Meet the ERAS® Cardiac Society Team.

Dr. Engelman is the Medical Director of the Heart, Vascular and Critical Care Units at Baystate Medical Center. He is a Professor of Surgery at The University of Massachusetts-Baystate. He started the ERAS® Cardiac Collaborative to internationally standardize best practices.

He is the President of the Massachusetts Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) and serves on multiple Statewide Oversight committees. Dr. Engelman participates on three national workforces for the STS and the American Association of Thoracic Surgery and writes board questions for Cardiac Surgical Certification. He was the Past President of the 21st Century Cardiothoracic Surgical Society. He also serves on the Board of Directors of the Baycare PPO and ACO and is Vice President of the local Independent Physician Organization.

Dr. Engelman is the principal investigator on multiple research projects, has published over 50 peer-reviewed publications, and participates on two international taskforces (ADQI and KDIGO) standardizing approaches for the prevention of postoperative acute kidney injury. He travels extensively lecturing on advances in critical care medicine, healthcare informatics and finance, multimodal analgesia, and enhanced recovery after cardiac surgery.

In 2016 Dr. Engelman was named the National ACS/STS Health Policy Scholar. He is a graduate of the Executive Leadership Program in Health Policy and Management at Brandeis University. He completed his Cardiothoracic Surgical training at Brigham & Women's Hospital, Harvard University, in Boston. He received his B.A. with honors from the University of Pennsylvania and M.D. from the New York University School of Medicine.

Dr. Michael C. Grant is a cardiac anesthesiology and critical care intensivist with joint appointments in the Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Surgery and the Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety and Quality at the Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions. He is the institutional Director of Anesthesiology for the Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) program and has been involved nationally through the American Society of Enhanced Recovery (ASER), the Perioperative Quality Initiative (POQI), the International Enhanced Recovery Society, and the Agency for Healthcare Quality and Research (AHRQ) to establish evidence-based working guidelines for designing and implementing complex perioperative programs. Utilizing a background in Systems Engineering, Michael is interested in applying industry frameworks to designing perioperative programs that improve outcomes and increase value and efficiency.

Dr. Arora was born in London, Ontario and obtained a Baccalaureate of Arts degree from the University of Western Ontario. From there, he next achieved his Medical Doctorate from the University of Toronto in 1996 before moving to Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia to undergo his Cardiac Surgery Residency. During his time in his residency in Dalhousie, he completed a Doctorate of Philosophy in the Department of Anatomy/Neurobiology in the field of neurocardiology. After completing two further years of training at the University of Calgary, in Calgary, Alberta, Dr. Arora became the first Cardiac Surgeon in Canada to also complete a fellowship in Critical Care Medicine in 2006.

Subhasis Chatterjee, M.D. is an assistant professor of surgery at Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center in Houston, TX.

Dr. Chatterjee is a triple-boarded CV surgeon/intensivist with a dedicated focus on the critical care of cardiothoracic surgical patients with a perspective as both a cardiothoracic surgeon and intensivist. He is dedicated to excellent patient outcomes and multidisciplinary collaboration. He has participated and served as an investigator in a number of clinical trials.

His clinical focus is in the perioperative care of aortic surgical patients, vasoplegic shock and the rational use of vasopressors, mechanical circulatory support/ECMO, decision support and critical care scoring systems for the care of cardiothoracic surgical patients. He has lectured extensively on a variety of topics in CV critical care.

Cheryl is currently a Cardiac Surgery Care Coordinator Nurse at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, MA. In her current role she collaborates with a multidisciplinary team across the care continuum to facilitate evidence based care for cardiac surgery patients. Cheryl’s ERAS areas of interest include: multi-modal analgesia, patient engagement and pre-habilitation.

Cheryl attended American International College for her Bachelor of Science in nursing degree and graduated from Sacred Heart University with her Master of Science in nursing degree. Cheryl is a certified Clinical Nurse Leader with over 35 years of nursing experience.

Dr. Gregory is a cardiovascular anesthesiologist and assistant professor in the Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, and Libin Cardiovascular Institute, at the Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary. After completion of his BSc (Hons) at Cornell University (2002), he obtained his medical degree (2007) and FRCPC residency training in anesthesiology (2012) at the University of Calgary, followed by a fellowship in cardiothoracic anesthesiology at the University of Pennsylvania (2013). Dr. Gregory has written over 40 peer-reviewed publications and 4 book chapters. He is the local PI for several multi-center clinical trials developed through the Peri-operative Anesthesiology Clinical Trials (PACT) and Cardio-Link Clinical Trials groups. He is on the Board of Trustees for the Canadian Anesthesia Research Fund (CARF), and is a member of both the Society of Cardiovascular Anesthesiologists’ (SCA) and Canadian Anesthetists’ Society’s (CAS). In addition to his role as Director of Research for Cardiovascular Anesthesia in Calgary, he is also the Program Director for both the Cardiovascular Anesthesia and Perioperative Ultrasound Fellowship Programs.

