Torben K Becker

Torben K Becker, MD, PhD, MBA, RDMS, FAWM, FAEMS, FCCM

Associate Professor; Executive Director – Emergency Medicine | UF Health Critical Care Organization; Chief – Division Of Critical Care Medicine & Director – Section Of Global Health | Department Of Emergency Medicine

Department: Department of Emergency Medicine
Business Phone: (352) 733-1475

About Torben K Becker

Torben K. Becker, MD, PhD, MBA, RDMS, FAWM, FAEMS, FCCM is board-certified in Emergency Medicine, Critical Care Medicine, and Emergency Medical Services (EMS; prehospital medicine).

Dr. Becker completed his medical degree and a PhD in Biomedical Sciences at the University of Heidelberg Medical School in Germany. He completed an emergency medicine residency and ultrasound fellowship-in-residency at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Mich. He then completed fellowship training in critical care medicine, ECMO, and clinical research at the University of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, Pa., followed by an additional fellowship in emergency medical services at the University of Florida. Dr. Becker also holds a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Tennessee – Knoxville.

At the University of Florida, Dr. Becker is an Associate Professor in the Department of Emergency Medicine in the College of Medicine. He holds affiliate faculty appointments in the Department of Environmental & Global Health (College of Public Health and Health Professions) and in the UF Center for African Studies (College of Liberal Arts and Sciences).

Dr. Becker is the Executive Director – Emergency Medicine of the UF Health Critical Care Organization. He also serves as the Co-Director of the UF Health Clinical Ethics Consultation Service.

In the Department of Emergency Medicine, Dr. Becker is the Chief of the Division of Critical Care Medicine and the Director of the Section of Global Health. He serves as the Program Director of the Global Emergency Medicine Fellowship and Associate Program Director of the EMS Fellowship. He also directs the Emergency Department’s extracorporeal CPR program.

In addition to his departmental and health system roles, Dr. Becker is the Medical Director of the Critical Care Division of Alachua County Fire Rescue (ACFR).

Dr. Becker is a member of over a dozen professional and scientific societies. He is a Fellow of the Academy of Emergency Medical Services (FAEMS), a Fellow of the Academy of Wilderness Medicine (FAWM), and a Fellow of the American College of Critical Care Medicine (FCCM). He is a federally-funded investigator and he has authored more than 75 scientific peer-reviewed manuscripts. He has received regional and national awards for his research and academic work.

Related Links:
Additional Positions:
Chair – Emergency Medicine Section
2023 – Current · Society of Critical Care Medicine
Chair-Elect
2023 – Current · Global Emergency Medicine Fellowship Consortium
Director – Extracorporeal Resuscitation Service
2023 – Current · Department of Emergency Medicine
Program Director – Global Emergency Medicine Fellowship
2019 – Current · Department of Emergency Medicine
Associate Program Director – EMS Fellowship
2018 – Current · Department of Emergency Medicine
Director of Prehospital Research
2018 – Current · Department of Emergency Medicine
Medical Director – Critical Care
2018 – Current · Alachua County Fire Rescue
Director – Cardiac Arrest Programs
2018 – Current · Department of Emergency Medicine

Accomplishments

Presidential Citation
2023 · Society of Critical Care Medicine
Presidential Citation
2022 · Society of Critical Care Medicine
International Educator of the Year – Junior Faculty, College of Medicine
2021 · UF International Center
Presidential Citation
2021 · Society of Critical Care Medicine
Presidential Citation
2020 · Society of Critical Care Medicine
Physician of the Year
2019 · Alachua County Fire Rescue
Best International Ultrasound Research
2018 · Academy of Emergency Ultrasound – Society of Academic Emergency Medicine
Physician of the Year
2018 · Alachua County Fire Rescue
Fellow of the Year
2016 · Department of Critical Care Medicine – University of Pittsburgh
Resident Scholarship Award
2015 · Department of Emergency Medicine – University of Michigan
Resident of the Year
2014 · Emergency Medicine Residents' Association

Board Certifications

  • Basic Perioperative Transesophageal Echocardiography (Testamur)
    National Board of Echocardiography
  • Emergency Medical Services
    American Board of Emergency Medicine
  • Emergency Medicine
    American Board of Emergency Medicine
  • IM-Critical Care Medicine
    American Board of Emergency Medicine
  • Registered Diagnostic Medical Sonographer
    American Registry for Diagnostic Medical Sonography

