{UAH} Who is Dr. Sean P Conley?

Dr. Sean P. Conley, President Trump's physician, has served as an emergency doctor for the U.S. Navy since 2006. 

By Allyson Waller and Christina Morales

• Published Oct. 3, 2020Updated Oct. 4, 2020

 

As President Trump remains hospitalized at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center after testing positive for the coronavirus, one doctor is at the center of his treatment: Sean P. Conley, the White House physician.

Stepping out of the hospital with a team of doctors behind him on Saturday, Dr. Conley gave an optimistic update on Mr. Trump's condition at a news conference. He said the president was "doing very well" and in "exceptionally good spirits" after spending Friday night at the hospital.

The news conference put a national spotlight on Dr. Conley, who offered a distinctly different outlook from what Mark Meadows, the White House chief of staff, told reporters later.

Here's what we know about Dr. Conley.

He became the president's physician two years ago

Dr. Conley took on the role of White House physician in 2018 after Dr. Ronny L. Jackson was nominated to be secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs. Dr. Jackson had to withdraw his name from consideration for that post amid accusations of inappropriate workplace behavior and was subsequently promoted by Mr. Trump to the position of assistant to the president and chief White House medical adviser. He is now running for a House seat in Texas.

In March 2018, Dr. Conley was named acting White House physician, and he was officially appointed to the position by Mr. Trump in May 2018.

He is a doctor of osteopathic medicine

Dr. Conley graduated from the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine in 2006, according to records from the Virginia Board of Medicine.

Doctors of osteopathic medicine, or D.O.s, are fully licensed physicians, according to the American Osteopathic Association. Their training is similar to that of traditional medical doctors but differs in that they are trained to look at the body and its care holistically rather than just prescribing medicine for specific symptoms or illnesses.

Osteopathic doctors are required to complete additional coursework to understand how the body's bones, muscles and nerves affect overall functioning and health, and they sometimes use manual techniques for diagnosis and treatment, such as applying pressure to or stretching out joints and muscles. They can also prescribe medicine.

Dr. Conley, who received his bachelor of science degree from the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, has served as an emergency doctor for the U.S. Navy.

A native of Pennsylvania, Dr. Conley completed his residency at the Naval Medical Center in Portsmouth, Va., in 2013. After his residency, Dr. Conley served as chief of trauma for the NATO Role 3 Multinational Medical Unit in Afghanistan.

He served as director of the medical center's combat trauma research group for a little over two years.

He supported Mr. Trump's taking hydroxychloroquine

In May, Dr. Conley gained attention after revealing that Mr. Trump had started taking hydroxychloroquine, an anti-malaria drug, while under his care.

Many experts have questioned the drug's effectiveness in treating, preventing or curing Covid-19 despite claims from Mr. Trump.

 

The Food and Drug Administration warned in April that it should be used only in clinical trials or in hospitals. The agency also said the drug could cause dangerous heart rhythm problems.

In a letter in May discussing Mr. Trump's use of hydroxychloroquine, Dr. Conley said he and the president had "concluded the potential benefit from treatment outweighed the relative risks."

At the news conference on Saturday, Dr. Conley told reporters that Mr. Trump was not taking hydroxychloroquine.

"We discussed it," Dr. Conley said. "He asked about it. He's not on it now."

He gave an update about the president that later came under question

Dr. Conley was thrust into the national spotlight on Saturday after he gave an upbeat assessment about Mr. Trump that was later contradicted by the White House chief of staff, Mr. Meadows.

Dr. Conley also appeared to indicate that the president had first learned he had the virus on Wednesday rather than late Thursday night. Mr. Trump disclosed the test result on Twitter early Friday morning.

Dr. Conley later released a statement that he misspoke and clarified the timeline of the president's illness.

He repeatedly said at the news conference that the president was not currently on supplemental oxygen but also declined to say whether Mr. Trump had ever been on oxygen.

 

Two people close to the White House said in interviews with The New York Times that the president had trouble breathing on Friday and that he received supplemental oxygen at the White House after his oxygen level dropped.

At a news conference on Sunday, Dr. Conley acknowledged delivering an overly optimistic description of the president's condition.

Doctors on Sunday said that Mr. Trump had a "high fever" on Friday, and that there had been two episodes in which his oxygen levels dropped: on Friday and Saturday.

The doctors said Mr. Trump was put on oxygen at the White House on Friday but were not clear about whether it was administered again on Saturday.

"I didn't want to give any information that might steer the course of illness in another direction, and in doing so, you know, it came off that we were trying to hide something, which wasn't necessarily true," Dr. Conley said. "The fact of the matter is that he's doing really well."

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"Everyone becomes an expert after the FACT"

Allan

 

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