University of Washington Department of Surgery

Department of Surgery Q2 2013 Research Reinvestment Fund Awardees The Research Reinvestment Fund (RRF) was established to help achieve the Department of Surgery’s goal of becoming the premier home for surgical research. The second round of proposals was recently completed with numerous faculty submissions. While all of the proposals addressed significant research questions, four were judged to be especially impressive in terms of their deliverables and potential returns on investment. Read the Full Story

Ben Anderson, MD Receives National Consortium of Breast Centers' Inspiration Award Dr. Ben Anderson (pictured right) will receive the National Consortium of Breast Centers' Inspiration Award during the 2013 National Interdisciplinary Breast Conference. Read the Full Story

Five Commonly Used Cardiothoracic Surgery Tests and Treatments Questioned Doug Wood, MD, Division Chief, Cardiothoracic Surgery and newly elected Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) President and participant in “Choosing Wisely” comments on the recommendations of this campaign. Read the Full Story

Enteral Contrast Not Beneficial for Suspected Appendicitis, Study Shows “Comparable effectiveness can be achieved using IV contrast alone in CT scans for suspected appendicitis,” said lead author Frederick Thurston Drake, MD, (pictured right) a surgery resident and fellow at the Surgical Outcomes Research Center (SORCE), University of Washington, Seattle. He presented the findings at the 2012 American College of Surgeons’ Annual Clinical Congress. Read the Full Story

Mice Fall Short as Test Subjects for Humans’ Deadly Ills For decades, mice have been the species of choice in the study of human diseases. But now, researchers report evidence that the mouse model has been totally misleading for at least three major killers — sepsis, burns and trauma. As a result, years and billions of dollars have been wasted following false leads, they say.

The study’s authors include the following UW Department of Surgery faculty and nurses, Ron Maier, MD (pictured left), Joe Cuschieri, MD (pictured middle), Nicole Gibran, MD (pictured right), Laura Hennessy, RN and Shari Honari, RN, as well as two former Department faculty, Avery Nathens, MD and Matt Klein, MD. Read the Full Story

Ron Maier, MD Comments on Famous Book Author Surviving Plane Crash Richard Bach, the author of Jonathan Livingston Seagull and now a Friday Harbor resident, was recently in a severe plane crash. Ron Maier, MD, (pictured left), Professor and Jane and Donald D. Trunkey Chair in Trauma Surgery at Harborview Medical Center comments on how Airlift Northwest and Harborview Medical Center assisted in saving his life. Read the Full Story

UW Medicine “Patient Safety Innovations Program” Awardees The Patient Safety Innovations Program (PSIP) is a pioneering small grant initiative supported by the UW Office of Risk Management and UW Medicine. The goals of this grant initiative are to improve patient safety and the quality of healthcare. Additionally, the work sponsored by PSIP supports advancement of UW Medicine’s mission of improving the health of the public by integrating the core activities of providing outstanding patient care, training the next generation of healthcare professionals, and researching the best ways to improve patient care. The Department of Surgery had three awardees: Sara Kim, PhD, Erik Van Eaton, MD; Thomas Varghese, MD. Read the Full Story

Nicole S. Gibran, MD, FACS and Sara Kim, PhD Endowment Recipients
The Department of Surgery wishes to congratulate Drs. Nicole S. Gibran and Sara Kim for being named recipients of two endowments. Read the Full Story

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Strong for Surgery

Strong for Surgery is a joint initiative of CERTAIN, a program of the University of Washington, and the Surgical Care and Outcomes Assessment Program (SCOAP), a program of the non-profit Foundation for Health Care Quality.

Strong for Surgery

Special Events

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Wednesday, June 5, 2013 June 2013 Grand Rounds/Annual Faculty Development Seminar

Grand Rounds Speakers:

Jeff Friedrich, MD
Topic: "Giving Feedback: Maintaining Momentum"

Otway Louie, MD
Topic: "How To Create A Good OR Teaching Environment" Read More...

Upcoming Special Events

Featured Videos

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Michael Mulligan, MD, Using Crowdfunding to Fund Research

When you put money into the plate at church or perhaps into the UNICEF box on Halloween, you are crowdfunding - combining your money with a lot of other people's to support a cause or organization. The question is, could this kind of funding model help pay for medical research?

"There's a very serious demand for lungs that far exceeds donor supply," said Dr....

Harborview Trauma Chief Offers Perspective on Boston Bombings

The injuries suffered by dozens of victims of the Boston Marathon bombings are being compared to those you might find on a battlefield. That's creating surgical challenges not lost on the doctors at Harborview Medical Center. Eileen...

Bonded By A Kidney

Online dating leads to a lot of things, but two people in Tacoma never dreamt it would lead to a life-changing relationship involving a kidney. It's a heartwarming story since April is National Donate Life month. Video segment includes commentary by Patrick J. Healey, MD, Associate Professor & Chief, Pediatric...