“Dr. (Nancy) Ascher excels in her role as Chair of Surgery, not only for her inexplicable foresight, but because she stays connected to trainees and students. This year, Dr. Ascher received the Francis Moore Excellence in Mentorship in the Field of Transplantation Surgery Award from the American Society of Transplant Surgeons.

Residents and fellows noted that Dr. Ascher is an effective mentor because she treats them like colleagues and not just trainees. Residents and fellows felt “immersed and integral in the program which empowered them and helped their growth.” Dr. Ascher emphasizes that a meaningful mentor-mentee relationship allows an honest exchange about the student’s career path and the mentor’s willingness to be that student’s advocate.

But how personal can a mentorship be, or is it strictly a professional relationship? Dr. Ascher believes that “elements of caring, friendship come from a good mentorship.” However, she acknowledges the fine line that exists to protect the privacy and separate personal lives of the mentor and mentee. The role of an effective mentor is not to judge the mentee but to get to know the student, so that the mentor can advise the student appropriately. Opening up to a mentor helps students understand what’s realistic and reasonable for them.” Excerpted from Synapse, the UCSF student-run weekly

Read more

“Alden H. Harken, M.D. was recently honored with the 2012 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Society of University Surgeons (SUS). Dr. Harken is Chief of the UCSF-East Bay Surgery Program, and Chief of Surgery and Chair of the Surgery Department at Alameda Health System’s (AHS). Over the course of his career, His contributions to the field of cardiac electrophysiology include influential early work around mapping and surgical ablation for ventricular tachyarrhythmias. Dr. Harken’s work in this area helped our understanding of the pathophysiology of ventricular tachycardia and shaped today’s methods of ablative treatment of ischemic ventricular tachycardia. According to SUS, “Dr. Harken’s energy, insight, enthusiasm and innovative work have created a legacy that will influence the treatment of cardiac arrhythmias for many years to come. He has clearly been a pioneer in the field, and has been a true role model for his colleagues in the SUS and AAS.” *Excerpts from news release for Alameda Health System’s (AHS)

• Award by Society of University Surgeons (SUS)
• Announcement by Alameda Health System’s (AHS)

“A. Brent Eastman, MD, FACS, a general, vascular, and trauma surgeon from San Diego, CA, was installed as the 93rd President of the American College of Surgeons (ACS) during Convocation ceremonies at the 2012 Clinical Congress. Dr. Eastman is corporate senior vice-president and chief medical officer of Scripps Health, the N. Paul Whittier Endowed Chair of Trauma at Scripps Memorial Hospital, La Jolla, and a clinical professor of surgery-trauma at the University of California, San Diego…

A dedicated trauma surgeon, Dr. Eastman was a particularly active member of the ACS Committee on Trauma (COT). He was COT Chair from 1990 to 1994 and helped to create and was the first Chair of the COT Trauma System Consultation Committee (1999–2003). Furthermore, he has served as an instructor for the internationally acclaimed Advanced Trauma Life Support® course since 1982.” Excerpted from Bulletin of American College of Surgeons

Read full announcement at ACS website

“Bariatric surgery has been widely accepted in the medical field, but now we’re trying to apply it to specific patient groups,” said Matthew Y.C. Lin, M.D., a former UCSF MIS/Bariatric surgical fellow**, whose outstanding work led to a faculty appointment as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Surgery.

In a pilot study of 26 morbidly obese patients waiting for a kidney or liver transplant, Dr. Lin and colleagues in the UCSF Bariatric Surgery Program showed that laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy, a procedure that removes most of the stomach and reshapes it into a small tube or sleeve, significantly improved the chances of undergoing successful organ transplantation. “The reason why physicians are skittish about bariatric surgery for organ transplant is that these patients have more medical comorbidities,” said Lin, who is the lead author of the study. “But our study shows that it is safe to proceed.”

* Excerpts Above from American Society For Metabolic And Bariatric Surgery

**Minimally Invasive and Bariaric Surgery Fellowship underwritten by Foundation for Surgical Fellowship

• Sleeve Gastrectomy Improves Candidacy for Organ Transplants In Morbidly Obese Patients, New Study Shows
• ABC News – Bariatric Surgery For More Than Just Weight Loss?

