Bio
Alex Macario, MD, MBA is vice-chair for education and professor in the Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine at the Stanford University School of Medicine, where he is also professor by courtesy in the Department of Health Research and Policy. Dr. Macario serves as Program Director for the Anesthesiology Residency, which has more than 90 housestaff.
Dr. Macario completed his undergraduate, medical school and business school education at the University of Rochester with the Joseph C. Wilson Merit Scholarship. He then trained in anesthesiology at Stanford University, served as Chief Resident, and completed a postgraduate fellowship in health services research. Dr. Macario’s clinical practice is in the general operating room and includes a variety of inpatients and ambulatory patients having surgery.
Dr. Macario has received several awards, including being the inaugural recipient of the Outstanding Contribution to Graduate Medical Education as Program Director Award for the Stanford University Medical Center. He also has been nationally recognized with the Excellence in Education Award from the American Society of Anesthesiologists for exceptional contributions to graduate medical education.
A member of the faculty at Stanford since 1995, Dr. Macario established an internationally recognized academic program in operating room management, including creating the Management of Perioperative Services Fellowship. Dr. Macario also designed and led other innovative educational programs, including the Stanford Fellowship in Anesthesia Research and Medicine track for anesthesia residents who want to pursue research-intensive careers, many of whom have gone on to obtain National Institutes of Health funding. He also serves as program director for the Combined Residency in Internal Medicine and Anesthesiology and is associate program director for the Combined Residency in Pediatrics and Anesthesiology. Additionally, Dr. Macario was founder and served as director of the Stanford Anesthesia Faculty Teaching Scholars Program, which launched a structure for department faculty to obtain education in teaching, curriculum development, and assessment.
Dr. Macario's research career has been dedicated to the economics of health care, in particular the tradeoffs between costs and outcomes for patients having surgery and anesthesia. Dr. Macario helped develop the scientific study of the management of the operating room suite, as well as pioneering work on the cost-effectiveness of drugs and devices. More recently, Dr. Macario's research team has focused on medical education. Dr. Macario’s research has led to more than 135 peer reviewed publications and more than 9,000 citations. Google Scholar calculates Dr. Macario’s H-Index as 51 and his I-10 Index as 117. An index of h indicates an investigator has published h papers each of which has been cited in other papers at least h times.
Dr. Macario serves as director for the American Board of Anesthesiology, and is a member of the Anesthesiology Review Committee for the ACGME.
Dr. Macario authored "A Sabbatical in Madrid: A Diary of Spain," an award winning travel memoir. Dr. Macario has two adult children working in San Francisco and lives with his wife in their home on the Stanford Campus. In his free time, Dr. Macario enjoys rooting for Stanford sports, biking up the local hills, and playing tennis.
Why I Became an Anesthesiologist is available at http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/881001
Clinical Focus
- Multispecialty including for example anesthesia for orthopedics, urology, neurosurgery, ambulatory surgery, and general surgery
- Anesthesia
Academic Appointments
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Professor - Med Center Line, Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine
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Professor - Med Center Line (By courtesy), Health Research & Policy
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Member, Bio-X
Administrative Appointments
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Program Director, Combined Internal Medicine-Anesthesiology residency (2013 - Present)
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Associate Program Director, Combined Pediatrics and Anesthesiology Residency (2010 - Present)
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Founder, Faculty Teaching Scholars Program, Department of Anesthesiology (2007 - 2017)
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Director, CME Grand Rounds Program, Department of Anesthesiology (2010 - Present)
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Executive Committee, Faculty Senate, Stanford University School of Medicine (2007 - 2012)
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Program Director, Anesthesiology Residency (2006 - Present)
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Vice-Chairman for Education, Department of Anesthesiology (2006 - Present)
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Finance Committee, Dept of Anesthesiology (2003 - Present)
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Visiting Professor, TAISS, Madrid, Spain (2001 - 2002)
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Governance Committee, Dept. of Anesthesiology (1997 - Present)
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Program Director, Management of Perioperative Services Fellowship (1996 - Present)
Honors & Awards
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Excellence in Education Award (one national awardee per year), American Society of Anesthesiologists (2018)
