Faculty
University of Virginia Division of Medical Toxicology Faculty include:
Dr. Christopher Holstege (Chief), Dr. Nathan Charlton, Dr. Andy Baer, Dr. Justin Rizer.
Other instructors who contribute to the Fellowship include:
Dr. Carol Angle, Dr. Leonard Vance, Dr. Gregory B. Saathoff.
Christopher Holstege, MD, FAACT, FACMT
Chief, University of Virginia Division of Medical Toxicology
Director, Blue Ridge Poison Center
Dr. Holstege is a Professor with tenure in the Departments of Emergency Medicine and Pediatrics. He joined the University of Virginia faculty in 1999. In 2002, the Center for Clinical Toxicology was formally recognized under his guidance by the Dean of the School of Medicine with the goal of providing timely and comprehensive care for all poisoned patients. Dr. Holstege received the 2003 Award for Clinical Excellence from the School of Medicine for his work. He has also received the Outstanding Faculty Teaching Award from the emergency medicine residents in both 2001 and 2002. He was awarded the American College of Emergency Physicians’ prestigious National Faculty Teaching Award in 2002. He was inducted in the School of Medicine Academy of Distinguished Educators in 2010. He actively participates in the education of students and residents from multiple specialties and fields of health care. He lectures regionally and nationally. He has published over 200 articles, chapters, and abstracts in the medical literature, and is an editor or author of 10 books. He pursues research in a number of areas of toxicology and emergency medicine. He is actively involved in the realm of criminal poisoning and works closely with the Critical Incident Analysis Group (UVA). Dr. Holstege is board certified in both Emergency Medicine and Medical Toxicology.
Nathan Charlton, MD
Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine
Associate Medical Director, Blue Ridge Poison Center
Director, Medical Toxicology Fellowship Program
Director, Wilderness Medicine Education Program
Dr. Charlton is an Associate Professor in the Department of Emergency Medicine and serves as the Program Director for the UVA Medical Toxicology Fellowship. He is also Director of the Wilderness Medicine Education Program, an intensive 2 week training course for medical students, involving numerous experts in the region and taking full advantage of the unique placement of the University at the door of the Blue Ridge Mountains. His research interests are in wilderness medicine, serotonin syndrome, and first aid. He also serves as Associate Medical Director of the Blue Ridge Poison Center. Dr. Charlton completed his Medical Toxicology Fellowship at the University of Virginia and joined the faculty at the University of Virginia in 2009. He received his M.D. from The University of South Florida in Tampa, and completed his residency in emergency medicine at The University of South Carolina/Palmetto Health Richland in Columbia, S.C. He is board certified in both Emergency Medicine and Medical Toxicology.
Andy Baer, MD
Medical Toxicology Faculty
Dr. Baer is an Assistant Clinical Professor in the Department of Emergency Medicine. Dr. Baer graduated from the University of Virginia Medical Toxicology Fellowship in 2004. He also holds a full-time emergency medicine position at Rockingham Memorial Hospital in Harrisonburg. In 2004, he received the “Consultant of the Year” award from the University of Virginia Department of Emergency Medicine, recognizing his dedication as a consultant in toxicology. Dr. Baer’s interest and expertise in medical toxicology pertains to the visual diagnosis of toxicological diseases. He is board certified in both Emergency Medicine and Medical Toxicology.
Justin Rizer, MD
Medical Toxicology Faculty
Dr. Rizer is a Clinical Instructor in the Department of Emergency Medicine, Division of Medical Toxicology. He completed his Medical Toxicology fellowship in June 2018, following an Emergency Medicine residency at the University of Virginia. He received his medical doctorate from the University of South Florida School of Medicine. He is board certified in Emergency Medicine and board eligible in Medical Toxicology. He also holds a full-time emergency medicine position with Centra Medical Group in Lynchburg. Dr. Rizer’s interests include acute care and medical education.
Saumitra Rege, Ph.D
Saumitra Rege, Ph.D., is an epidemiologist with a particular interest in epidemiology related to substance diversion and abuse. Dr. Rege graduated from the University of Rhode Island in 2014 with a doctoral degree in pharmacoepidemiology and pharmacoeconomics. Dr. Rege has been recently focused on the application of epidemiological methods to study the patterns, determinants and control of substance misuse in adolescents and adults using state, national and international data. Dr. Rege also has been particularly involved in research within the student health population with a focus on alcohol and substance use as well as mental health issues in this population, conducting epidemiological studies using data linkage methods. Dr. Rege is a member of several national organizations including the International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research and the American College of Medical Toxicologists. Dr. Rege is the recipient of The Rufus A. Lyman Award, presented annually to the author(s) of the best paper published in the American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education.