Marjan Jahangiri graduated in medicine from University College Hospital, London. Subsequently, she completed her general surgical training at University College London and affiliated hospitals. She embarked on a career in Cardiothoracic Surgery. She trained at the London Chest, St Bartholomew’s and the Royal Brompton Hospitals in London. She was awarded a research fellowship at the William Harvey Laboratories at St. Bartholomew’s Hospital and Medical School. She then subspecialized in paediatric and adult congenital surgery at Great Ormond Street Hospital and Children’s Hospital in Boston, Harvard. She is the first female professor of cardiac surgery in the United Kingdom and Europe.

She was appointed as Consultant Cardiac Surgeon and Senior Lecturer in 2001 at St. George’s Hospital, University of London. She was appointed Professor of Cardiac Surgery at University of London in 2007. Her major interests in the field of clinical cardiac surgery include: surgery of the aorta, including aneurysms, especially major and major complex cases (Marfan), aortic valve surgery, minimally invasive aortic valve procedure, beating heart surgery, and cardiac surgery in pregnant patients. She has contributed to advances in protecting neurocognition and has been instrumental in developing minimally invasive aortic surgery and major aortic surgery.

She has been the author of several reviews, book chapters, manuscripts, abstracts and communications. She is a regular invited speaker at national and international conferences. She is the principal investigator in a number of clinical research trials. She has chaired multi-disciplinary guidelines on management of coronary artery disease, aortic valve (minimally invasive) and aortic disease. She was the finalist for Silver Scalpel Award of The Royal College of Surgeons for excellence in training in 2018. She was awarded the BMJ Clinical Leadership Team Award 2018, for management of aortic valve and aortic disease.

Kevin W. Lobdell, MD is Professor and the Director of Regional Cardiovascular and Thoracic Quality, Education, and Research for Atrium Health, Charlotte, NC, USA.

Dr. Lobdell is a Lieutenant Colonel in the US Army Reserves, Member of the American Association for Thoracic Surgery, the Society of Thoracic Surgeons, European Association of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Southern Thoracic Surgical Association, the Society of Critical Care Medicine, & the American Telemedicine Association. He is an active board member, independent quality consultant, and serves in societal leadership positions. Dr. Lobdell is board certified in thoracic surgery and has special qualifications in surgical critical care.

Dr. Lobdell maintains leadership positions in various societies and serves as editor and reviewer for numerous journals.

Vicki is currently the Director of Clinical and Quality Outcomes at Providence Anesthesiology Associates in Charlotte, NC where she is oversees the implementation, management and expansion of the Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) program to include 8 facilities in 3 hospital systems and 11 service lines. Her areas of interest related to ERAS include: change management, data collection and analytics, multi-modal analgesia, and healthcare economics. Vicki attended Queens University of Charlotte for her BSN and later attended the Medical University of South Carolina for her master’s in nursing and Doctorate in Nursing Practice. She is a board-certified Adult-Gerontology Nurse Practitioner. She completed her doctoral dissertation in Enhanced Recovery After Surgery for Pancreaticoduodenectomy. Vicki worked as a critical care nurse in CCU, CVICU, and trauma ICU for 15 years before leaving the bedside to pursue her advanced degrees.

V. Seenu Reddy, MD, MBA, FACS is a cardiothoracic surgeon at HCA ‘s TriStar Cardiovascular Surgery in Nashville, TN. Dr. Reddy received his MBA from Vanderbilt University Owen School of Management with Beta Gamma Sigma honors and graduated from medical school at the University of Alabama School of Medicine (UAB) with Clinical Honors. His undergraduate work was at Amherst College where he graduated magna cum laude with a BA in Neuroscience. Dr. Reddy completed his general surgery residency at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, and his cardiothoracic surgery residency at Emory University Medical Center. He specializes in percutaneous and minimally invasive heart surgery, beating heart surgery and endovascular surgery. Dr. Reddy is an active member of the STS Workforce on Coding and Reimbursement and the current President of the 21^st Century Cardiovascular Surgery Society. He was past president of the Nashville Surgical Society and serves on the Tennessee State Board of Health’s Committee on Perfusion. He has published over 40 scientific papers, 10 book chapters and has presented at national and international meetings in the field of surgery. He serves on the Board of the Nashville Academy of Medicine. He is on the advisory boards of Clayton Associates FCA Fund VI, JumpStart Foundry and Procured Health, as well as HealthTrust and McKinsey & Co.’s Medical Advisory Board. Prior to his medical career he worked at Salomon Brothers in NYC and Bain & Company in Boston.

Rawn Salenger, MD, is a faculty member at the University of Maryland School of Medicine and a cardiac surgeon in the Division of Cardiac Surgery at the University of Maryland Medical Center and the University of Maryland St. Joseph Medical Center. Dr. Salenger performs the full array of adult cardiac surgical services with a special interest in complex valve surgery and coronary bypass surgery.

Previously, Dr. Salenger served as the Director of Valve Surgery at Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center in Suffern, New York where he established a multi-disciplinary Heart Valve Team.

Dr. Salenger graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the Union College/Albany Medical College Seven Year Medical Program in 1995. He completed his cardiothoracic surgery residency at the University of Massachusetts, and subsequently, a fellowship at The Mount Sinai Hospital in New York.