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Global Health Grant: Collaboration in Zimbabwe for anesthesiologist training and education research, Sponsor: Office of International Affairs, Stanford University (2015)
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Inaugural recipient, Outstanding Contribution to Graduate Medical Education as Program Director, Stanford University (2015)
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Medical technology grant: A monitoring system to prevent unnecessary blood wastage, Sponsor: Stanford Center for Clinical and Translational Research and Education (2015)
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Faculty Mentor Award, American Society of Anesthesiology, Committee on Professional Diversity (2012-2013)
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Charter member, Education Academy, Foundation for Anesthesia Education & Research (2012)
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Education Advisory Board, Association of University Anesthesiologists (2012)
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First place, “best article”, Journal of Medical Internet Research: 4th World Congress on Social Media & Web 2.0 Health & Medicine (2012)
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Ellis N. Cohen Achievement Award (Department of Anesthesiology highest honor), Stanford University (2009)
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Keynote speaker, American Association of Clinical Directors Annual Meeting (2007)
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1st place, Literature Prize, American Society of Anesthesiology Annual Meeting (2004)
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Research Incentive Award, Testing a secure Web based, decision support system for anesthesia, Stanford University Office of Technology Licensing (2001-2002)
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Principal Investigator for grant on patient preferences for postoperative outcomes, Foundation for Anesthesia Education Research (1998)
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Annual Resident Research Prize, 3rd Place, American Society of Anesthesiologists (1995)
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Valdes - Dapena Research Prize, The Graduate Hospital, University of Pennsylvania (1991)
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Graduation Speaker, College of Arts & Sciences, University of Rochester (1986)
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Phi Beta Kappa, University of Rochester (1986)
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Rigby - Wile Prize in Biology, University of Rochester (1985)
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Joseph C. Wilson Scholar, University of Rochester (1982)
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Excellence in Education Award, American Society of Anesthesiologists (2018)
Boards, Advisory Committees, Professional Organizations
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Member, ACGME Anesthesiology Review Committee (2019 - Present)
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Director, Board of Directors, American Board of Anesthesiology (2017 - Present)
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Examiner, American Board of Anesthesiology (2011 - Present)
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Editorial Board, Medscape Anesthesiology website at http://www.medscape.com/anesthesiology (2010 - 2019)
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Member, Association of University Anesthesiologists (honorific society) (2000 - Present)
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Editorial Board, Anesthesiology News (1999 - 2019)
Professional Education
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Residency:Stanford University Anesthesiology Residency (1994) CA
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Internship:Graduate Hospital (Closed) (1991) PA
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Board Certification: Anesthesia, American Board of Anesthesiology (1995)
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Fellowship:Stanford University Medical Center (1995) CA
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Medical Education:University of Rochester (1990) NY
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Chief Resident, Stanford University, Anesthesiology (1994)
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MBA, University of Rochester, Health Economics (1988)
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BA, University of Rochester, Sociology (1986)
Community and International Work
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Zimbabwe Global Health elective for anesthesia residency
Topic
Anesthesiology
Partnering Organization(s)
University of Zimbabwe College of Health Sciences, Department of Anesthesiology
Populations Served
Housestaff
Location
International
Ongoing Project
Yes
Opportunities for Student Involvement
No
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Postgraduate Fellowship in Global Health
Topic
Faculty
Location
International
Ongoing Project
Yes
Opportunities for Student Involvement
No
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Global Health Trip 1994, Vietnam
Topic
Anesthesia for cleft lip and palate surgery on children
Partnering Organization(s)
Interplast
Populations Served
Pediatrics
Location
International
Ongoing Project
No
Opportunities for Student Involvement
No