Clinical Profile

Specialties
  • Emergency Medicine
Subspecialties
  • Critical Care Medicine
Areas of Interest
  • Cardiac arrest
  • Echocardiogram
  • Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation
  • Ultrasound

Research Profile

A list of my peer-reviewed publications is available here: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/myncbi/1DSdfkrHUNs5M/bibliography/public/

Open Researcher and Contributor ID (ORCID)

0000-0002-5287-8056

Areas of Interest
  • Cardiac arrest
  • Global Health
  • Handheld ultrasound

Publications

2024
Arterial graft cannulation for extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation
Intensive Care Medicine. [DOI] 10.1007/s00134-024-07342-6.
2024
Barriers to Decolonizing Global Health: Identification of Research Challenges Facing Investigators Residing in Low- and Middle-Income Countries.
Global health, science and practice. 12(1) [DOI] 10.9745/GHSP-D-23-00269. [PMID] 38242635.
2024
Development and evaluation of a clinical guideline for a paediatric telemedicine service in a low-resource setting.
BMJ paediatrics open. 8(1) [DOI] 10.1136/bmjpo-2023-002164. [PMID] 38191203.
2024
Small ventilation bags and cardiac arrest outcomes – Not so fast
Resuscitation. 194 [DOI] 10.1016/j.resuscitation.2023.110083.
2023
Application of deep hypothermic circulatory arrest in open left chest aortic aneurysm repair.
The Journal of thoracic and cardiovascular surgery. 165(4):1275-1280 [DOI] 10.1016/j.jtcvs.2021.03.080. [PMID] 33934896.
2023
Emergency care interventions for paediatric severe acute respiratory infections in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review and narrative synthesis.
Journal of global health. 13 [DOI] 10.7189/jogh.13.04065. [PMID] 37288550.
2023
Evaluating the prerequisites for adapting a paediatric nighttime telemedicine and medication delivery service to a setting with high malarial burden: A cross‐sectional pre‐implementation study
Tropical Medicine & International Health. 28(9):763-770 [DOI] 10.1111/tmi.13921.
2023
Implementation of a Pediatric Telemedicine and Medication Delivery Service in a Resource-limited Setting: A Pilot Study for Clinical Safety and Feasibility.
The Journal of pediatrics. 257 [DOI] 10.1016/j.jpeds.2022.12.005. [PMID] 36528053.
2023
Out of hospital extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation: Maybe.
European journal of emergency medicine : official journal of the European Society for Emergency Medicine. 30(5):311-312 [DOI] 10.1097/MEJ.0000000000001058. [PMID] 37598349.
2022
A Nighttime Telemedicine and Medication Delivery Service to Avert Pediatric Emergencies in Haiti: An Exploratory Cost-Effectiveness Analysis.
The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene. 106(4):1063-1071 [DOI] 10.4269/ajtmh.21-1068. [PMID] 35189597.
2022
A systematic review of acute and emergency care interventions for adolescents and adults with severe acute respiratory infections including COVID-19 in low- and middle-income countries.
Journal of global health. 12 [DOI] 10.7189/jogh.12.05039. [PMID] 36342777.
2022
Cardiac Arrest – An interdisciplinary scoping review of preclinical literature from 2020
Journal of Pre-Clinical and Clinical Research. 16(2):45-53 [DOI] 10.26444/jpccr/150030.
2022
Cardiac arrest: An interdisciplinary scoping review of clinical literature from 2020.
Journal of the American College of Emergency Physicians open. 3(4) [DOI] 10.1002/emp2.12773. [PMID] 35845142.
2022
Global emergency medicine: A scoping review of the literature from 2021
Academic Emergency Medicine. 29(10):1264-1274 [DOI] 10.1111/acem.14575.
2022
Medication-Facilitated Advanced Airway Management with First-Line Use of a Supraglottic Device – A One-Year Quality Assurance Review.
Prehospital and disaster medicine. 37(4):561-565 [DOI] 10.1017/S1049023X22000802. [PMID] 35587719.
2022
Review of novel therapeutics in cardiac arrest (ReNTICA): systematic review protocol.
BMJ open. 12(1) [DOI] 10.1136/bmjopen-2021-053304. [PMID] 34980619.
2022
