2025 Speakers
The ASURA 2025 committee is proud to announce the 2025 Keynote Congress speakers.
Keynote speakers
Doctor Maggie Holtz
Dr Maggie Holtz is a Board Certified Anesthesiologist with a focus in Regional Anesthesia. Having started her career in academics, first at Emory and then at Yale, she is now part of WellStar Medical Group in suburban Atlanta, where she serves as Medical Director of Regional Anesthesia for WellStar’s 11-hospital system. At WellStar’s flagship Level 1 Trauma Center, Dr Holtz has spent the last decade expanding the Regional Service to become an integral part of enhanced recovery protocols. She was also instrumental in the transition to same-day surgery total joint replacement and opening of a new outpatient total joint facility within the system. As the Anesthesiology representative to the Total Joint Committee, Dr Holtz played a critical role in two of WellStar’s sites receiving the prestigious Advanced Certification status from the Joint Commission.
Dr Holtz is passionate about teaching regional anesthesia. She was awarded the medical student teaching award while on Anesthesiology faculty at the Yale School of Medicine in 2011. From 2018 through 2021, she served as faculty for the New York School of Regional Anesthesia (NYSORA) boutique workshops. She also began teaching at state society anesthesia meetings, national subspecialty meetings such as SAMBA and ASER, and at personalized workshops with individual practices and hospitals.
Dr Holtz joined the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine (ASRA) as faculty in 2021, and is a regular lecturer and workshop proctor at the spring meetings. She also had the honor of lecturing at the 2023 World Congress in Paris. Dr Holtz is passionate about bringing the private practice perspective to ASRA Pain Medicine: she founded the ASRA Private Practice SIG in 2021 and served as its first Chair. She also participates in consulting, which affords her the opportunity to speak across the country on opioid minimization and enhanced recovery after surgery.
In her spare time, Dr Holtz enjoys traveling and spending time with her two kids and two dogs. She is an avid college football fan and WWII enthusiast.
Professor Amit Pawa
Dr Amit Pawa is a Consultant Anaesthetist and Lead for
Regional Anaesthesia at Guy’s & St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, & also works at Cleveland Clinic, London where he is a Clinical Professor of Anesthesiology (Interim) at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University.
He is also an Honorary Senior Lecturer at King’s College London.
Dr Pawa is an Ultrasound Guided Regional Anaesthesia (UGRA) enthusiast and was the first ever fellow in Regional Anaesthesia at Guy’s & St Thomas’. He holds the ESRA European Diploma in Regional Anaesthesia (EDRA).
Additionally, Dr Pawa has been: President of the London Society for Regional Anaesthesia (LSORA) ands President of RA-UK, as well as a council member of the European Society of Regional Anaesthesia (ESRA).
Dr Pawa has created a series of Ultrasound Regional Anaesthesia Video tutorials on YouTube, and has an active social media profile and uses his X account to help share knowledge of Regional Anaesthesia, the occasional Dad Joke, and a few of his attempts at poetry! His most recent project has been creating a Regional Anaesthesia Podcast called “Block It Like It’s Hot”.
He has numerous publications in regional anaesthesia covering General Anaesthesia-Free Breast Surgery and fascial plane blocks, and has authored numerous review articles, editorials, guidelines and Delphi consensus projects on aspects of regional anaesthesia.
Associate Professor Nadia Hernandez
Dr Nadia Hernandez is a texas-born and raised, NYC-trained Regional and Acute Pain Specialist. Trauma Anaesthesiologist at the busiest trauma center in the US with a special interest in point-of-care ultrasound use in the perioperative setting.
Dr Hernandez created the Regional Anesthesia and Acute Pain Fellowship training program at UTHealth in 2016. She transformed the Regional and Acute Pain Service at Memorial Hermann Hospital into a nationally renowned inpatient pain management service.
Dr Hernandez is a distinguished educator that wins teaching awards yearly and is a well-published clinical researcher who
focuses on innovative techniques for inpatient acute cancer and traumatic pain management.
She has contributed to
many expert consensus studies on Regional Anesthesia and Point of Care Ultrasound. She has given over 100 national and internation lectures and has lectures on every continent in the world. She is internationally known as a dynamic speaker and educator for diagnostic and procedural point-of-care
ultrasound, inpatient acute pain management and regional anaesthesia.
Acknowledgment of Country
We acknowledge and pay our respects to the Nipaluna people, the traditional owners of the Hobart region where ASURA2025 will be hosted. The Nipaluna people have a deep, spiritual connection to the land and are responsible for ensuring it is respected by all that use it.
We commit to respecting the land, people and culture of the Nipaluna Nation during the conference, and at all times.