He has published medical literature on minimizing stroke risk during bypass surgery as well as a book chapter on patient care after heart surgery.

Dr. Allen is triple boarded in general, vascular and cardiothroacic surgery. He is Director of Surgical Research and surgical director of structural heart at the Mid America Heart Institute in Kansas City. He actively participates in clinical trials and is a voting member of the FDA Circulatory Device Panel. He has over 150 publications in journals such as NEJM, JTCVS, JAMA, JACC, ATS, Innovations.

• Greek heritage
• Grew up in South Africa
• Lives in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• Cardiothoracic Anesthesiologist/Intensivist
• Married to Anna Maria
• Our daughter is Marina
• Hobbies include travel and reading
• Research interests in the microcirculation, aortic disease, and echocardiography
• Fellow of the American Heart Association

Dr. Boyle's career spans clinical cardiothoracic surgery, surgical research and medical device innovation. He has received research awards from the American College of Surgeons, the American Heart Association, the Western Thoracic Surgery Association and the Seattle Surgical Society. He has received innovation awards from the European Association of Cardiothoracic Surgeons, the Gold Medical Design Excellence Award, ID Design Distinction, a Spark Award, and a Good Design Award. His work developing PleuraFlow was cited on the R&D 100 list, which salutes the 100 most technologically significant products introduced into the marketplace, the Innovations in Cardiovascular interventions (ICI) award and the Global Frost & Sullivan Award for New Product Innovation. He has authored over 90 peer-reviewed manuscripts and book chapters and is an inventor on over 20 US and international patents.

He was the founding CEO of ClearFlow, Inc., a venture financed medical device company that he led from inception through early commercialization before becoming Chairman. He was the founder of MDI Partners, a medical device incubator, and the President of Elixis, a healthcare information technology company that was acquired by Data Critical Corporation (NASDAQ: DCCA), now a division of General Electric (NYSE: GE). In this capacity he is experienced in taking ideas from the bedside through product approval and commercialization.

Dr. Boyle graduated from the University of Minnesota Medical School and completed general and cardiothoracic surgery training at the University of Washington in Seattle. In this setting he also completed a cardiovascular surgery research fellowship in vascular biology focusing on the study of inflammation and coagulation.

Dr. Brodt is a Clinical Associate Professor at Stanford University, engaged in clinical care, teaching and research in cardiothoracic anesthesiology. Dr. Brodt has served on the SCA Board of Directors, founded the SCA Regional Anesthesia for Cardiothoracic Enhanced Recovery (RACER) Special Interest Group, and has had multiple roles in committees and task forces since attending her first SCA Annual Meeting and Thoracic Symposium in 2013.

Dr Brodt has passion and scientific curiosity in a wide variety of clinical and research topics related to cardiovascular anesthesia and recovery, stemming from a drive to find effective, accurate and safe monitoring and analgesia for cardiac surgery patients. Dr. Brodt teaches on regional anesthesia for cardiac surgery, perioperative opioid use, enhanced recovery, echocardiography and other topics in cardiac anesthesia locally (to residents and fellows) and at meetings including the SCA, ASA and EACTAIC, has written multiple book chapters, and has contributed to multiple inter-society manuscripts including with the POQI and AHA.

Dr. Brodt is a strong advocate for work-life harmony, and outside of work is a proud mum of four humans, two fur babies and many thousands of bees.

Shannon S. Crotwell is a Clinical Program Coordinator for Outcomes and Care Transformation with Sanger Heart and Vascular Center at Advocate Health in Charlotte, NC. In her role as Program Coordinator within Adult Cardiac Surgery she works to identify and operationalize system level quality and programmatic initiatives across multiple sites within the Southeast region to improve overall efficiency, outcomes and transform healthcare. Ms. Crotwell has served in this role for 6 years. Prior to this position she worked within Atrium Health for 18 years in multiple Clinical and Administrative leadership roles. She received her B.S. Degree in Nursing from the University of South Carolina and Critical Care Registered Nurse Certification. In 2019, Ms. Crotwell lead the team in implementing the Perfect Care Improvement Network including launching the periprocedural remote monitoring program.

Full Professor, Faculty of Medicine, University of Montreal

Director of the Targeted Ultrasound Fellowship Program

Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine

Department of Pharmacology and Physiology

Intensive Care Unit, Department of Cardiac Surgery

Montreal Heart Institute

Telephone: (514) 376-3330, ext. 3732
Fax: (514) 376-8784
Telecharger: (514) 301-7149
Cell: (514) 297-6103

Email: andre.denault@umontreal.ca

Qualification:

2005 Director of Department for Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine, Heart Center, Leipzig, Germany

2002-2004 Director of Clinic for Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine Park - Krankenhaus, Leipzig,

1998-2001 Vice Director of Department for Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine, Heart Center, Leipzig,

1992-1998 Senior Consultant, Clinic for Anesthesiology, Julius-Maximilan-University, Würzburg

1990-1992 Consultant, Clinic for Anesthesiology, Julius-Maximilian-University, Würzburg