Unrecognized cardiac arrests: A one-year review of audio from emergency medical dispatch calls.
The American journal of emergency medicine. 54:127-130 [DOI] 10.1016/j.ajem.2022.01.068. [PMID] 35152122.
2021
A descriptive analysis of cross-sectional imaging findings in patients after non-traumatic sudden cardiac arrest.
Resuscitation plus. 5 [DOI] 10.1016/j.resplu.2021.100077. [PMID] 34223343.
2021
Global Emergency Medicine: A Review of the Literature From 2019
Academic Emergency Medicine. 28(1):117-128 [DOI] 10.1111/acem.14107.
2021
Global emergency medicine: A scoping review of the literature from 2020
Academic Emergency Medicine. 28(11):1328-1340 [DOI] 10.1111/acem.14356.
2021
High-throughput low-cost nl-qPCR for enteropathogen detection: A proof-of-concept among hospitalized patients in Bangladesh.
PloS one. 16(10) [DOI] 10.1371/journal.pone.0257708. [PMID] 34597302.
2021
The effects of mobile health on emergency care in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review and narrative synthesis.
Journal of global health. 11 [DOI] 10.7189/jogh.11.04023. [PMID] 33828846.
2021
Ultra-early serum concentrations of neuronal and astroglial biomarkers predict poor neurological outcome after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest-a pilot neuroprognostic study.
Resuscitation plus. 7 [DOI] 10.1016/j.resplu.2021.100133. [PMID] 34223394.
2021
White Paper on Early Critical Care Services in Low Resource Settings.
Annals of global health. 87(1) [DOI] 10.5334/aogh.3377. [PMID] 34786353.
2020
Cardiac arrest: An interdisciplinary review of the literature from 2018
Resuscitation. 148:66-82 [DOI] 10.1016/j.resuscitation.2019.12.030.
2020
Cardiac arrest: An interdisciplinary scoping review of the literature from 2019.
Resuscitation plus. 4 [DOI] 10.1016/j.resplu.2020.100037. [PMID] 34223314.
2020
Patient, Neighborhood, and Spatial Determinants of Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest Outcomes Throughout the Chain of Survival: A Community-Oriented Multilevel Analysis.
Prehospital emergency care. 24(3):307-318 [DOI] 10.1080/10903127.2019.1640324. [PMID] 31287347.
2020
Physician perception of targeted temperature management after cardiac arrest: An underappreciated barrier?
Resuscitation. 157:174-175 [DOI] 10.1016/j.resuscitation.2020.10.014.
2020
Prehospital point-of-care ultrasound: A transformative technology.
SAGE open medicine. 8 [DOI] 10.1177/2050312120932706. [PMID] 32782792.
2020
Risk and ROSC – Legal implications of bystander CPR.
Resuscitation. 151:99-102 [DOI] 10.1016/j.resuscitation.2020.03.017. [PMID] 32259608.
2020
The state of emergency medical technician education in Ghana.
African journal of emergency medicine : Revue africaine de la medecine d'urgence. 10(3):107-110 [DOI] 10.1016/j.afjem.2020.01.009. [PMID] 32923318.
2019
A case of refractory ventricular fibrillation successfully treated with low-dose esmolol.
BMJ case reports. 12(3) [DOI] 10.1136/bcr-2018-228208. [PMID] 30852502.
2019
Bystander Assistance for Trauma Victims in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Review of Prevalence and Training Interventions.
Prehospital emergency care. 23(3):389-410 [DOI] 10.1080/10903127.2018.1513104. [PMID] 30141702.
2019
Global Emergency Medicine: A Review of the Literature from 2018
Academic Emergency Medicine. 26(10):1186-1196 [DOI] 10.1111/acem.13832.
2019
Paramedic determination of appropriate emergency department destination.
The American journal of emergency medicine. 37(3):482-485 [DOI] 10.1016/j.ajem.2018.06.024. [PMID] 29933895.
2019
Public perception towards bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation
Emergency Medicine Journal. 36(11):660-665 [DOI] 10.1136/emermed-2018-208234.
2018
An assessment of ventilation and perfusion markers in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest patients receiving mechanical CPR with endotracheal or supraglottic airways.
Resuscitation. 122:61-64 [DOI] 10.1016/j.resuscitation.2017.11.054. [PMID] 29175355.
2018
Feasibility of Paramedic Performed Prehospital Lung Ultrasound in Medical Patients with Respiratory Distress
