Emerald Coast Medical Association

Emerald Coast Medical Association The Emerald Coast Medical Association was established as an organization in 1948 and has been serving the physicians and patients of the Panama City area

ECMA is incredibly proud to celebrate our Executive Director, Michelle Flaat, recipient of the 2026 FMA Distinguished La...
08/28/2026

ECMA is incredibly proud to celebrate our Executive Director, Michelle Flaat, recipient of the 2026 FMA Distinguished Layperson’s Award!

For nearly 20 years, Michelle has helped lead ECMA from a single-county medical society to an organization serving 10 counties across Northwest Florida. This recognition is a reflection of her vision, dedication, and the strong relationships she has built with physicians and colleagues along the way.

We are so grateful for her leadership and commitment to our physician community. Congratulations, Michelle—this honor is so well deserved!

ECMA is incredibly proud to celebrate our member, Dr. Neal Dunn, recipient of the 2026 FMA Award of Distinguished Servic...
08/27/2026

ECMA is incredibly proud to celebrate our member, Dr. Neal Dunn, recipient of the 2026 FMA Award of Distinguished Service, the Florida Medical Association’s highest honor!

After 18 years of service on the FMA Board of Governors, along with a distinguished career in medicine, public health, and service in the U.S. Congress, this recognition is a wonderful testament to Dr. Dunn’s lifelong commitment to physicians and patients.

We are honored to call Dr. Dunn an ECMA member and grateful for the leadership and service he continues to provide to our medical community.

Congratulations, Dr. Dunn, on this well-deserved honor!

Receiving the award in his honor: Dr. Daniel "Skip" Daube Jr.

The Emerald Coast Medical Association (ECMA) made a strong showing at the FMA 2026 Annual Meeting, with 14 physician mem...
08/25/2026

The Emerald Coast Medical Association (ECMA) made a strong showing at the FMA 2026 Annual Meeting, with 14 physician members serving as delegates and representing Northwest Florida across the House of Delegates, specialty societies, and FMA boards.

We’re especially proud of our members serving in leadership roles, including:

🔹 Christopher Johnson, MD & Jamie O’Neal, MD — Florida Chapter of the American College of Surgeons Delegates
🔹 Daniel “Skip” Daube, MD — FMA Board of Governors, District A Representative
🔹 Andy Borom, MD — FMA PAC President
🔹 Daniel “Skip” Daube, MD — FMA PAC Treasurer-Elect
🔹 Michelle Flaat & Zachary Wilson, MD — FMA PAC Board

Their leadership gives Northwest Florida physicians a direct voice in shaping the future of medicine across Florida.

Strong physician leadership. Stronger Northwest Florida. Florida Medical Association

08/13/2026

When a patient is in the ICU, Dr. David Phillips does something not every physician does: he brings the family in.

He sits down with them. He shows them CT scans. He treats them as intelligent people who want to know what is going on and what they can do. Because in his experience, most family members are exactly that. A picture is worth a thousand words, and when people can see what you are seeing, they can be part of the decision.

That is what critical care looks like when the physician trusts the people in the room. Catch up on Episode 21 of the .

08/12/2026

Dr. David Phillips has done close to a hundred clinical studies over the course of his career. He helped do the research on Lovenox. He helped do the research on Advair. These are medications millions and millions of patients are on today.

He is a pulmonologist and critical care physician on the Emerald Coast who started out as a chemist on a Louisiana cattle farm. On this episode, he talks with Dr. Don Davis about that research, a bedside discovery he made during COVID that no textbook could explain, and the hardest conversations he has with families in the ICU.

Listen to Episode 21 of the now.

08/11/2026

Dr. David Phillips grew up on a Louisiana cattle farm with a hundred head of cows and horses. His dad was in the Army, and they moved everywhere. He has probably lived in more states than most people have driven through. He graduated high school with 32 people.

Before medicine, he was studying chemistry and briefly helping make bomber fuel for Barksdale Air Force Base. Today, he is a pulmonologist and critical care physician on the Emerald Coast, treating some of the sickest patients in our community.

Episode 21 of the drops soon.

ECMA Vice president representing the Florida Society of Plastic Surgeons at the 2026 FMA Annual Meeting
08/10/2026

ECMA Vice president representing the Florida Society of Plastic Surgeons at the 2026 FMA Annual Meeting

07/30/2026

When Dr. Eric Sandwith runs into a case with prohibitive risk, he sends the patient to the appropriate institution. Because it is not about his surgery. It is about their life.

And when he sits down to explain a patient's heart, he starts the same way every time: the heart is a house. Four rooms, two upstairs and two downstairs. Upstairs are called atrium, downstairs are ventricles. It has plumbing and it has electricity. That is it. From there we start.

His team rolls their eyes because they have heard it 20 or 30 times. But that is exactly the point. No jargon. No ego. Just clarity when it matters most.

Catch up on Episode 20 of the .

07/29/2026

Dr. Eric Sandwith is a cardiothoracic surgeon in Fort Walton Beach who never planned on medicine. He grew up in a family of engineers, worked at IBM, and found his way here through a life-saving course he took out of curiosity, followed by medical school, a fellowship in Kansas City, and a final year at the Mayo Clinic.

Nineteen years later, his team's cardiac surgery program has been consistently rated three-star by the Society of Thoracic Surgeons. In the most recent reporting period, they were perfect in every category, which is very rare for a small program where just one case can knock you out. He gives the credit entirely to his teammates in Fort Walton.

Listen to Episode 20 of the now.

Deadine Approachig- July 31 Join or renew your Emerald Coast Medical Association membership by July 31 to be included in...
07/29/2026

Deadine Approachig- July 31

Join or renew your Emerald Coast Medical Association membership by July 31 to be included in the 2026 ECMA Physician Directory—a trusted resource distributed to physicians, hospitals, and medical practices throughout our 10-county region. New members are welcome, and Preferred Partner and advertising opportunities are also available. Contact Michelle at [email protected] or (850) 819-8273 to get started today!

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2352 Lisenby Avenue
Panama City, FL
32405

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