1986-1990 Registrar, Clinic for Anesthesiology, Julius-Maximilian-University, Würzburg

Designation:

2014 DGAI - German Society of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine, General Secretary of the Scientific working group „Cardiac Anesthesia“

2014-Sep 2018 Member of Directory Board EACTA - European Association of Cardiothoracic Anaesthesiology

2014-April 2017 EACTA Chair Scientific Committee

April 2017- Sep 2018 EACTA Secretary

Professor Nick Fletcher is the Institute Chair for Critical Care, Anaesthesia and Pain at Cleveland Clinic London. He is also an Academic Professor at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner School of Medicine

Professor Fletcher graduated from the University of Newcastle upon Tyne in 1989 and trained in anaesthesia and intensive care medicine. After his university studying he completed a research fellowship at St Bartholomews and Clinical Fellowships at Harefield Hospital, U.K. and Royal Alfred Hospital in Sydney, Australia. He then went on to join the anaesthetic team at St George's Hospital in London as a consultant.

Dr. Gerdisch trained in general and then cardiovascular and thoracic surgery at Loyola University Medical Center in Chicago. He was awarded the John J. Keeley, MD Traveling Surgical Fellowship, and visited Dr. Alan Carpentier in Paris, where he gained early insight into heart valve repair. He remains on staff at Loyola Medical Center, as an associate professor of thoracic and cardiovascular surgery. Dr. Gerdisch is a fellow of American College of Surgeons, American College of Cardiology and Heart Rhythm Society.

He is a partner of 26 years, in Cardiac Surgery Associates, the largest private cardiac surgical group in the country. Dr. Gerdisch became Chief of Cardiothoracic surgery at Franciscan Health Heart Center in 2006. With focus on heart valve disease, he has developed a recognized center for heart valve repair and innovation, including lead enrollment in multiple pivotal trials, and first in man with devices and regenerative technology. Dr. Gerdisch is national principle investigator for a heart valve regeneration device and instrumental in the development of a multi-institution database to assess success in management of atrial fibrillation.

He has published and presented on next generation valve devices and repair, surgery for atrial fibrillation and rigid sternal fixation and serves as a peer reviewer for several prestigious medical journals. Dr. Gerdisch trains surgeons in heart valve repair and surgical treatment of atrial fibrillation. His practice ranges from multi-valve redo operations to transcatheter procedures. An approach combining minimally invasive and advanced closure techniques with rapid mobilization and recovery has made Dr. Gerdisch an advocate for enhanced recovery, even for the most complex patients.

Dr. Gunaydin received his cardiac surgical training in Turkey, England, and the Netherlands and worked as a clinical fellow in Heinrich Heine University in Dusseldorf- Germany and the Heart Institute of Japan. He studied histology and embryology for three years and completed his PhD in Tissue Engineering and Biomaterial Science at Heart Institute of Japan, Tokyo Medical College.

Dr. Gunaydin currently serves as clinical professor in Ankara City Hospital, University of Health Sciences, Ankara-Turkey. He is the President of the International Society for Minimally Invasive Extracorporeal Technology (MiECTIS) and Treasurer in Turkish Society of Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS). He also works as the scientific board member in Giganode Educational Foundation and VFPM (Verein zur Förderung der Perioperativen Medizin- Society of Advanced Perioperative Medicine).

Dr. Gunaydin’s main research interests are patient blood management, ERAS, clinical evaluation and biomaterial confirmation of novel cardiopulmonary bypass-related technologies based on the prevention of inflammatory response.

He is focused in conventional cardiac surgery, peripheral vascular surgery, varicose vein treatment, minimally invasive cardiac surgery and cellular interventions (stem cell, mitochondrial transplantation). He has visiting professor positions in a number of European Universities and also works as consultant for various international industries.

He received Young Cardiac Surgeon Award, European Society of Cardiovascular Surgery in 2008; Cardiothoracic Surgery Foundation, 10th Utley Award in 2009 and was nominated for Times Higher Education- Innovation Award in 2013.

I am currently the Chief Resident in Cardiac Surgery at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School. I also currently hold the position of President of the Thoracic Surgery Residents Association (TSRA). In this role, I oversee crucial resident initiatives that are pertinent to the education and development of all cardiothoracic residents in North America. I pursued by undergraduate degree in biological engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology followed by graduation from Duke University School of Medicine. I also hold a Master’s in Public Health degree from T.H. Chan Harvard School of Public Health. I am a clinician-scientist with a distinguished record of state-of-the-art contributions, resulting in prominent publications and widespread recognition in the field of Cardiac Surgery. I have over 270 journal publications in several high-ranking and international journals, including JAMA, EHJ, JACC, Lancet, JTCVS, and Annals of Thoracic Surgery. Additionally, I have received several major awards and honors during my training, such as the J. Maxwell Chamberlain Award from the Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS), the C. Walton Lillihei Award from the American Association of Thoracic Surgery (AATS), the John Kirklin Award from the STS, and the Joseph Murray Resident Research Award from the Massachusetts Chapter of the American College of Surgeons.

