor for TCS World Travel, and National Geographic's "Sacred Places" expedition. This experience solidified her knowledge of the social determinants of heath, travel medicine and global medicine. As part of her fellowship training, she spent three months in a remote aid post at 14,500 feet in the Khumbu region of Nepal, serving as site physician for locals, trekkers and climbers while she researched cognition in altitude and its relationship to altitude sickness.
Algaze also cared for one of the two patients first diagnosed Irukandji-like syndrome in Puerto Rico, and she is currently collaborating with the University of Hawaii in a clinical trial for box jellyfish stings.
Her clinical and research interests include wilderness medicine, hyperbaric medicine, dive medicine, expedition medicine, global medicine and humanitarian aid. Her goal is to continue to provide quality care to her patients and to expand knowledge in the fields of emergency and wilderness medicine. She is excited to launch and serve as co-director of the Department of Emergency Medicine's new Wilderness Medicine Fellowship.
Algaze, who is fluent in English and Spanish, enjoys nature activities, including hiking, swimming, spelunking, kayaking and paddle-boarding. She also does cross-country runs with her dogs.