Gary M. Vilke, MD

Gary M. Vilke, MD, is a board-certified emergency medicine physician. He is the clinical service chief of Emergency Medicine at UC San Diego Health and co-medical director of the Emergency Departments in Hillcrest and La Jolla, where he oversees the care for people with acute illnesses and injuries. Dr. Vilke's expertise includes evaluation, immediate decision making and treatment to prevent further harm or disability in patients.

Dr. Vilke enjoys being able to care for patients seeking medical help often at one the toughest times in their lives. He also embraces the opportunity to help ease pain, improve medical ailments and offer emotional support.

In addition to patient care, Dr. Vilke is the medical director of Risk Management at UC San Diego Health and serves on numerous hospital committees. He also serves as the medical director of the Carlsbad Fire Department and AirLink Air Ambulance.

As a professor in the Department of Emergency Medicine, Dr. Vilke instructs medical students, residents and fellows at UC San Diego School of Medicine. Within the department, he is the director of Clinical Research and leads several large, multi-center clinical trials funded by the National Institute of Health (NIH), including the Resuscitation Outcomes Consortium which studies out-of-hospital cardiac arrest and severe traumatic injury.

Dr. Vilke's research focuses on prehospital care, cardiac arrest and the delivery of medical services for law enforcement, also known as tactical medicine. He is interested in the use of tasers, restraints, neck holds and pepper spray. Dr. Vilke has coauthored over 60 book chapters and 200 articles, and his work has appeared in Resuscitation, The New England Journal of Medicine, JAMA, and Annals of Emergency Medicine, among others. He is also on the editorial board for four major medical journals and reviews for 15 journals.

Dr. Vilke completed a residency in emergency medicine at UC San Diego School of Medicine, where he also earned his medical degree. He is board certified in emergency medicine, and is a fellow of the American College of Emergency Physicians (FACEP) and the American Academy of Emergency Medicine (FAAEM).

He is consistently elected as a top doctor in San Diego Magazine's "Physicians of Exceptional Excellence" annual survey performed in collaboration with the San Diego County Medical Society.

UC San Diego Health Links
For more information, see Emergency Services.