Dr. Stephanie Ibekwe is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Anesthesiology, Cardiothoracic Division, at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas. At her primary site, Ben Taub Hospital, Houston’s largest safety-net hospital, Dr. Ibekwe serves the Cardiovascular, Thoracic, advanced Oncologic, and Trauma anesthetic needs of the medically underserved residents of Houston, Texas. She is Ben Taub’s Director of Quality Improvement and Service Chief of Cardiovascular Anesthesiology.

Dr. Ibekwe holds several national leadership roles, including committee member on the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) Quality Management and Departmental Administration Committee, board member and current Vice Chair of the Scientific Program Committee in the Society of Cardiovascular Anesthesiologists (SCA), and a member of the editorial board of the Journal of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Anesthesia. Collaborating with clinical leaders worldwide, she leverages her public health, business administration, and transformational leadership expertise to develop and implement sustainable perioperative quality improvement initiatives.

Dr. Ibekwe is an educator, mentor, speaker, clinical leader, and author. She has worked with clinical leaders nationally and internationally to build and coordinate perioperative optimization programs and numerous procedures for improved perioperative quality and safety. Her collaboration with the Perioperative Optimization and Quality Improvement Society has resulted in numerous expert consensus statements which have been published and dispersed internationally. In all her leadership roles, Dr. Ibekwe offers her unique perspective in the field to help guide and shape the practice of cardiothoracic and vascular anesthesiology nationally and internationally.

Utilizing her educational background in public health and business administration, her expertise in healthcare organizational leadership, and advanced certification in transformational leadership, she succeeds in building sustainable perioperative quality improvement processes. Her published works can be found in Perioperative Medicine, Current Opinion in Anesthesiology, Anesthesiology, Anesthesia and Analgesia, the ASA Monitor, and the Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Anesthesiology.

https://www.bcm.edu/people-search/stephanie-ibekwe-23377

I have been a Clinical Perfusionist for the last 36 years. For the last 20 years I have been serving as the Chief of Cardiovascular Perfusion services at the Medical Center of Central Georgia in Macon Georgia. I received a degree in Physiology from Stow College, Glasgow, Scotland and Perfusion degree from Michener Institute of Medical Science, Toronto, Canada.

Recently I became Certified Six Sigma Black Belt in HealthCare form The Institute of Industrial and System Engineers, Norcross, Georgia.

For several years, I have been a member of the planning committee for the Annual meeting for SABM and AmSECT New Advances in Blood Management and Quality and Outcomes annual meetings

Currently, I am a Clinical Instructor for two perfusion schools:
College of Health Profession
Medical University of South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina

Dr. Ali Khoynezhad is an internationally recognized leader in aortic and atrial fibrillation surgery. He is Medical Director of Cardiovascular Surgery at MemorialCare Long Beach Medical Center. Prior to joining MemorialCare, Dr. Khoynezhad was Director of Aortic Surgery and Co-Director of Atrial Fibrillation Program at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and Professor of Surgery at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. He has trained over 550 physicians in abdominal, thoracic endovascular aortic repair and atrial fibrillation procedures. Dr. Khoynezhad has been the principal investigator for 20 industry-sponsored clinical trials, while taking the national and international principle investigator role in three clinical trials. Dr. Khoynezhad’s research findings have been published in 245 peer-reviewed publications. He was the youngest surgeon to be selected into the American Association for Thoracic Surgery, and is the President of the 21st Century Cardiothoracic Surgical Society.

Prof. Michel Kindo completed his medical education and specialized training in Cardiac Surgery at the University Hospital of Strasbourg (France), where he also earned his Medical Doctorate. He further enhanced his expertise through a dual fellowship program: a research fellowship in cardiac surgery at the Texas Heart Institute in Houston (USA) under the mentorship of Prof. O.H. Frazier, and a clinical fellowship in surgery at the Montreal Heart Institute, Université de Montréal (Canada). Additionally, he completed advanced training in basic science research at the University of Strasbourg, where he earned a PhD focused on fundamental research. Prof. Kindo actively pursues groundbreaking research in autologous and heterologous mitochondrial transplantation, exploring its potential in treating myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury and heart failure.

Currently, he serves as the Head of the Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Transplantation, and Cardiac Assistance at the University Hospital of Strasbourg. He is a board member of the French Society of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery (SFCTCV) and oversees the ventricular assist device (VAD) and artificial heart programs within his department.

As a pioneer in ERAS in Cardiac Surgery, Prof. Kindo led the development and implementation of an ERAS program in his department in 2017. His work has significantly influenced the field, with numerous publications on the subject. He also organizes internationally recognized ERAS MasterClasses, training cardiac surgery teams worldwide and promoting the adoption of ERAS protocols.

An active surgeon, Prof. Kindo performs the full spectrum of adult cardiac surgery, including coronary artery bypass grafting, valve surgery, aortic surgery, ventricular assist device implantation, and heart transplantation. He is also highly skilled in structural heart interventions, such as TAVI and TMVI.

