Dr. Margaret Anne Staggers EMS Scholarship

Dr. Margaret Anne Staggers was a trailblazing emergency physician and dedicated West Virginia Legislator with a passion for emergency medicine. 

At a time when women's roles in medicine were limited, she earned early admission to and graduated from West Virginia University School of Medicine in 1969. Dr. Staggers first operated a family practice in southern West Virginia and later in northwest Pennsylvania, where she delivered more than 500 babies. She later immersed herself fully in emergency medicine, eventually serving as a ER Physician at Beckley Appalachian Regional Hospital.

Between busy ER shifts, she completed an entire paramedic program shoulder to shoulder with EMTs. mastering field-based skills from intubation on the floor to chest decompression in cramped spaces. She fiercely cherished her Mobile Intensive Care Paramedic (MICP) certification, retaking exams every few years alongside veteran medics.

Her medical career spanned decades, during which she also served as medical director for emergency services across Fayette, Wyoming, Raleigh, and Boone counties. She was a respected leader in her field, holding positions such as President of the West Virginia chapter of the American College of Emergency Physicians and earning fellowships in both emergency and family medicine.