Luber named chair of Emergency Medicine
Following a national search, LaTanya Love, MD, dean of McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston, announced that Samuel D. Luber, MD, MPH, is the new chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine, effective Oct. 16.
Luber has served as interim chair in the department since July 2024. He is also a professor and serves as the assistant dean for Graduate Medical Education and executive vice chair for Academic Affairs.
“I’m honored to carry forward the outstanding work of the leaders who came before me. Their dedication has laid a strong foundation, and now we have the opportunity to advance even further,” Luber said. “Through exceptional care, education, and research, we’ll keep raising the bar for emergency and acute care medicine — driven by a strong, supportive culture that values our people, encourages innovation, and inspires a shared passion for excellence.”
In 2001, Luber received his medical degree and his Master of Public Health in epidemiology from Tulane University School of Medicine and Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, respectively. He completed his emergency medicine residency at the University of Cincinnati in 2005.
After serving four years as an assistant professor at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Luber joined the McGovern Medical School faculty in 2009. He served as interim co-chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine from 2018 to 2019 and as the department’s residency program director from 2009 to 2017.
Luber has received numerous awards and honors throughout his career, including the 2015 Physician of the Year Award from Memorial Hermann–Texas Medical Center. He has been named a Top Doctor by Houstonia Magazine nine times and has been recognized as a Texas Super Doctor each year since 2022. At McGovern Medical School, he has earned Dean’s Teaching Excellence Awards for more than a decade and was named an Esteemed Educator in 2025.
Clinically, Luber has provided lifesaving care to patients at both Memorial Hermann and Harris Health Lyndon B. Johnson Hospital. His clinical interests include advanced airway management, critical care, emergency medicine services, and resuscitation. His research focuses on improving outcomes in cardiovascular disease, diagnostic testing, and resuscitation practices.