Dr Lamarche trained in Cardiac Surgery at the Université de Montréal followed by a dual fellowship in Critical Care Medicine and in Surgery at the University of British Columbia, Canada. He also obtained a Master in biomedical science focusing on pulmonary hypertension after cardiopulmonary bypass and the use of inhaled pulmonary vasodilators in the perioperative period. His main clinical interests are systems of critical perioperative care for high-risk patients, simulation in the critical care setting, mechanical cardiac support and heart failure surgery. He is a founding member and Past-President of the Canadian Cardiovascular Critical Care Society (CANCARE Society). He collaborated on more than 100 peer-reviewed publications on national and international projects.

Perioperative Cardiac Surgical Critical Care Projects

Our team collaborated with many national and International projects including studies on prevalence of Delirium after Cardiac Surgery across Canada, use of vasoactive medications in the different units after surgery, use of protocols, and nutrition supplements after high-risk surgery. We also contributed to studies on transfusion triggers and blood components therapy after cardiac surgery.

Support of Cardiogenic Shock

Our team also collaborated on multiple projects on identification of cardiogenic shock, with strategies for mechanical support of the sickest patients. Those results were presented in national and international meetings and results were also reported with efforts to create situations for dissemination of knowledge to users and ultimately, patients. The creation of Canadian ECMO Days, and subsequently Yearly Shock Days were organized initially through CANCARE Society, and eventually incorporated in the Canadian Cardiovascular Society (CCS) annual meeting. Many Presentations were given on mechanical support for cardiogenic shock at national and national critical care and cardiology meetings.

ERAS Coordinator at WakeMed Health & Hospitals in Raleigh NC

Has over 25 years’ experience in the Cardiothoracic ICU which also included roles as Supervisor and Educator.

In 2017, Championed the ERAS Cardiac Surgery team that developed, implemented, and published the first ERAS Cardiac Surgery Protocol used in the US.

In January 2020 took the role as the ERAS Coordinator for all WakeMed health systems which currently manages 20 ERAS pathways.

Dr. Omar Mejia trained in general and then cardiovascular and thoracic surgery at Heart Institute of São Paulo Medical School in São Paulo, Brazil. He visited Dr. Tirone David in Toronto General Hospital and Dr Thoralf Sundt and Dr David Shahian in Mass General Hospital, where he gained early insight into complex cardiac surgeries and quality improvement programs. He remains on staff at Heart Institute of São Paulo Medical School, as an associate professor of thoracic and cardiovascular surgery. Dr. Mejia is a fellow of Brazilian College of Surgeons and Brazilian Society of Cardiovascular Surgery.

Dr. Mejia became Director of Quality and Safety Unit in 2013 and Vice-Head of Coronary Artery Surgery Unit in 2024 at Heart Institute of São Paulo Medical School. With focus on coronary artery disease and quality improvement, he has lead enrollment in multiple pivotal trials and he is director of São Paulo Registry of Cardiovascular Surgery (REPLICCAR). Dr. Mejia is national and Latin American lead for implementation ERAS programs and in the development of a multi-institution database to assess success in coronary artery by-pass surgery and quality improvement.

He has published over 80 peer-reviewed publications and serves as a peer reviewer for several prestigious medical journals. Dr. Mejia trains residents and fellows in complex coronary artery by-pass surgery including total-arterial, aortic, off-pump coronary artery surgery (State of the Art). An systemic approach combining prehabilitation, minimally invasive, advanced closure techniques and rapid mobilization protocols has made Dr. Mejia an advocate for enhanced recovery, even for high-risk patients.

https://pgcirurgia.incor.usp.br/index.php/docentes/197-omar-asdrubal-vilca-mejia

Dr. Gregg Nelson is Professor and Chair of Gynecologic Oncology at the Arthur J.E. Child Comprehensive Cancer Centre, University of Calgary, in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. His principal research interest is the development and study of Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) protocols in OB-Gyn and cancer surgery. Dr. Nelson was instrumental in bringing ERAS to the gynecologic oncology discipline, as lead author of the ERAS^Ò Society Guidelines for Gynecologic/Oncology published originally in 2016, followed by updates in 2019 and 2023. These publications have been downloaded collectively nearly 300,000 times and cited well over 1000 times. Dr. Nelson has been involved in numerous other ERAS^Ò Society Guidelines including senior author for the cytoreduction/HIPEC guidelines and Cesarean Delivery guidelines. He holds the positions of Physician Lead for ERAS Alberta and Co-Chair of Enhanced Recovery Canada, along with previous roles as Secretary and Treasurer for the ERAS^Ò Society. Dr. Nelson has received over $9,000,000 in grant funding, authored >200 peer-reviewed publications and 12 book chapters, including lead editor of the ERAS^Ò Society Handbook for Obstetrics & Gynecology, and has presented on ERAS >130 times (78 times internationally). Dr. Nelson recently received the Award for Outstanding Achievement in Gynecologic Surgery from the International Gynecologic Cancer Society (IGCS) for his work on ERAS. This award recognizes individuals who have had a sustained career in academic surgery and have made seminal contributions in clinical surgery or surgical education that established new benchmarks or paradigms.

