Ria Drapete Dancel

Ria Drapete Dancel, MD, FACP, SFHM, FAAP serves as Professor of Medicine and Pediatrics at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine within the Department of Medicine, Division of Hospital Medicine. She holds dual leadership roles as Physician Leader for the Medicine Procedure Service and Associate Program Director for the Internal Medicine-Pediatric residency program since 2022, while directing the Department of Medicine Procedure Service since 2014.

Her educational background includes a Bachelor of Science in Biology (Summa cum laude, 1999) and MD (2006) from UNC Chapel Hill, followed by residency training in Internal Medicine and Pediatrics at UNC Hospitals (2010).

Dr. Dancel's clinical and research expertise centers on advancing medical education through point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) applications, with emphasis on bedside procedural safety, diagnostic reasoning, and evidence-based hospital medicine. She pioneered a simulation-based ultrasound-guided procedures curriculum pairing faculty with residents that has become a highly requested rotation across multiple departments including Family Medicine, Pediatrics, and Surgery.

Her professional distinctions include:

• Fellow of the American College of Physicians (FACP)
• Society of Hospital Medicine Fellow (SFHM)
• Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics (FAAP)
• Board Certification in Internal Medicine and Pediatrics (2010)

As an educator, she mentors residents in clinical vignettes, research manuscripts, and national conference presentations while developing required longitudinal POCUS curricula for first-year residents and specialized electives for upper-level trainees. Her work extends to teaching physicians across Family Medicine, Anesthesiology, Surgery, and Emergency Medicine at national and international workshops.

Under her leadership, the Medicine Procedure Service has implemented one-on-one coaching during bedside procedures that significantly enhances both patient safety and resident procedural competence, with the program now serving as a model for interdisciplinary procedural education.