Prehospital Emergency Care. 22(2):175-179 [DOI] 10.1080/10903127.2017.1358783.
2018
Global Emergency Medicine: A Review of the Literature From 2017.
Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine. 25(11):1287-1298 [DOI] 10.1111/acem.13456. [PMID] 29791967.
2018
Military trainees can accurately measure optic nerve sheath diameter after a brief training session.
Military Medical Research. 5(1) [DOI] 10.1186/s40779-018-0189-y. [PMID] 30572931.
2018
Parasitic infections in the intensive care unit.
Anaesthesia and intensive care. 46(5):546-548 [PMID] 30189830.
2018
Performance of Prehospital Emergency Anesthesia and Airway Management. An Online Survey
Anaesthesist. 67(9):654-663 [DOI] 10.1007/s00101-018-0466-x.
2018
Respiratory failure requiring mechanical ventilation in critically ill adults in Ghana: A prospective observational study.
African journal of emergency medicine : Revue africaine de la medecine d'urgence. 8(4):155-157 [DOI] 10.1016/j.afjem.2018.08.001. [PMID] 30534520.
2018
Skill and knowledge retention after training in cardiopulmonary ultrasound in Ghana: an impact assessment of bedside ultrasound training in a resource-limited setting
Emergency Medicine Journal. emermed-2018 [DOI] 10.1136/emermed-2018-207716.
2017
Bystander Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation: A Civic Duty.
The American journal of bioethics : AJOB. 17(2):51-53 [DOI] 10.1080/15265161.2016.1265173. [PMID] 28112624.
2017
Cardiopulmonary ultrasound for critically ill adults improves diagnostic accuracy in a resource-limited setting: the AFRICA trial.
Tropical medicine & international health : TM & IH. 22(12):1599-1608 [DOI] 10.1111/tmi.12992. [PMID] 29072885.
2017
Case of steroid-responsive encephalopathy from hypoglycaemia.
BMJ case reports. 2017 [DOI] 10.1136/bcr-2017-221262. [PMID] 28838925.
2017
Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) as salvage treatment for pulmonary Echinococcus granulosus infection with acute cyst rupture.
International journal of infectious diseases : IJID : official publication of the International Society for Infectious Diseases. 64:47-49 [DOI] 10.1016/j.ijid.2017.09.001. [PMID] 28893673.
2017
Global Emergency Medicine: A Review of the Literature From 2016.
Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine. 24(9):1150-1160 [DOI] 10.1111/acem.13216. [PMID] 28474823.
2017
Impact of nutrition interventions on pediatric mortality and nutrition outcomes in humanitarian emergencies: A systematic review.
Tropical medicine & international health : TM & IH. 22(12):1464-1492 [DOI] 10.1111/tmi.12986. [PMID] 28992388.
2017
Novel Educational Concepts for Emergency Medicine
Notfall & Rettungsmedizin. 21(6):505-512 [DOI] 10.1007/s10049-017-0351-1.
2017
Sustainable Resuscitation Ultrasound Education in a Low-Resource Environment: The Kumasi Experience.
The Journal of emergency medicine. 52(5):723-730 [DOI] 10.1016/j.jemermed.2017.01.050. [PMID] 28284769.
2016
Don’t forget to ventilate during cardiopulmonary resuscitation with mechanical chest compression devices.
European journal of anaesthesiology. 33(8):553-6 [DOI] 10.1097/EJA.0000000000000426. [PMID] 26854661.
2016
Global Emergency Medicine: A Review of the Literature From 2015.
Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine. 23(10):1183-1191 [DOI] 10.1111/acem.12999. [PMID] 27146277.
2016
Should laryngeal tubes or masks be used for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest patients?
The American journal of emergency medicine. 34(4):749-50 [DOI] 10.1016/j.ajem.2016.01.033. [PMID] 26906331.
2016
Should we resuscitate or not-that is the question!
Journal of thoracic disease. 8(6):1053-6 [DOI] 10.21037/jtd.2016.04.24. [PMID] 27293817.
2016
The use of portable ultrasound devices in low- and middle-income countries: a systematic review of the literature.
Tropical medicine & international health : TM & IH. 21(3):294-311 [DOI] 10.1111/tmi.12657. [PMID] 26683523.
2015
A case of lithium toxicity with significant QT interval prolongatio
