Paul E. Wischmeyer, MD
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My unique expertise is utilizing innovative and integrative interventions to improve patients' lives before and after illness.
– Paul E. Wischmeyer, MD

Paul E. Wischmeyer, MD

Anesthesiologist, Critical Care Specialist

Duke Health Provider question
Where I See Patients
Duke University Hospital - Durham, NC
Board Certified
American Board of Anesthesiology, General Anesthesiology
My unique expertise is utilizing innovative and integrative interventions to improve patients' lives before and after illness.
– Paul E. Wischmeyer, MD

About Me

I am a perioperative, critical care, and nutrition physician focused on patient care and research to help patients prepare for and recover from surgery and major or critical illnesses. My unique expertise is utilizing innovative and integrative interventions such as nutrition and exercise to improve patients’ lives before and after illness. We in medicine have improved at treating disease, but we now must also ensure we restore patients’ qualities of life, so we are creating survivors, not victims, with our care. My passion for helping patients recover from illness arises from my personal experiences as both doctor and patient. Since childhood I have undergone numerous surgeries and personally experienced multiple hospital and ICU stays due to a childhood gastrointestinal illness with inflammatory bowel disease that took a large part of my intestinal tract. My hobbies include exercise and nutrition as a way of life and I even worked my way through medical school as a personal trainer. My personal experiences have made preparation and recovery from illness and family-centered ICU care a personal way of life that I am passionate about teaching patients and other caregivers worldwide.

School of Medicine Departments and Divisions
Current Appointments and Affiliations
Languages I Speak
English

Training and Education

Board Certification
American Board of Anesthesiology, General Anesthesiology
Fellowship
Clinical Pharmacology, University of Chicago (Illinois), 2000-2001
Critical Care, University of Chicago (Illinois), 2000-2001
Residency
Internship, Pediatrics, University of Colorado Children's Hospital, 1996-1997
Anesthesiology and Critical Care, University of Chicago Hospital (Illinois), 1997-2000
Education
MD, University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine (Illinois), 1996
Certificate in Clinical Research Science (NIH K30), University of Chicago (Illinois), 2001

Clinical Focus and Research

My Research Interests

My role as Perioperative Research Director for the Duke Clinical Research Institute includes the study of treatments to improve preparation and recovery from surgery, major illness, and critical care. Essentially, putting real science into how we improve patients lives with interventions such as nutrition and exercise. My work focuses on the goal to make it understandable and usable for patients so they can apply it simply to their lives and recovery. This work includes NIH and Privately funded research focused on the role of nutrition, exercise, the microbiome, probiotics, and other nutrition-related interventions such as protein delivery and sports nutrition to improve outcome and quality of life following acute/chronic illnesses. This also includes work on what can we learn from athletes that can help patients recover their strength and quality of life following illness. My works spans the entire range of translational research from basic laboratory studies to large multi-center randomized controlled clinical trials. I have over 125 publications in scientific journals, including the New England Journal of Medicine and I have given over 600 invited lectures worldwide.

Publications and Grants

Insurance Accepted

Duke Health contracts with most major health insurance carriers and transplant networks, including the ones listed below.

    • Aetna Choice POS, Aetna Choice POS II
    • Aetna Elect Choice HMO, Aetna Open Access Elect Choice
    • Aetna Health Network Only, Aetna Health Network Option
    • Aetna HMO
    • Aetna Limited Benefit Insurance PPO
    • Aetna Managed Choice POS
    • Aetna Medicare Assure Plan (HMO D-SNP)
    • Aetna Medicare Eagle Plan (PPO)
    • Aetna Medicare Essential Plan (PPO)
    • Aetna Medicare Value Plan (HMO)
    • Aetna Open Access HMO, Open Access Aetna Select, Aetna Open Access Managed Choice
    • Aetna Open Choice PPO
    • Aetna PCP Coordinated POS Plan
    • Aetna Quality Point of Service (QPOS)
    • Aetna Select HMO
    • Aetna Traditional Choice
    • Aetna Voluntary Indemnity Group Plan
    • Aetna Whole Health – Duke WakeMed WKCC
    • Aetna/CVS Health
    • Ambetter of North Carolina
    • Blue Advantage
    • Blue Medicare (HMO, PPO)*
    • Blue Options (123, PPO, HSA)
    • Blue Select
    • NC State Employees Health Plan
    • *Duke HomeCare and Hospice does not participate in the plan.

    • Cigna Behavioral Health (*Limited eligibility)
    • Cigna Choice Plus
    • Cigna Connect Individual Family Plan
    • Cigna Open Access
    • Cigna Open Access Plus
    • *Please call Cigna Behavioral Heath to see if the provider is participating in your plan.

    • Duke Basic
    • Duke Select
    • Experience Health Medicare Advantage (HMO) Plan
  • Gateway Health Alliance
  • Healthgram
    • Humana Choice (PPO)
    • Humana Choice - Medicare Advantage (PPO)
    • Humana ChoiceCare - Medicare Advantage (PPO)
    • Humana Gold Choice - Medicare Advantage (PFFS)
    • Humana Gold Plus - Medicare Advantage (HMO)
    • Humana Medicare Advantage Group Plan - NC State Retirees
  • MedCost
    • First Medicare Direct
    • Medicare Part A
    • Medicare Part B
    • AmeriHealth Caritas North Carolina
    • Carolina Complete Health
    • Healthy Blue
    • NC Medicaid Direct
    • WellCare of North Carolina
    • TRICARE Prime
    • TRICARE Prime Remote
    • TRICARE Select
    • AARP Medicare Advantage Plan 2 (HMO-POS)
    • AARP Medicare Complete (HMO, PPO)*
    • AARP Medicare Complete Essential (HMO)*
    • All Savers Alternate Funding
    • All Savers Fully Insured
    • United Healthcare (HMO, PPO, POS)
    • United Healthcare Charter/Charter Balance/Charter Plus
    • United Healthcare Choice/Choice Plus
    • United Healthcare Core/Core Essential
    • United Healthcare Navigate/Navigate Plus/Navigate Balanced
    • United Healthcare Option PPO
    • United Healthcare Passport Connect Choice/Choice Plus
    • United Healthcare Passport Connect Options PPO
    • United Healthcare Select/Select Plus
    • United Healthcare Shared Services - Harvard Pilgrim/UHC Options PPO Network
    • United Medical Resources (UMR)
    • *Duke HomeCare and Hospice and mental health providers do not participate with the plan.

Before scheduling your appointment, we strongly recommend you contact your insurance company to verify that the Duke Health location or provider you plan to visit is included in your network. Your insurance company will also be able to inform you of any co-payments, co–insurances, or deductibles that will be your responsibility. If you proceed in scheduling an appointment and your health insurance benefits do not participate with Duke, your out of pocket liability may be higher. We will contact you regarding your coverage and patient liability. If you are uninsured, learn more about our financial assistance policy.

External Relationships

This faculty member (or a member of their immediate family) has reported outside activities with the companies or institutions listed below. This information has been reported to the health system leadership and, when appropriate, management plans are in place to address potential conflicts of interest.
  • ART Medical
  • Abbott Nutrition (Abbott Labs)
  • Baxter Healthcare
  • Cardinal Health, Inc.
  • DSM biomedical
  • Fresenius-Kabi
  • Mend Inc
  • MuscleSound
  • Nutricia
  • Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.