USA Health welcomes Whiddon COM alumna Carly McRae to emergency medicine
“I wanted to stay on the Gulf Coast, and I really love working with students and residents,” said Carly McRae, M.D., who is also an assistant professor of emergency medicine at the Whiddon College of Medicine. “Staying at USA was a very natural choice for me!”
By Lindsay Hughes
lahughes@health.southalabama.edu
Joining USA Health as an emergency medicine physician was a natural decision for Carly McRae, M.D., a lifelong resident of Baldwin County.
McRae grew up in Fairhope, Alabama, and graduated summa cum laude from the University of Alabama with a bachelor’s degree in biology. She earned a medical degree from the Whiddon College of Medicine in 2021 and recently completed residency training in emergency medicine at USA Health.
“I wanted to stay on the Gulf Coast, and I really love working with students and residents,” said McRae, who is also an assistant professor of emergency medicine at the Whiddon College of Medicine. “Staying at USA was a very natural choice for me!”
Going into medical school, McRae knew she wanted to pursue a hands-on specialty. “During my third-year rotations, I found that the emergency department was the place I was most excited to show up,” she said. “I love the variety of patients that I get to see in a single shift and love that comradery that comes with working in the ED setting.”
McRae said people may assume that emergency physicians don’t have the opportunity to form relationships with patients in the way other physicians do. “Although I may not see many of my patients on a recurring basis,” she said, “I find it incredibly rewarding to be able to care for and comfort patients on what may be one of their worst days.”
While a medical student, McRae was involved in the USA Student-Run Free Clinic, the Alabama Chapter of the American College of Emergency Physicians, and the Christian Medical Ministry of South Alabama’s medical mission trip to Senegal. She also served as president of the Emergency Medicine Interest Group and the Preventive Medicine Interest Group.
“During my time training at USA, I had the privilege of learning from many wonderful attendings. There are so many lessons I have learned both personally and professionally from being in this environment,” she said. “I hope that I am able to make a similar impact on the education and development of the residents and students that I will be working with as I move forward in my career.”