Dr. Tom C. Nguyen is Professor and Chair of the Department of Cardiovascular Sciences at Florida International University, Chief Medical Executive of Baptist Heart and Vascular, Director of Minimally Invasive Valve Surgery, and Barry T. Katzen Endowed Chair. In his role as Chief Medical Executive, he leads cardiac surgery, cardiology, vascular surgery, and interventional radiology for the 12-hospital network. Dr. Nguyen comes from the University of California San Francisco (UCSF), where he was the Charles Schwab Distinguished Professor of Surgery, Co-Director of the Heart and Vascular Center, and Professor and Chief of the Division of Adult Cardiothoracic Surgery. At UCSF, he flourished in a productive practice of nearly 300 pump cases/year. While at UCSF, Dr. Nguyen transformed the division of cardiothoracic surgery helping to double the volume and set milestones in quality, outcomes, and research.

Dr. Nguyen is active in research and creativity at a regional, national, and international level. He has published nearly 300 peer-reviewed articles, serves on the editorial board for four academic journals and is editor of several textbooks on surgery. Before turning 40, he received the Houston Business Journal?s 40 Under 40 Award. He has been principal investigator on landmark trials exploring transcatheter aortic and mitral valve replacements. He recently served as President of the 21st Century Cardiothoracic Surgery Society and is a Director of the American Board of Thoracic Surgery (ABTS). He also serves on the Board of Directors for the STS Thoracic Surgery Foundation (TSF), CTSNet, and the International Society for Minimally Invasive Cardiothoracic Surgery (ISMICS).

Dr. Nguyen was born in Vietnam and as an immigrant, perseverance embodies his life philosophy. He went to college at Rice University, medical school at Johns Hopkins, general surgery residency at Stanford University, cardiothoracic fellowship at Columbia Presbyterian, and he completed a transcatheter fellowship at Emory University.

Louis P. Perrault earned his medical degree from Université de Montréal in 1986. He pursued three years of basic science research training in Paris under the mentorship of Professor Paul VanHoutte at Université Louis-Pasteur, completing a PhD in fundamental research in 1997. That same year, Dr. Perrault joined the Department of Cardiac Surgery at the Montreal Heart Institute (MHI) as a cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon.

His clinical expertise includes coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), valve surgery, and heart transplantation. As an active researcher at the MHI, his primary research interests focus on endothelial dysfunction in left ventricular hypertrophy, pulmonary hypertension after cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB), stem cell therapy, and heart transplantation.

Dr. Perrault also serves as a Vice-Chair & Vice-Chair of scientific affairs at the department of surgery at Université de Montréal, but also as full Professor of Surgery and Pharmacology. He has been the Director of the Extracorporeal Perfusion Program since 2004. He has been the local Principal Investigator for the Cardiothoracic Surgical Trials Network (CTSNet) under the NIH/CIHR since 2007 and is an investigator with the Fonds de la Recherche en Santé du Québec (FRSQ).

Dr. Perrault has authored or co-authored over 360 peer-reviewed articles, including publications in The New England Journal of Medicine, Circulation, Journal of Cardiovascular & Thoracic Surgery, and The Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation. He has served as senior author on more than 90 of these papers and contributed several book chapters. Additionally, he has delivered over 60 lectures at international conferences. His key research areas include endothelial dysfunction in left ventricular hypertrophy, pulmonary hypertension post-CPB, stem cell therapy, and heart transplantation

Jack Pirris, MD is Chief of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the University of Florida, Jacksonville. He is certified by the American Board of Surgery and the American Board of Thoracic Surgery.

Dr. Pirris did his undergraduate work at the University of Notre Dame and received his medical degree from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. He completed general surgery residency at the University of Florida and completed thoracic and cardiovascular residency at The Texas Heart Institute and MD Anderson Cancer Center. He returned to the University of Florida to lead the department in Jacksonville in 2014.

He has authored many articles in peer reviewed journals regarding aortic aneurysms, minimally invasive surgery, and rigid fixation. Dr. Pirris was involved with the development of Sternalock Blue rigid fixation system for sternal closure and was one of the developing surgeons for Sternalock 360. Dr. Pirris is a leader in robotic and minimally invasive cardiothoracic surgery as well as complex aortic diseases.

Dr. Pirris is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons and a member of the Society of Thoracic Surgeons as well as other prestigious medical societies. Dr. Pirris trains surgeons in minimally invasive and complex cardiac surgery as well as robotic thoracic surgery.

Amanda Rea DNP, CRNP is the Lead of Advanced Practice and the Clinical Program Manager for the Division of Cardiac Surgery at University of Maryland St Joseph Medical Center. She has 20+ years of critical care and cardiac surgery experience. At UMSJMC she co-developed the Cardiac Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) program which is focused on group learning, standard work, and improving patient outcomes. She chairs the multidisciplinary integrated care committee at her facility which tracks process measures and programmatic performance. In 2023 Amanda was names Nurse Practitioner of the Year by The Daily Record.

