Salma I. Patel, MD, MPH

Dr. Salma Patel is board-certified in Internal Medicine and Sleep Medicine.  She received her Doctor of Medicine and Masters in Public Health degrees from the University of Arizona. She completed her Internal Medicine residency and Sleep Medicine Fellowship at the Mayo Clinic. Dr. Patel enjoys seeing patients and strongly ascribes to Dr. William Mayo’s philosophy “The best interest of the patient is the only interest to be considered” and is often caught repeating this quote at patients’ bedsides. She is an active educator and mentor for undergraduate students, graduate students, post-doctoral students, medical students, residents and fellows.

Dr. Patel believes strongly in interprofessional collaboration in healthcare and serves as the Medical Director for the Physician Assistant Program at the University of Arizona. She also serves as the Associate Program Director for the Sleep Medicine Fellowship and Core Faculty for the Internal Medicine Residency Program. She serves on several college committees at the University.  Nationally, Dr. Patel writes board examination questions for the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) for Maintenance of Certification and Longitudinal Knowledge Assessment Examinations for physicians seeking certification. She has also been involved with writing clinical guidelines for the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM).

Most of Dr. Patel’s contributions to science are in the area of Sleep Medicine, Cardiology, and Vascular Medicine. She studies cardiorespiratory interactions in obstructive sleep apnea. She enjoys collaborating with and supporting colleagues with their research as well. Her work is supported by grants from the American Academy of Sleep Medicine Foundation, National Institutes of Health, Department of Defense, and the University of Arizona Health Sciences. She gives numerous local and national presentations and has multiple publications in her area of expertise.