Carol Angle, MD
Dr. Angle, a graduate of Wellesley and of Cornell Medical School, spent most of her professional career at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha where she served as chief of pediatric nephrology, director of the pediatric intensive care unit, chair of the department of pediatrics, and director of medical toxicology. Long term funding from NIH supported her studies on the mechanisms of heavy metal toxicity. She was the founding co-editor of Journal of Toxicology – Clinical Toxicology and editor-in-chief from 1987-2002. She is a fellow and a founder of the American College of Clinical Toxicology. Dr. Angle is also a founding member and a prior president of the American Association of Poison Control Centers. She was the recipient of the prestigious Matthew Ellenhorn Award in 2002. A Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at the University of Virginia Health Science Center since 2000, Dr. Angle continues as a toxicology consultant, reviewer and editor.
Leonard Vance, Ph.D., JD, PE, CIH, CSP, CHMM
Dr. Vance has served as a faculty member in the School of Medicine at MCV/VCU, as Director of Health Standards at the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and as an Assistant Attorney General of Virginia. He received his Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of Virginia. He is licensed in the Commonwealth as an attorney and as a Professional Engineer. Dr. Vance is a Certified Industrial Hygienist, Certified Safety Professional, and Certified Hazardous Materials Manager. His areas of interest and professional activity include chemical health and safety, asbestos, kepone, lead, and the law and regulation of chemicals. He has served on numerous federal committees, including federal carcinogen, asbestos, and risk assessment task forces. In Virginia, he has served on various state boards and legislative commissions. Dr. Vance remains active in the classroom as a professor teaching in the areas of law, ethics, public health, chemistry and industrial hygiene.
Gregory B. Saathoff, M.D.
Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine & Public Health Sciences
Dr. Saathoff serves as Executive Director of the University of Virginia’s Critical Incident Analysis Group (CIAG). In this capacity, he directs the operation of the group, which operates as a “ThinkNet” that provides multidisciplinary expertise in developing strategies that can prevent or mitigate the effects of critical incidents. Since 1996, Dr. Saathoff has served as the Conflict Resolution Specialist to the FBI’s Critical Incident Response Group. In this role, he consults with the Crisis Negotiation Unit and the National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime. During the Gulf War, Dr. Saathoff was called from reserve duty and deployed as a medical corps psychiatrist overseas, earning the Army Commendation Medal in 1991. Dr. Saathoff retired from the Army Reserves with the rank of Major. He has written The Negotiator’s Guide to Psychotropic Drugs for the FBI’s Crisis Negotiation Unit, and was a co-author of the FBI’s threat assessment monograph: The School Shooter. In addition to this, he has published in the areas of the personality disorders, police psychiatry, post-traumatic stress disorders, public response to weapons of mass destruction and biologic psychiatry.
Kristy Davis
Senior Industrial Hygienist
Kristy Davis is an Industrial Hygienist Supervisor in the UVA Office of Environmental Health and Safety. Kristy graduated with a B.S. from the University of California, Berkeley and obtained a Master’s in Public Health (MPH in Environmental, Occupational Health) from California State University, Fresno. Kristy’s interest and expertise in industrial hygiene is in the area of ventilation, indoor air quality, and the design of local exhaust ventilation for the purpose of controlling airborne contaminants in the work place. With nearly 18 years of experience in OEHS, she is intimately familiar with the work environment here at the University and has conducted multiple work place assessments. She is a Board Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH) through the American Board of Industrial Hygiene (ABIH) and a member of the American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA). She also serves as a member of the Health Advisory Board for Albemarle County Schools. Kristy partners with toxicology to provide education on environmental and occupational exposures.
Angela Holian
Doctor of Pharmacy
Dr. Holian earned her Bachelor of Science degree from University of Tennessee Knoxville and Doctor of Pharmacy degree from University of Tennessee Health Science Center in Memphis, Tennessee. She completed her Pharmacy Practice Residency at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville and served there as a Clinical Assistant Professor in Pharmacotherapy before coming to UVA in 2010. She is board certified in Pharmacotherapy and is part of the UVA Emergency Department where she practices as an Emergency Medicine Clinical Pharmacist. She also serves as a Clinical Assistant Professor at VCU School of Pharmacy and enjoys training medical and pharmacy students and residents in Emergency Medicine. Angela is a member of the American College of Medical Toxicology and the American Academy of Clinical Toxicology and has a special interest in medical toxicology.