“The recent wave of lawsuits filed on behalf of former NLF players has brought to the forefront the dangers of sports injuries, as well as the question of liability. From broken noses to broken feet and everything in between, get an up-close-and-personal view of the health and safety issues related to playing in the National Football League. Six-time Pro Bowl selection and Chargers legend Dan Fouts will be joined by John York, M.D., Co-chairman, San Francisco 49ers; Chairman, NFL’s Health & Safety Advisory Committee and Jed York, CEO, San Francisco 49ers, as well as Eastman, A. Brent Eastman, M.D., Trauma Surgeon, Chief Medical Officer and Corporate Sr. Vice President, Scripps Health, whose expertise as a trauma surgeon has made him a leader in the field of emergency medical care.” Excerpts from Commonwealth Club website.

Listen to the Program

Inside Surgery is a publication of the UCSF Department of Surgery highlighting major medical and scientific advances driven by department faculty. Each issue focuses on several key areas where notable progress or intriguing discoveries have been made. Each issue is summarized in a “Letter from the Chair” of the Department of Surgery, Nancy L. Ascher, MD, PhD. These summaries appears below each link to the entire issue.

2012 – Spring/Summer

Letter From The Chair

This issue of Inside Surgery describes several exciting developments that are advancing our ability to provide outstanding care for a range of patients. The new Hepatobiliary Service, under the direction of Carlos Corvera, MD, provides comprehensive, multidisciplinary care for patients with liver and bile duct disease. The service offers a range of advanced laparoscopic liver procedures as well as expert treatment for patients with bile duct disease. The Hepatobiliary Service also offers a coordinated, patient-centered approach for perioperative care.

Quan-Yang Duh, MD, leads the section of Endocrine Surgery, that provides multidisciplinary, minimally invasive care for patients with a range of malignant and benign diseases affecting the thyroid, parathyroid and adrenal glands. The surgical team has particular expertise in performing challenging procedures for recurrence of conditions such as thyroid cancer and hyperparathyroidism. The UCSF Department of Surgery faculty not only provide exceptional surgical and perioperative care, but also lead many research initiatives to uncover the etiology of disease and develop better therapies. This issue offers an overview of the department’s clinical and research endeavors.

This issue also highlights San Francisco General Hospital’s Wraparound Project, founded and directed by trauma surgeon Rochelle Dicker, MD. This innovative hospital-based violence prevention program has reduced the reinjury rate among participants from 16 percent to 4 percent, reducing mortality and helping victims of violence turn their lives around.

Finally, I am very proud to note that many of our surgeons have recently been recognized by two external publications as among the best in their fields. In its most recent survey, U.S. News & World Report – in collaboration with Castle Connolly Medical Ltd. – included 25 surgeons in the UCSF Department of Surgery on the list of U.S. News Top Doctors. The list, compiled from a peer nomination process, recognizes doctors determined to be in the top 10 percent in their region.

Within this list of the best surgeons, 15 of these 25 UCSF surgeons have been named to a highly selective list of America’s Top Doctors. They were deemed, in Castle Connolly’s estimation, to be among the top 1 percent in the nation in his or her specialty. The 25 UCSF U.S. News Top Doctors are listed on page 8; those who also earned recognition as “America’s Top Doctors” are denoted by an asterisk. The full listings can be found at http://health.usnews.com/top-doctors/directory/best-surgeons. Also, Marin Magazine recognized a number of our faculty in its “[415] Top Doctors” list, compiled from a peer-to-peer voting poll. This list is also included on page 8, and the full online listing is available at www.marinmagazine.com. It is an honor to work with so many outstanding surgeons in providing exceptional care to our patients. I am pleased to share these updates with you.

