Nguyen Is New Chief at UCSF
Tom C. Nguyen, MD, has been named chief of the Division of Adult Cardiothoracic Surgery and the Helen and Charles Schwab Distinguished Professor of Surgery in the Department of Surgery at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). He also is co-director of the UCSF Heart and Vascular Center. Prior to this, Dr. Nguyen was chief of cardiac surgery, director of minimally invasive valve surgery, co-director of structural heart disease, and professor of cardiothoracic surgery at The University of Texas in Houston. An STS member since 2015, he serves on the Workforce on Annual Meeting and its Program Task Force.
Grondin Elected to ACS Board of Regents
Sean Grondin, MD, MPH, FRCSC, has been elected to serve on the American College of Surgeons (ACS) Board of Regents. The Board of Regents formulates policy and directs the affairs of the College. Dr. Grondin is currently professor of surgery at the University of Calgary in Alberta, Canada. He recently completed his roles as the academic head of the Department of Surgery for the Cumming School of Medicine at the University of Calgary and clinical department head for Alberta Health Services. Dr. Grondin is the STS First Vice President and has been an STS member since 2001.
Romano Holds Distinguished Professorship
Jennifer C. Romano, MD, recently was honored with the Herbert E. Sloan Collegiate Professorship from the University of Michigan Medical School in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The professorship is named after a past STS President and former editor of The Annals of Thoracic Surgery who was considered a pioneer in thoracic and cardiovascular surgery—performing Michigan’s first successful open heart surgery in 1956. At Michigan Medicine, Dr. Romano is an associate professor of cardiac surgery in the Section of Pediatric Cardiovascular Surgery, associate director of the Pediatric Cardiothoracic Intensive Care Unit, and program director of Congenital Cardiac Surgery Residency. An STS member since 2007, she is a director-at-large on the STS Board of Directors.
Ramlawi Tapped to Lead Cardiac Surgery
Basel Ramlawi, MD, has been named the system chief of cardiac surgery for Main Line Health and co-director of the Lankenau Heart Institute in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania. Previously, he was chairman of the Valley Health Heart & Vascular Center in Winchester, Virginia, and was founding director of the Advanced Valve and Aortic Center. Dr. Ramlawi has been an STS member since 2010.
Ailawadi Moves to Michigan Medicine
Gorav Ailawadi, MD, MBA, has joined the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor as chair of the Department of Cardiac Surgery, co-director of the Frankel Cardiovascular Center, and professor of cardiac surgery in the medical school. He also holds an appointment in the Department of Biomedical Engineering. Previously, Dr. Ailawadi was a professor of surgery and chief of cardiac and thoracic surgery at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. He has been an STS member since 2009.
Chen Leads CT Surgery at Duke
Edward P. Chen, MD, is the new chief of the Division of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery at Duke University Medical Center. He previously was at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, where he served as executive director of the Aortic Center, director of thoracic aortic surgery, and section head of adult cardiac surgery. An STS member since 2005, Dr. Chen is co-chair of the Aortic Surgery Database Task Force and is a member of the STS Annual Meeting Program Task Force as well as the Workforce on Adult Cardiac and Vascular Surgery.
Estrera Moves Up at UTHealth
Anthony L. Estrera, MD, has been appointed chair of the Cardiothoracic & Vascular Surgery Department at McGovern Medical School, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. He also currently serves as professor of cardiothoracic and vascular surgery at the medical school and co-director of the Memorial Hermann Heart & Vascular Institute-Texas Medical Center. Dr. Estrera is on the Board of Directors for The Thoracic Surgery Foundation and has been an STS member since 2004.
Avgerinos Takes Position in Greece
Dimitrios Avgerinos, MD, PhD, has accepted a position at the Onassis Cardiac Surgery Center in Athens, Greece. His work there will focus on minimally invasive cardiac surgery and aortic and endovascular surgery. Previously, Dr. Avgerinos was assistant professor of cardiothoracic surgery at Weill Cornell Medicine and the NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, both in New York City. He has been an STS member since 2009.
Bailey Expands Role at Allegheny Health
Stephen H. Bailey, MD, recently was promoted to chair of the Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery at Allegheny Health Network (AHN) in Pennsylvania, making him the first recipient of the Magovern Chair at AHN. Previously, Dr. Bailey was director of cardiac surgery, associate professor of cardiothoracic surgery at Drexel University College of Medicine, and surgical director of the Cardiac Transplantation/Ventricular Assist Device Program and Structural Heart Program. He has been an STS member since 2008.
Lee Heads to Annapolis
Daniel C. Lee, MD, has been named chief of cardiac surgery at Anne Arundel Medical Center in Annapolis, Maryland. There, he is involved in the final phase of planning and preparation for the institution’s new cardiac surgery program. Prior to this role, Dr. Lee was co-director of the Aortic Center at Baylor Scott & White Heart and Vascular Hospital in Dallas, Texas. He has been an STS member since 2012.
Al-Ahmadi Joins Children’s Hospital of Michigan
Mamdouh Dakhel Al-Ahmadi, MD, has been named chief of cardiovascular surgery at Children’s Hospital of Michigan in Detroit. Most recently, he was deputy director of the heart center and head of cardiac surgery at King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Dr. Al-Ahmadi has been an STS member since 2007.
Katz Appointed Director of Cardiac Surgery
Arthur H. Katz, MD, has been named medical director of cardiac surgery at the Robson Heart & Vascular Institute and Timothy and Jayne Donahue Cardiac Surgery Program of the Jupiter Medical Center in Florida. Prior to this role, he worked as a cardiothoracic surgeon at the Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center and Boca Raton Regional Hospital in Florida. Dr. Katz has been an STS member since 1994.
Ward Returns Home to Kentucky
Austin Ward, MD, is now a cardiothoracic surgeon at the same hospital in which he was born—Baptist Health in Paducah, Kentucky. He previously was a cardiothoracic surgery fellow at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, Illinois, and completed medical school and a general surgery residency at the University of Kentucky in Lexington. Dr. Ward has been an STS member since 2012.
Kaushal Directs CT Surgery at Lurie Children’s
Sunjay Kaushal, MD, PhD, has been named the division head of cardiovascular thoracic surgery at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago in Illinois, where he started his career in 2007. Before returning to Chicago, Dr. Kaushal was the director of the pediatric and adult congenital cardiac program and head of pediatric heart transplantation at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore. He has been an STS member since 2008.
Dali Heads to Iowa
Dante Dali, DO, has been hired at MercyOne North Iowa Heart Center and Mason City Clinic in Iowa. Prior to this position, he was chief resident at Swedish Memorial Center in Englewood, Colorado, and a cardiothoracic fellow at East Carolina University in Greenville, North Carolina. Dr. Dali has been an STS member since 2018.