Biography

Deborah Diercks, M.D., is Professor and Chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at UT Southwestern Medical Center. She holds the Audre and Bernard Rapoport Distinguished Chair in Clinical Care and Research. 

A nationally recognized leader in the specialty, Dr. Diercks oversees the emergency medicine programs at Parkland Memorial Hospital and UT Southwestern University Hospitals, which together constitute one of the largest emergency medicine programs in the nation.

After receiving her undergraduate degree in microbiology and immunology from the University of California, Berkeley, Dr. Diercks attended Tufts University School of Medicine. She completed her residency in emergency medicine at the University of Cincinnati and joined the faculty of the University of California, Davis, where she was a major contributor to the growth and development of its emergency medicine programs. She also holds a master’s degree from the Harvard University School of Public Health.

Dr. Diercks has received funding from the National Institutes of Health, among other sources, for research on early management of acute coronary syndromes, the influence of gender on symptom characteristics, and utilization of cardiac biomarkers. She has held numerous leadership positions within the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine and was presented the Society’s 2014 Advancement of Women in Academic Emergency Medicine Award. Additionally, Dr. Diercks is a Senior Associate Editor of the Annals of Emergency Medicine

Education

Medical School
Tufts University School of Medicine (1994)
Residency
University of Cincinnati College of Medicine (1998), Emergency Medicine
Other Post Graduate Training
Harvard University School of Public Health (2008)
Graduate School
Harvard University School of Public Health (2008)

Research Interest

  • acute cardiovascular emergencies

Publications

Featured Publications LegendFeatured Publications

Hemodynamic effects of nitroglycerin ointment in emergency department patients.
Mumma BE, Dhingra KR, Kurlinkus C, Diercks DB J Emerg Med 2014 Aug 47 2 192-7
The management of acute hypertension in patients with renal dysfunction: Labetalol or Nicardipine?
Varon J, Soto-Ruiz KM, Baumann BM, Borczuk P, Cannon CM, Chandra A, Cline DM, Diercks DB, Hiestand B, Hsu A, Jois-Bilowich P, Kaminski B, Levy P, Nowak RM, Schrock JW, Peacock WF Postgrad Med 2014 Jul 126 4 124-30

Honors & Awards

  • Society of Academic Emergency Medicine Advancement Award
    (2019)
  • Advancement of Women in Academic Emergency Medicine Award
    (2014)