About the Authors

Editor & Lead Author

Elena Dansky, MD

Elena Dansky is an anesthesiology resident at USC/Los Angeles General with plans to pursue subspecialty training in pediatric anesthesiology. Originally from San Diego, California, she is passionate about both medical education and creative writing and has tried to combine the two wherever possible.

Outside of medicine, Elena is an avid hobbyist with interests in music, writing, and the outdoors. She currently lives in Los Angeles with her dog, Lucy.

Contributing Author

Bridgette Ho, MD

Bridgette Ho is an anesthesiology resident at USC/Los Angeles General with plans to pursue subspecialty training in adult cardiothoracic anesthesiology. She is one of the Chief Residents for the 2026-2027 academic year. 

She is originally from Orange County, California. While she loves the sunny weather, she’s more of a homebody, enjoying watching TV and movies and crocheting. Nevertheless, that doesn’t stop her from travelling and exploring new restaurants.

Contributing Author

Nathan Yanaga, MD

Nathan Yanaga is an anesthesiology resident at USC/Los Angeles General, where he enjoys teaching students in the operating room and sharing what makes anesthesiology such a rewarding specialty.

Originally an SF Bay Area native, Nathan has spent a better part of his adult life in LA. When outside the hospital, Nathan enjoys the outdoors, traveling, and conducting unofficial research on the Los Angeles food scene.