Our success is intimately linked to the accomplishments of each and every member of our department.
Each month, four members are nominated and featured to celebrate their commitment to patient care, education, and research.
Current Featured Anesthesiology Department Members
Léa Becker, PhD
Postdoctoral Research Associate
Marissa Caruso, AGACNP
Nurse Practitioner
Paul Knocke
Division Administrator
Hero Robles, MD
Resident Physician
Featured Anesthesiology Department Members Archive
Mark Hanak, MD
Resident Physician, Class of 2023
Department of Anesthesiology Featured Member: February 2021
Mark is one of the current CA-1 residents in the Department of Anesthesiology. Originally from the Washington D.C. suburbs, he attended the University of Virginia for both undergrad and medical school. Following graduation he moved to St. Louis with his girlfriend, Alison, who is an OBGYN resident here at WashU.
When choosing a residency, he was drawn to the department’s diverse faculty and clinical opportunities. “I wanted to be able to learn from not just the national but also international leaders in the field. There are many ways to approach anesthetic management and getting to train here broadens one’s perspective.”
Outside of the hospital, Mark enjoys running, snowboarding, cooking, attending concerts (pre-COVID), and spending time with Alison and his 1 year old Pyrenees/Shepherd mix, Osley. They recently moved into a house and Mark is excited to start up a home garden this Spring.
Jon Harper, MD
Resident Physician, Class of 2027
Department of Anesthesiology Featured Member: September 2024
Jon is a first-year resident in the Department of Anesthesiology. He was born in North Jersey and raised in Salt Lake City where he grew up playing in the Wasatch mountains. He completed his undergraduate and medical education at the University of Utah before moving to St. Louis for residency with his wife, Alex, and their English Bulldog, Rosie. Jon and Alex enjoy so much of what St. Louis has to offer, including the fantastic food scene, historic architecture, charming neighborhoods, and Forest Park. When not in the hospital, Jon likes spending time with Alex, playing tug o’ war with Rosie, riding his bike, reading fiction, and baking bread.
Taylor Hathaway, MD
Resident Physician
Department of Anesthesiology Featured Member: January 2026
Taylor Hathaway is a CA-2 resident in the Department of Anesthesiology at WashU Medicine. Born and raised in the Midwest, he received a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology at Brigham Young University and attended medical school back home at Indiana University. He and his wife, Jenny, have three young children ages 6, 4, and 18 months, and another is on the way — due summer 2026! He plans on staying in St Louis after residency and working as a general anesthesiologist.
Outside of work, Taylor enjoys soccer and baseball, and often sports a Cincinnati Reds baseball scrub cap at work. He recently ran his first (and probably only) half-marathon and marathon this last year thanks to a challenge from another co-resident, Peter Wittl. In his free time (limited as it is), he enjoys reading epic fantasy fiction or sci-fi and is always open to new book recommendations.
Mike Havenar, ACNP
Nurse Practitioner
Department of Anesthesiology Featured Member: June 2020
Mike is the Compliance and Outreach Lead Nurse Practitioner with the Critical Care Division of the Department of Anesthesiology, and he has been with the department for 11 years. He was born and raised in central Illinois but moved to the St. Louis area for college and completed his undergraduate training at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and graduate training at Saint Louis University. Before going to grad school, Mike was a travel nurse for three years and lived in Arizona, South Florida, and Southern California. Outside of work, Mike has a passion for international travel, SCUBA diving, hiking, cooking, and spending time with family, friends, and his dog, Leo.