External to her organization Amanda is chair of goal directed therapy workgroup with the Perfect Care regional collaboration project and co-chairs the ERAS Cardiac multidisciplinary meeting. She sits on the advisory board and virtual training center editorial board for the ERAS Cardiac Society. She is also a member of STS critical care workforce, Maryland Cardiac Surgery Quality Initiative (MCSQI) and has participated in multiple Perioperative Quality Initiative (POQI) publication expert consensus. She has published on multiple areas related to Enhanced Recovery. Amanda has lectured internationally on topics related to Cardiac ERAS, team building, goal directed therapy and patient blood management.

Eric Roselli, MD, is Director of the Aorta Center and a Staff Surgeon in the Cleveland Clinic Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery and on the teaching faculty at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine. He is certified by the American Board of Surgery and the American Board of Thoracic Surgery.

Dr. Roselli did his undergraduate work at the University of Michigan, where he received the David J. Hallisey Memorial Academic Scholarship. He received his medical degree from Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine, graduating in 1997 "with distinction." He completed residencies in both surgery and thoracic and cardiovascular surgery at Cleveland Clinic, followed by additional training in catheter-based interventions and endovascular surgery. He was appointed to Cleveland Clinic in 2005 in the Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery.

He has authored or co-authored several book chapters and articles in peer-reviewed journals on root, arch, and thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysms, endovascular aortic surgery, reoperative cardiac surgery, aortic valve disease, cardiac tumors, cardiac CT, atrial fibrillation and transcatheter aortic valve development. Dr. Roselli participates in the peer review process as a reviewer for prestigious medical journals.

Dr. Roselli is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons and a member of the American College of Cardiology. He has served as a chairman and member of the program committee for multiple national meetings, co-authored practice guidelines for the treatment of patients with cardiovascular diseases, and is an active member of the American Association for Thoracic Surgery and the Society of Thoracic Surgeons.

Univ.-Prof. Dr. med. Michael Sander, FESAIC

Director Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine, University Hospital Gießen, UKGM GmbH

Vice Dean for Research, Faculty of Medicine, Justus-Liebig-University Gießen

Rudolf-Buchheim Str. 7

35392 Gießen

Tel.: 0641-985-44401

Fax: 0641-985-44409

email michael.sander@chiru.med.uni-giessen.de

Twitter @Mich_San_d

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-sander-69b71396/

Dr. Stoppe is a Professor of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine at Charité in Berlin and Würzburg University, Germany. He leads several major international clinical trials in perioperative and critical care medicine and has established a global research network dedicated to interventional nutrition studies, working closely with collaborators worldwide.

Through these international partnerships, Dr. Stoppe’s research has secured numerous grants, including funding from the German Research Foundation (DFG) and other third-party sources. His work encompasses a wide range of topics such as interventional nutrition, perioperative optimization, risk assessment, functional outcomes, guideline development, translational research, and organ protection strategies. This research is particularly focused on areas like cardiac surgery, severe burns, and the care of critically ill patients.

With a publication record of over 250 scientific articles, Dr. Stoppe is an active and highly regarded speaker at international conferences. He also teaches courses on nutrition and metabolism and contributes to European, American, German, and Canadian Nutrition Guidelines Committees, further reinforcing his global engagement in advancing clinical practices.

LinkedIn

https://www.linkedin.com/in/christian-stoppe-93b69442/

Website

https://www.criticalcarenutrition.com/about-us/team-members

Dr. Williams is a faculty member of the WakeMed Heart Center and the WakeMed Clinical Research Institute. Dr. Williams is a faculty member of the Duke University School of Medicine in the Department of Surgery, Division of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery. Dr. Williams practices at Duke University Hospital and WakeMed Health and Hospitals Raleigh Campus, HeartCarePlus+.

Dr. Williams specializes in adult cardiac surgery, heart valve surgery, coronary heart surgery and bypass surgery, surgery for thoracic aortic aneurysm, endovascular heart and aorta treatments, structural heart including transcatheter heart valves and minimally invasive mitral and aortic valve surgery.

Dr. Williams is internationally known for cardiovascular clinical research. His research is focused on adult cardiac surgery quality, value, outcomes, and clinical trials. He is a principal investigator for the NIH-sponsored Cardiothoracic Surgical Trials Network. He has published over 70 major articles including studies published in the most prestigious medical journals: JAMA, Circulation, NEJM, and the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. As a recognized expert in cardiac surgical research, Dr. Williams is a frequent invited speaker at national and international meetings and he has received both government and industry funding. His research has been covered by medical and conventional news outlets nationally and internationally.

Dr. Zarbock is a Clinician Scientist and the Director and Chair of the Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, at the University of Münster, Germany. He acquired training at the University of Münster (Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine). Dr. Zarbock is supported by the German Research Foundation. His research interests span various aspects of Critical Care Medicine, but center in critical care nephrology (renal replacement therapy), sepsis and organ protection. Dr. Zarbock’s current projects include measures to avoid acute kidney injury after surgery and the timing of renal replacement therapy in critically ill patients with acute kidney injury. He is also author and co-author of over 140 scientific articles and book chapters.