Welcome from Program Leadership

Message from the Chair

We welcome you into a collaborative environment that champions diversity and inclusion and reflects our community in Northeast Ohio.

The Anesthesiology Family at MetroHeath is committed to providing an exceptional quality of care to the members of our community, regardless of their financial circumstances.

We share this mission with the entire team at MetroHealth, and, as a result of this focus, significant investment is being made on our main campus and across the enterprise.

Today, we operate a Level 1 Trauma Center as well as a regional burn center and are in the final stages of completing a $1B capital improvement that will include a new, state-of-the-art inpatient tower.

As a resident, you will benefit from working alongside our outstanding clinicians while leveraging the latest technological advances in medicine today. 

The residency training program in the MetroHealth Department of Anesthesiology offers a wealth of opportunities for research, clinical expertise and leadership.

Our affiliation with the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine increases those possibilities and underscores the quality of education and training you will receive as a member of our residency program. 

On behalf of our residents and faculty, I hope you will find our program’s mission, tradition and future vision as inspiring as we do.

We’re proud of the work we do, the service we provide to our community and the care we deliver to those in need. We look forward to welcoming you as a member of the MetroHealth Department of Anesthesiology team.

Luis E. Tollinche, MD
Chair, Department of Anesthesiology

From the Program Director

I am very pleased to be the Program Director of such a wonderful and dynamic residency program. At MetroHealth Medical Center, we have a group of fine resident physicians who inspire me and our entire faculty.

I enjoy working closely with them and helping them to achieve their goals. My main goal as Program Director is to ensure that our residency program provides the best educational experience possible.

The Department of Anesthesiology helps our residents accomplish their professional goals. We offer the guidance and the support they need to take the next step beyond residency. On the way to striving for their goals, they become consultants in anesthesiology.

Augusto J. Torres, MD
Director, Anesthesiology Residency Program, The MetroHealth System
Assistant Professor, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine

From Our Chief Residents

Welcome to MetroHealth’s Department of Anesthesiology Residency Program. Located in Cleveland, Ohio, MetroHealth offers exceptional clinical training. It is home to Cuyahoga County’s most experienced Level 1 Adult Trauma Center and is Ohio’s only Trauma and Burn Center serving both adult and pediatric patients. Additionally, MetroHealth is a center for high-risk obstetric care and is a designated Center of Excellence by the SOAP (Society of Obstetric Anesthesia and Perinatology). Aside from rotations at MetroHealth, our residents rotate at the Cleveland Clinic and Cleveland’s Veteran’s Affairs Hospital. There is also an option to rotate with our Metro Life Flight department. The Glick Center is our new, state-of-the-art billion-dollar hospital opened in 2022. It offers modern, aesthetically pleasing, and functional facilities for our patients, their families, and staff.

At MetroHealth, more than 25,000 cases are performed every year. These include high-volume trauma, cardiothoracic, vascular, ambulatory, high-risk obstetric, pediatric, and non-OR anesthesia (NORA). There are also robust acute pain and chronic pain services. Every anesthesia resident contributes to over 400 cases annually. Since there are no anesthesia fellows, our residents participate in fellowship-level cases and easily meet the ACGME minimum requirements for all case types. The hospital is affiliated with the Case Western Reserve University, a regional and national leader in innovation and bio-medical research.

In addition to the diversity of cases that residents participate in, continuing education is another priority of our program. There is protected time for lectures, departmental grand rounds, morbidity and mortality conferences, SIM lab experiences, and oral board preparation. The Anesthesia Department’s commitment to resident education is evident by our high pass rate on national board exams. The research department is thriving and allows residents opportunities to be involved in multi-center randomized controlled trials, manuscript writing and editing, case reports and other research-centered activities. Our graduates secure competitive fellowships and impressive placements in private or academic practice across the country from coast to coast.

The Anesthesiology Department is comprised of 8 residents per year, anesthetists (both CRNAs and AAs), and board-certified anesthesiologists from all subspecialties. Each incoming class is comprised of 4 categorical residents and 4 advanced residents. Residents are all supported by a robust mentorship program involving other anesthesia residents and multiple attendings.

Other fantastic benefits to our program include catered lunch twice a week for our residents, a generous meal stipend to spend at our cafeteria, and a $7500 USD education fund (can be used for textbooks, digital technology, equipment, and attendance at local, state, national, and international anesthesiology conferences).

Finally, Cleveland is a hidden gem city. It offers affordable living on the Great Lakes, the second largest theater district in the country, a nationally renowned orchestra, numerous museums, three professional sports teams, countless festivals, nationally awarded state parks, and some of the best breweries in the country! All this is present in the city of the Rock & Roll Hall of fame and is just a few hours drive from other major cities and attractions. As Cleveland continues to thrive, residents are provided with a great living opportunity that exceeds expectations! For more information, see Living in Cleveland.

Thank you for your interest in MetroHealth and Cleveland. Please contact us with any questions or for additional information on life as a MetroHealth Resident. We hope to meet you soon.

Jhovan Kepple, MD
Chief Resident

Laura Varghese, MD
Chief Resident