Tell us a bit about your background. How did you get started in health research?     

A desire to affect the lives of people I’d never meet. This drove me to a Master of Public Health (MPH) and medical doctor (MD) degree, and to designing clinical trials and cohort studies. 

What drives you to do the work you do?  

See above. Desire to reduce health challenges and provide care to those in need. 

Is there something memorable about your career you wish to share?  

See Every Deep-Drawn Breath.

How has your experience in research impacted your views regarding the pandemic?  

A desire to expand the use of our research tools to help uncover answers for both acute COVID and long COVID. 

What drew you to long COVID research?  

See above. Additionally, the awareness that people with long COVID are too often discounted by those in the medical profession and society. These are people in need of answers and loving compassionate care. 

What most excites you about joining the Kindred for the January Kindred Café?   

The opportunity to learn and join in community with those involved. 

What would you like to discuss with the Kindred network?  

I'm open to any conversations and topics that they value and prioritize. 

Last question: Just wondering, did you have any childhood heroes?  

My mentors: coaches, farmers, teachers, and spiritual leaders. Public figures who showed me a way include Mahatma Gandhi, Walt Whitman, the Ecclesiastes author, St. Francis of Assisi, and St. Teresa of Avila (the latter two because of their bad-ass way of going against the grain centuries ago). 

Is there anything else you’d like to share?  

I'm appreciative of the opportunity to learn and grow and change. 

E. Wesley Ely, MD, MPH, is an internist, pulmonologist, and critical care physician. Dr. Ely earned his MD at Tulane University School of Medicine, in conjunction with a Masters in Public Health. He serves as the Grant W. Liddle endowed chair in medicine and is a physician-scientist and tenured Professor at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. He's also the Associate Director of aging research for the Tennessee Valley Veteran’s Affairs Geriatric Research Education Clinical Center (GRECC) in Nashville, Tennessee. He's the founder and co-director of the Critical Illness, Brain Dysfunction, and Survivorship (CIBS) Center, and a pioneer in the investigation of delirium and long-term cognitive outcomes, including dementia, in survivors of critical illness. Dr. Ely is the author of Every Deep-Drawn Breath, from which he’s donating 100% net proceeds to help COVID survivors and family members rebuild their lives.