2011 – Spring/Summer

Letter From The Chair

This issue of Inside Surgery describes some of the latest advances in fetal surgery and pediatric plastic and reconstructive surgery. UCSF is the birthplace of fetal surgery; Michael Harrison, Md, performed the first open fetal surgery here in 1981, and we continue to have more experience with fetal surgery and endoscopic fetal intervention than any other institution in the world. Now under the direction of Hanmin Lee, Md, the Fetal treatment center continues to pioneer new interventions for congenital defects, and to provide long-term follow-up care through the Life clinic.

William Hoffman, Md, leads the division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, offering a coordinated, multidisciplinary approach to craniofacial anomalies, including cleft lip, cleft palate and craniosynostosis, as well as birthmarks and vascular anomalies. Scott Hansen, Md, is a hand surgeon, skilled in the full range of procedures available to reconstruct a useful hand, including toe-tothumb transfer. i am also delighted to announce the opening of the connie Frank transplant center, the UCSF center for Bioengineering and tissue Regeneration, and the laboratory of Jason Pomerantz, Md, in the UCSF craniofacial and Mesenchymal Biology Program’s new facilities. these are just a few of the exciting developments in the UCSF department of Surgery. i am pleased to share these updates with you.

2009 – Fall

Letter From The Chair

This issue of Inside Surgery outlines some of the latest developments at UCSF’s department of Surgery. the Pancreas center provides a coordinated, interdisciplinary approach to patients with complex disease. in addition to worldclass surgeons, the Pancreas center draws on the expertise of radiologists, gastroenterologists, medical and radiation oncologists, and other specialists to provide state-of-the-art care to patients. Similarly, the thoracic oncology Program is a world leader in innovative research and clinical care for patients with lung cancer.

Led by David Jablons, MD, the program is especially skilled in achieving local control of lung cancer. the team of outstanding surgeons, medical and radiation oncologists, interventional radiologists, and others can often perform complete resections in patients referred from other centers who had been told their tumors were inoperable.

This year, we are celebrating the 45th anniversary of the UCSF transplant Service, led by John Roberts, Md. We have one of the largest and most highly regarded transplant programs in the country, and we are an international leader in the field. our living donor program employs the latest innovations and a team approach to patient care, resulting in superior outcomes even as we treat some of the highest-risk patients. these advances illustrate just a few ways that UCSF’s department of Surgery provides the most comprehensive treatments available. We are pleased to share these updates with you.

2007 – Fall

Letter From The Chair

This issue of Inside Surgery delineates several new and exciting avenues of research in surgery and their application to important clinical conditions. The use of autologous islet transplantation reflects the application of refined techniques of islet isolation to the clinical problem of chronic pancreatitis with avoidance of the need for immunsuppression. The work represents a collaboration between transplant surgery (Dr. Andrew Posselt) and pancreas surgery (Dr. Hobart Harris).

Dr. Weaver’s work in regeneration represents an application of the need to study the specific environmental factors that may be important as we seek to replace diseased tissues and organs. We are delighted to have Dr. Weaver at UCSF directing the Department of Surgery Center for Bioengineering and Tissue Regeneration.

The third example of innovative approaches to clinical disease is the collaboration between Dr. Pierre Theodore (thoracic surgery) and Dr. Marco Patti (foregut surgery), who have developed a minimally invasive approach to the treatment of esophageal cancer. These three projects are exciting examples of the talent and innovation we are fortunate to have in the UCSF Department of Surgery

2006 – Summer

L E T T E R F R O M T H E C H A I R

This issue of Inside Surgery brings you up to date on progress in solid organ and cellular transplantation. UCSF Medical Center has been at the forefront of clinical transplantation since it performed its first kidney transplant in 1964. Each of the transplantation services reflects a collaborative partnership of specialists in complementary disciplines. The “team” approach to patient selection and care optimizes the management of patients.

Our transplantation services also exemplify the translation of innovative techniques and novel treatment to patient care. This promotes the rapid application of the best therapy to patients. Transplantation results must be assessed in the context of the recipient’s co-morbid conditions. We are proud of the fact that our transplantation services have superior outcomes that significantly exceed what would be expected, given the high-risk patients for whom we care. We are pleased to update you on these vital programs.