Featured Anesthesiology Members

Department of Anesthesiology Featured Member: June 2020

David was raised on his family’s farm near Troy, MO, (about an hour northwest of Barnes-Jewish hospital), and his parents still live on the farm planting crops and raising cattle. David had a great childhood playing lots of sports, working around the farm, and spending time with family – all things he still enjoys. David followed in the footsteps of his brother and two sisters and attended the University of Missouri. After a short stint as a respiratory therapist, he attended Saint Louis University for his BSN and then, ultimately, on to Goldfarb School of Nursing for the Nurse Anesthesia program. David joined the CRNA group in 2009 after his graduation and considers it one of the best decisions of his life because of the great people he has met and worked with. He recently took on the role of Director of CRNA Activities, which he considers an honor and a privilege. The other best decision of his life was marrying his wife Kahra and having three wonderful kids: Owen (11), Helene (9), and Barrett (6). He spends much of his free time with his family and coaching three of his kids’ sports teams. He loves being active and being outside and looks forward to lighting the grill every Sunday afternoon for his weekly “meal prep.”

Department of Anesthesiology Featured Member: May 2022

Sam Erlinger is a current resident physician in the Department of Anesthesiology. For Sam, who is from St. Charles, WashU was the launching point a career in medicine when he was offered an opportunity while in high school at SLUH to work with physician-scientist mentors through a WUSM scholars program. Following this, he obtained his undergraduate degree in Biology and Spanish at Vanderbilt University and then went on to earn his MD at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine before returning home to St. Louis for residency. He is thrilled to be training at a leading institution with great mentors while also being near family and friends.

Clinically, he values the opportunity to provide safe care to critically ill patients, see a broad range of anesthetics and surgeries and work with faculty with diverse backgrounds and interests. Outside of the hospital, he enjoys backpacking, hiking, cycling, reading sci-fi, and playing guitar. He recently moved to Benton Park and is looking forward to exploring the area.

Department of Anesthesiology Featured Member: January 2023

Greg Feilner has been a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA) within the Department of Anesthesiology since 2019. He is a ‘float CRNA’ within the general division, but primarily works between Pod 4 and the Center for Advanced Medicine-South County. He enjoys working with the students and teaching the SRNAs in the OR.

To answer the famous St. Louis question, he went to Lindbergh High School before obtaining his BSN from the University of Missouri-Columbia, M-I-Z!!. Greg then came to work at Barnes-Jewish Hospital where he has held numerous positions. As a new grad, he started in the ED at BJH where he loved the fast-paced trauma environment and the comradery of his peers. After a few years, Greg transferred to the SICU in 44ICU when it doubled in size from the old 84ICU. During that time, he also worked as a Flight Nurse for Air Evac Lifeteam covering all the bases across Missouri. Greg had the privilege of caring for patients in the helicopter, bringing them to Barnes, and then continuing that care during his shifts in the ICU. After that, Greg delved into management and obtained an MSN in Nursing Administration from Webster University in 2014. He worked as a house supervisor at BJH where he covered house operations, staffing, and a number of other administrative issues. He then switched directions and received his Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) from Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville in 2019 and came back to Washu and BJH as a CRNA.

Greg and his wife Marla have been together since high school and have a son Jack (9) and a daughter Penelope (7) that love sports and spending time as a family. They have two dogs, Sarge, a chocolate Lab, and River, a Catahoula-Beagle. Greg and his family love staying active and being outdoors. He enjoys competing in mountain bike races each year and coaching his son’s wrestling team. He and his wife enjoy doing construction projects together and trying all the cuisine that St. Louis has to offer.

Department of Anesthesiology APP of the Quarter: September 2022

Joshua Fender (He/Him) has been an APP with the department since 2021. He has a BS in Fire Paramedicine from Lindenwood University. He obtained his MSN with an emphasis on quality improvement informatics, education, and leadership from Sant Louis University. Josh recently graduated with his AGACNP post-master’s certificate from Goldfarb School of Nursing. He has been a recipient of St. Louis Magazine’s Excellence in Nursing and March of Dimes Nurse of the Year. In his free time, you can find him mushroom hunting, cooking, and spending time with his partner Eric and their two golden doodles Riley and Zion.

Josh was named the Q3 2022 APP of the Quarter!

His nominator says, “Josh is an incredible team player. He is always helping with schedule changes and picking up extra moonlighting. He is always positive and easy to work with. He will lend a helping hand without being asked and he provides compassionate care to his patients.”