People

Fernando Benitez, MD, serves as the Medical Director for Highland Park Department of Public Safety and University Park Fire Department, Medical Manager for Texas Task Force 2 Urban Search and Rescue, and a tactical physician for the Dallas Police Department tactical team. Dr. Benitez earned his medical degree at the University of Puerto Rico, where he also completed a residency in emergency medicine. He received advanced training in emergency medical services through a fellowship at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center..

Raymond L. Fowler, MD, FACEP, FAEMS, is a Professor of Emergency Medicine, EMS, and Public Health, and he is the James M. Atkins MD Distinguished Professor of Emergency Medicine Services at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. He has served in a leadership role with BioTel for some quarter century, and helped grow the UT Southwestern EMS Medicine physician team into the outstanding group that it is today. His specific interests address broad public health matters from cardiac arrest to homelessness, and he specializes in coordinating NIH-funded research across the BioTel System.

Caitlin Howard, MD, MPH, FACEP, completed an emergency medicine residency at Madigan Army Medicine Center and EMS/Disaster Medicine fellowship at Brooke Army Medical Center. Dr. Howard served as an EM/EMS physician in the United States Army for 12 years, with combat tours in the Middle East. She joined the faculty at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in 2023, practicing at Parkland Health, Clements University Hospital, and Children's Medical Center. Dr. Howard’s EMS interests include trauma, prehospital blood transfusions and disaster medicine.

S. Marshal Isaacs, MD, FACEP, FAEMS, is the long-standing Chief Medical Officer/Medical Director for the Dallas Fire-Rescue Department. Dr. Isaacs is a Professor of Emergency Medicine at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and a Senior Attending Physician in the emergency department at Parkland Health. He has served as a BioTel physician since 2006 and had the honor of serving as the System Medical Director for the UT Southwestern/Parkland BioTel EMS System. Dr. Isaacs has particular interests in cardiac arrest resuscitation, quality management, provider credentialing and EMS Professionals’ wellness and safety.

Erin Lincoln, MD, MS, EMT-P, has more than 20 years of experience as an EMS clinician, beginning her career as an EMT and advancing to become an EMS physician. She completed her residency in emergency medicine at the Dell Medical School at the University of Texas at Austin after graduating from the Texas A&M College of Medicine. She received advanced training in EMS through a fellowship at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. She subsequently joined the UT Southwestern Department of Emergency Medicine faculty in 2023. Dr. Lincoln currently practices both in the Parkland Emergency Department and UT Southwestern Clements University Hospital. Additionally, Dr. Lincoln obtained a Master of Science in Emergency Health Services Administration, Planning, and Policy from the University of Maryland. Dr. Lincoln is a member of the Women in EMS group through the National Association of EMS Physicians. Dr. Lincoln’s interests include prehospital and disaster medicine, specifically the intersection of operations with clinical medicine and patient outcomes. She also serves as the Chief Game Day Physician for the Dallas Stars.

Al Lulla, MD, FAEMS, has served as Deputy Medical Director for Dallas Fire-Rescue since 2022. In this role, Dr. Lulla oversees the Quality Management Division in the DFR Office of the Medical Director. In addition, Dr. Lulla presently serves as the Assistant Medical Director for the American Airlines Center. He completed his emergency medicine residency at Washington University in St. Louis. His interest in prehospital medicine led him to pursue fellowship training in EMS at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. His specific interest within EMS includes stress and mental health issues faced by EMS providers and other first responders.

Faroukh Mehkri, DO, FAEMS, has served as Deputy Medical Director for Dallas Fire-Rescue Since 2021. In this role, Dr. Mehkri oversees the Clinical Practice Division in the DFR Office of the Medical Director. Dr. Mehkri has the additional honor and privilege of serving as a tactical physician and sworn officer for the Dallas Police Department SWAT Team. He is double board certified in Emergency Medicine from the University of Connecticut/Hartford Hospital Residency in Emergency Medicine and Traumatology and EMS Medicine from The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. He is well published and his specific interests within EMS include critical incident management, sudden death in police custody, airway management, OHCA management, and EMS physician field response.

Brian Miller, MD, FACEP, FAEMS,has served as the Senior Deputy Medical Director for Dallas Fire-Rescue and the City of Dallas since 2018. He completed emergency medicine residency at Indiana University in Indianapolis and EMS fellowship at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. He has been involved in EMS since 2006, initially completing his EMT and later becoming an EMT-Intermediate prior to medical school. Dr. Miller is also an Associate System Medical Director for the Fort Worth EMS System. His specific interests within EMS include prehospital airway management, out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, quality improvement, and Mobile Integrated Healthcare (MIH).

Gilberto A. Salazar, MD, serves as the Medical Director for Hutchins Fire Department. Life took him to the University of Texas in Houston, where he earned his medical degree, and then went to Louisiana to complete an emergency medicine residency at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. During his residency training in Baton Rouge, he ventured outside of the emergency department and into an ambulance. Being involved with East Baton Rouge Parish Emergency Medical Services (EMS) was refreshing and revealing to him. Dr. Salazar decided to continue his training in EMS, and moved back home to Dallas, where he spent two years as a fellow completing his Government Emergency Medical Security Services fellowship for Department of Emergency Medicine, Section on Emergency Medical Services at UT Southwestern Medical Center. In recent years, Dr. Salazar has been a leader in the Emergency Medical Services Fellowship Program Committee to provide didactic, simulation, and practical education for the fellows, participate in program improvement, and provide mentorship in education, medical practice, quality assurance, and research in Emergency Medical Services.

Bob Simonson, DO, FACEP, serves as the Medical Director for Duncanville, DeSoto, Cedar Hill and Lancaster through BioTel. He completed his emergency medicine residency at the University of Florida. He works clinically in the EDs at Parkland Health and Methodist Dallas hospitals. In addition to his role at BioTel, he has served as the Medical Director for CareFlite, DFW’s premier integrated medical transport service, for 30 years. He is also the Medical Director of the paramedic school at UT Dallas. His areas of interest are field management of trauma and airway issues in the field as well as multicenter studies on topics such as TXA use for prehospital bleeding in the field and other endeavors through the Resuscitation Outcomes Consortium (ROC) studies.

Betty Yang, MD, MS, serves as the Medical Director of the Sunnyvale Fire Department through the BioTel. She completed emergency medicine residency at The Ohio State Wexner Medical Center and fellowships in EMS and research at the University of Washington. As a fellow, she gained firsthand prehospital experience as a flight physician with Airlift Northwest and as an EMS physician with Seattle Fire Medic One and King County Public Health EMS. Her focus within EMS is improving patient outcomes through prehospital research and quality improvement. She studies critical illness and injury. She is interested in cardiac arrest, ventilation during CPR, and prehospital blood transfusion.