The Advisory Council serves as an advisory and oversight board to eSAS and the Executive Council. The council is made up of anesthesiologist-scientist stakeholders and leaders, and eventually of former members of the eSAS Executive Council. Together this group maintains and guides the long-term vision of the organization and retains its institutional memory.
Dr. Michael Avidan, MBBCh, FCASA is the Dr. Seymour and Rose T. Brown Professor of Anesthesiology at WashU Medicine, where he has served as Head of the Department of Anesthesiology and anesthesiologist-in-chief at Barnes-Jewish Hospital. He is a past President of the Association of University Anesthesiologists and has served on the Board of Trustees of the International Anesthesia Research Society. His research focuses on perioperative brain health and neurologic outcomes after surgery. Michael is optimistic about the future of academic anesthesiology and believes that networking and mentorship are essential for future leaders in the field. He views eSAS as critically important for the vibrancy and success of academic anesthesiology and is committed to advising and mentoring early-career anesthesiology scholars.
Dr. Jim Eisenach, MD is the F.M. James III Professor of Anesthesiology at Wake Forest University School of Medicine. He has devoted his career to translational investigation of acute and chronic pain and has mentored more than 80 trainees, from high school students to MD/PhDs, under decades of continuous NIH funding. He is a past Editor-in-Chief of Anesthesiology and served as President of the Foundation for Anesthesia Education and Research from 2016 to 2023. He remains dedicated to the development and promotion of research in the specialty to improve patient care.
Dr. Judith Hellman, MD is the William L. Young, MD Endowed Professor and Vice Chair for Research in the Department of Anesthesia and Perioperative Care at the University of California, San Francisco. She is an intensive care physician-scientist focused on the basic and translational science of sepsis and inflammatory critical illness. She directs the UCSF Anesthesia Research Training Program, including the Research Scholars Track of the Anesthesia Residency, and has mentored numerous anesthesiologist research trainees. She has served on NIH and other grant-review panels, including as a full-time member of an NIH study section. She is committed to training the next generation of researchers in anesthesiology and the perioperative sciences and is highly enthusiastic about serving on the eSAS Advisory Council.
Dr. George Mashour, MD, PhD is Vice Dean for Faculty and the Edward F. Domino Collegiate Professor of Neuroscience at the University of Michigan Medical School, where he is also Professor of Anesthesiology and of Pharmacology. He is an NIH-funded neuroscientist who studies consciousness, mechanisms of anesthetic-induced unconsciousness, and neurologic outcomes of surgery. He chaired the Department of Anesthesiology from 2019 to 2024, founded the Center for Consciousness Science, and previously directed the Michigan Institute for Clinical and Health Research. He is a past President of the Association of University Anesthesiologists and a past President of the Society for Neuroscience in Anesthesiology and Critical Care. He is a committed mentor and remains enthusiastic about the mission of eSAS.
Dr. Harriet Hopf, MD is Professor and Executive Director of Faculty Development and Academic Affairs in the Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Adjunct Professor of Biomedical Engineering, and Co-Director of the Utah Coaching and Advancement Network at the University of Utah. She is a past Chair of the FAER Board of Directors, a past President of the University of Utah Academic Senate, and the 2026 recipient of the Association of University Anesthesiologists Leadership Advisory Board Mentoring Award. Her career has focused on mentoring, faculty development, surgical-site infection prevention, and gender equity in academic medicine. She received the FAER Mentoring Excellence in Research Award in 2013 and the University of Utah’s Linda K. Amos Award for Distinguished Service to Women in 2017.