We are pleased to announce and introduce our 2025-26 chief residents: Drs. Nathan Achilly, Brandon DeClouette, and Arianna Montes de Oca.
Chief Residents Announced for 2025-26

Department of
We are pleased to announce and introduce our 2025-26 chief residents: Drs. Nathan Achilly, Brandon DeClouette, and Arianna Montes de Oca.
On March 21, 2025, the Department of Anesthesiology welcomed 23 new residents. This outstanding group of physicians comes from medical schools across 12 states, including WashU Medicine, and three countries.
Faculty and advanced practice providers (APPs) from WashU Medicine’s Department of Anesthesiology were recognized for their outstanding contributions to critical care medicine during the Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM) 2025 Annual Congress.
William D. Owens, MD, former head of the Department of Anesthesiology at WashU Medicine, passed away on Jan. 3, 2025, at the age of 85. A pioneer in clinical outcomes research and anesthesia education, he significantly advanced the field through his leadership, mentorship, and contributions to critical care and pain management.
According to a new study by WashU Medicine researchers, male and female rats with chronic pain release different dopamine levels after fentanyl due to sex hormones, which may explain higher opioid use and overdose rates in men.
Dr. Joanna Abraham was recently appointed as the new Director of the Center for Applied Health Informatics (CAHI) in I2DB at WashU Medicine.
Researchers at WashU Medicine and Stanford University developed a compound that relieves pain in mice but doesn’t affect the brain, avoiding side effects and abuse potential. The molecule, derived from cannabis, may provide an alternative to opioids for treating chronic pain.
The Department of Anesthesiology at WashU Medicine ranked No. 1 nationwide among anesthesiology departments in funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), according to the 2024 Blue Ridge Institute for Medical Research (BRIMR) rankings.
Baron Chanda, PhD, a professor of anesthesiology at WashU Medicine, was recently awarded the 2025 Kenneth S. Cole Award from the Biophysical Society. The award was presented on February 15, 2025, at the society’s annual meeting in Los Angeles and recognized his groundbreaking contributions to understanding how the body’s electrical signals function at the cellular […]
We are proud to recognize the outstanding contributions of several department faculty members who are currently serving or have recently been appointed as examiners for the American Board of Anesthesiology (ABA) APPLIED Examination.