Notfall & Rettungsmedizin. 18(3):227-230
2015
A WINning Technique: The Wire-in-Needle Feasibility Study.
The Journal of emergency medicine. 49(5):785-91 [DOI] 10.1016/j.jemermed.2015.05.042. [PMID] 26281803.
2015
An educational measure to significantly increase critical knowledge regarding interfacility patient transfers.
Prehospital and disaster medicine. 30(3):244-8 [DOI] 10.1017/S1049023X15000266. [PMID] 25786539.
2015
Global emergency medicine: a review of the literature from 2014.
Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine. 22(8):976-84 [DOI] 10.1111/acem.12733.
2015
Global emergency medicine: a review of the literature from 2014.
Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine. 22(8):976-84 [DOI] 10.1111/acem.12733. [PMID] 26223901.
2015
Sichere Präoxygenierung zur Atemwegssicherung bei agitierten Notfallpatienten
. 40(2):81-83
2015
Statutes Governing Physician-Staffed Emergency Medical Service Vehicle Equipment in Germany
. 31:1-6
2015
The First Shot Is Often the Best Shot: First-Pass Intubation Success in Emergency Airway Management.
Anesthesia and analgesia. 121(5):1389-93 [DOI] 10.1213/ANE.0000000000000891. [PMID] 26484464.
2015
Update zur kardiopulmonalen Reanimation: Die neuen Guidelines
. 40(4):132-142
2014
Global emergency medicine: a review of the literature from 2013
Academic Emergency Medicine. 21(7):810-817 [DOI] 10.1111/acem.12414. [PMID] 25040254.
2013
Ethical challenges in Emergency Medical Services: controversies and recommendations.
Prehospital and disaster medicine. 28(5):488-97 [DOI] 10.1017/S1049023X13008728. [PMID] 23890578.
2013
Global Emergency Medicine: a review of the literature from 2012.
Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine. 20(8):835-43 [DOI] 10.1111/acem.12173. [PMID] 24033627.
2013
Prehospital airway management for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.
JAMA. 309(18) [DOI] 10.1001/jama.2013.3098. [PMID] 23652513.
2013
Society for Academic Emergency Medicine’s Global Emergency Medicine Academy: global health elective code of conduct.
Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine. 20(12):1319-20 [DOI] 10.1111/acem.12264. [PMID] 24341588.
2012
Experiences with a PDA-based documentation system in clinical research.
Journal of medical systems. 36(2):647-51 [DOI] 10.1007/s10916-010-9530-z. [PMID] 20703667.
2012
Global emergency medicine: a review of the literature from 2011.
Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine. 19(10):1196-203 [DOI] 10.1111/j.1553-2712.2012.01447.x. [PMID] 22994394.
2011
International emergency medicine: a review of the literature from 2009.
Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine. 18(1):86-92 [DOI] 10.1111/j.1553-2712.2010.00961.x. [PMID] 21182567.
2011
International emergency medicine: a review of the literature from 2010.
Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine. 18(8):872-9 [DOI] 10.1111/j.1553-2712.2011.01129.x. [PMID] 21790839.
2010
Drug-induced QT interval prolongation in cancer patients
. 4(4):223-232
2007
Introduction of a treatment algorithm can improve the early management of emergency patients in the resuscitation room.
Resuscitation. 73(3):362-73 [PMID] 17287064.

Education

MBA
2023 · University of Tennessee- Knoxville
Fellowship – Emergency Medical Services
2017-2018 · University of Florida
Fellowship – Critical Care Medicine, ECMO & Research
2015-2017 · University of Pittsburgh
Fellowship-in-Residency – Ultrasound
2013-2015 · University of Michigan
Residency – Emergency Medicine
2011-2015 · University of Michigan
Residency – Anesthesiology
2011 · University Hospital Mannheim
Internship
2009-2010 · University of Heidelberg Medical School
PhD – Biomedical Sciences
2005-2010 · University of Heidelberg
Medical School
2004-2010 · University of Heidelberg Medical School

Contact Details

Phones:
Business:
(352) 733-1475
Fellowship Program Coordinator, I:
Addresses:
Business Mailing:
PO Box 100186
GAINESVILLE FL 32610
Business Street:
Department of Emergency Medicine
1329 SW 16th Street, Suite 5270
Gainesville FL 32608