Ehab Daoud, MD, FACP, FCCP, is an associate professor of medicine at John A. Burns School of Medicine, the medical director of the respiratory care program at Kapiolani Community College, and the critical care department director at the University of Hawaii Kuakini Medical Center.
His expertise centers on areas of critical care and mechanical ventilation, and he has authored and published numerous peer-reviewed research journals and books.
Daoud serves as president of the Society of Mechanical Ventilation and editor in chief of the Journal of Mechanical Ventilation, an online, peer-reviewed journal dedicated to the research and global education on the science of mechanical ventilation.
“The challenges, successes, and failures make me passionate about my field.”
Why did you pursue the field of respiratory therapy?
When I started my internal medicine residency more than 20 years ago, we had to cover the ICU, and I was shocked that we did not learn anything about mechanical ventilation in medical school. I was very confused and was determined to learn more about respiratory failure and mechanical ventilation, and as a result, I fell in love with the field. It became my passion to the point that my friends call me “ventilator geek.”
Where has your career journey taken you?
In addition to my direct work in the field, I built the first journal specifically for the science of mechanical ventilation. I also started an international society dedicated to teaching and enhancing the science of mechanical ventilation. I am happy to say that both are thriving, but the journey is not over—I have lots of ambitions and dreams that remain unfulfilled yet. The challenges, successes, and failures make me passionate about my field.
Why do you feel that online continuing education offerings are important to professionals in your field?
The field of respiratory failure and mechanical ventilation is evolving very fast with new research and new technologies, so our understanding and knowledge has to keep up. I was very impressed with Continued’s wide variety of courses for many specialities, including a large selection of courses for my area of interest in respiratory failure and mechanical ventilation. Also, the membership price is very affordable, which is very important.