Dr. Howk is a trauma and acute care surgeon, with expertise in robot-assisted emergency general surgery.

Dr. Howk recently completed a surgical critical care fellowship at the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville. She previously completed an ECMO research fellowship at Emory University and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and a general surgery residency at the University of Tennessee Medical Center. ECMO, or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, is a life-support machine that takes over the function of the heart and lungs when a patient's organs are failing. She earned her medical degree at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Medicine in Memphis and Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville.

She has certifications in safe sedation training and as an instructor in advanced trauma life support, and cares for trauma patients, emergency general surgery patients, and patients managed in the surgical intensive care unit.