National Case Conference - November 2026

Joshua D. King, MD, FACMT is an Associate Professor of Medicine and Pharmacy and the Medical Director of the Maryland Poison Center at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. He earned his medical degree from Penn State College of Medicine, followed by an Internal Medicine residency and chief residency at the University of Virginia. He then completed a Nephrology fellowship at Johns Hopkins Hospital and, after returning to the University of Virginia as a nephrologist, pursued further specialization through a Medical Toxicology fellowship. Dr. King is a dual-specialized clinician-educator in nephrology and medical toxicology, with clinical expertise in extracorporeal treatments for poisonings, therapeutic drug removal, ICU nephrology, and medical education. At the University of Maryland Medical Center, he provides care through both the nephrology and medical toxicology consultation services, focusing on hospitalized patients. In addition to his clinical work, Dr. King is deeply involved in graduate medical education, training residents and fellows, as well as teaching undergraduate medical students. As the Medical Director of the Maryland Poison Center, he oversees the clinical management of poisoning, envenomation, and overdose cases for both the public and healthcare providers. His role also includes educating medical and pharmacy students and supervising physicians who rotate through the center. Dr. King’s research interests lie at the intersection of nephrology and toxicology, particularly in the extracorporeal removal of toxins through modalities such as dialysis and apheresis.

Dr. Emily Kiernan is an Assistant Professor at Emory University School of Medicine. She is a board-certified Emergency Medicine physician who recently completed a medical toxicology fellowship at Emory University/CDC. She has served as the fellow co-chair for the AACT Radiation Special Interest Section group as well as a chair in the ACMT Fellow-in-training association.

Although I was born in Columbia, Missouri, I spent most of my childhood in rural northwest Iowa. I later attended Iowa State University (Go Cyclones!), where I earned a bachelor's degree in biology with a minor in chemistry. At ISU, I then pursued a master's degree in biomedical science; and, more importantly, met my future wife, Kaysha, during the program.

I attended medical school at the University of Iowa, where I had my first clinical exposure to the field of Medical Toxicology. Staying true to my rural roots, I returned to Columbia, Missouri in a full-circle moment to complete my residency training at the University of Missouri in the Rural Track Family Medicine program. However, I never forgot my experience in Med Tox and ultimately decided that it was the career path that best represented my sense of purpose in medicine.