Dr. Sara Culligan and Dr. Emmett Culligan are both anesthesiologists who live on Columbine Road and have two children, Lachlan 4 and William, 3. The both completed their residencies at Stanford University.  Both were drawn to the profession with the desire to make a positive impact on patients. Sara says, "Medicine combined my interest in human biology with the opportunity to make a real difference in people’s lives."

As a general anesthesiologist she enjoys the variety and is able to dabble in all of the different surgeries. "Choosing anesthesiology as a specialty was a process of elimination for me," she says. I discovered I liked the acute management of the patient, dealing with the whole patient rather than only a specific organ systems, and no clinic. "I love the people I work with. I think the interpersonal relationships is what makes work enjoyable and worthwhile."

The Culligans have a time management hurdle in the early morning. "It is interesting to be an anesthesiologist and also married to an anesthesiologist. Our biggest scheduling issue is how to manage the mornings," Sara says. "Since we both have to leave for work at 6 a.m. we depend on a nanny to help during that time. Otherwise, we try to make sure to never be on call on the same evenings. Fortunately, we currently have jobs that have fairly flexible schedules to help us."

What do Sara and Emmett do to relax? "I have been running a lot lately as my hobby to unwind. Asheville and all of the wonderful outdoors it has to offer has made me a huge fan of trail running. Emmett Culligan unwinds with a round of golf.

"I have a wide variety of responses from patients when I consent them for anesthesia. Most don’t know or care too much about what I do. For those who are scared of anesthesia, I typically tailor my response according to their personality. I acknowledge their fears and reassure them it is normal to be afraid. Depending on the patient, I reassure them with facts. Some patients would prefer not to know, however. I sometimes try to offer patients options to help them feel like they have some control or involvement over the situation and their care (e.g. pre-op relaxation). It really is so dependent how I respond according to each patient’s personality." —Dr. Sara Culligan