Department Newsletter "Surgical Notes"
Stay up-to-date on recent news from the department, including faculty accomplishments and updates, surgery research and publications, housestaff accomplishments, and staff introductions.
April 2021
Recent Headlines
Bariatric Surgery Program Designated Blue Distinction® Center
Congratulations to the bariatric surgery team!
The Blue Cross Blue Shield Association has named the Division of Bariatric & GI Surgery as a Blue Distinction® Center for Bariatric Surgery for a second time.
This is part of the Blue Distinction® Specialty Care program which recognizes nationally designated health care facilities that demonstrate expertise in their field of care. It also serves as a distinguishing factor for Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield patients seeking specialty services. VCU Health Weight Loss Surgery | BCBS Blue Distinction Centers
Publications
Recent publication announcements
Recent article published in the Annals of Surgical Oncology provides guidance on the timing of surgery during the COVID pandemic. The recommendations for managing care takes into consideration the 3–6 month delay in care.
Titled "Management of Cancer Surgery Cases During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Considerations" it is co-authored by Kandace P. McGuire, MD, Professor of Surgery, Division of Surgical Oncology and Chief, Section of Breast Surgery, Surgical Leader of the Multidisciplinary Breast Cancer Program at Massey Cancer Center. Download PDF | Link to article
Congratulations to authors Renee Cholyway, MD, VCU general surgery resident; Susan Haynes, MSW, MEd, surgical simulation administrator; and Emily Rivet, MD, MBA, assistant professor of surgery and internal medicine in VCU divisions of colon and rectal surgery and hospice and palliative medicine, on their recent article posted to the American College of Surgeons (ACS) Resources in Surgical Education (RISE) website.
The article, "Passing the Virtual Tissue: Tips and Tricks for Breaking Bad News Using Virtual Communication" discusses ways COVID-19 has caused an abrupt change in communication practices for physicians and health care providers and offers guidance on breaking bad news using technology. Link to article
"Robotic Urological Surgery in the Time of COVID-19: Challenges and Solutions" authors Lance J. Hampton, Riccardo Autorino, et. al. AUA | Journal Urology Practice | Patient Care Nov 2020 Link to journal | Learn more Division of Urology
Welcome New Faculty — October/November 2020
New Faculty Announcements
Jose Trevino, MD, FACS
Division Chair and Associate Professor of Surgery
Dr. Trevino joins us from the University of Florida-Gainesville, where he has taught since 2011 as an associate professor of surgery with tenure in the Division of Surgical Oncology and Pancreaticobiliary Surgery. He received his medical degree from the University of Illinois where he also completed his general surgery residency.
Dr. Trevino completed a research fellowship in cancer biology, tumor signaling, and biology at MD Anderson and his surgical oncology fellowship at the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute. His interests include cancer health disparities, pancreatic cancer biology and tumor microenvironment, cancer cachexia, novel therapeutics and how they relate to pancreatic cancer health equity.
11/1/20
Raphael Louie, MD, MPH
Assistant Clinical Professor of Surgery
Dr. Louie received his MPH and medical degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He then joined the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center for residency and then returned to UNC for a fellowship in complex general surgical oncology and traineeship in geriatric oncology.
His interests include breast cancer disparities and outcomes research, as well as disparities in care for the aging surgical oncology patient population.
10/26/20
Katherine Klein, MD, MS
Assistant Clinical Professor of Surgery
Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery
Dr. Klein received her master's and medical degrees from the University of Toledo where she also completed her general surgery residency. She then joined the University of Michigan where she completed her fellowship in cardiothoracic surgery. Dr. Klein's research interests include advances in heart transplantation, proximal tubular injury and patients with renal artery stenosis, and RV failure associated with LVAD implantation.
10/12/20
Paschalia M. (Lina) Mountziaris, MD, PhD
Assistant Clinical Professor of Surgery
Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
Dr. Mountziaris is an Assistant Professor of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at VCU Health. She was raised in upstate New York, and graduated magna cum laude from Princeton University. She earned her medical degree, as well as a Ph.D. in Bioengineering, through the Medical Scientist Training Program at Baylor College of Medicine and Rice University. She completed residency at Albany Medical Center, followed by fellowship training in complex reconstruction and microsurgery at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. Her clinical interests include complex oncologic and trauma reconstruction, with a focus on microsurgical flaps.
Walker Julliard, MD
Assistant Professor of Surgery
Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery
Dr. Julliard received his medical degree from the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry. He went on to complete his residency at University of Wisconsin and later his fellowship in cardiothoracic surgery at UVA. His areas of interest include the surgical treatment of non-cardiac diseases of the chest which includes all diseases of the lungs, the chest wall, the airways, and the esophagus. His research interests include how the immune system adapts based on environmental factors with the ultimate goal of identifying ways to alter the adaptive immune system to better accept lung transplants while still fighting against lung cancers.
Stephen Sharp, MD
Assistant Clinical Professor of Surgery
Division of Colon and Rectal Surgery
Dr. Sharp joins us from Cleveland Clinic Florida where he served as a staff surgeon. He received his medical degree from the University of Colorado School of Medicine and completed his residency at Albany Medical Center. He then joined Cleveland Clinic Florida for his fellowship in colorectal surgery. Dr. Sharp has particular interest in minimally invasive colorectal surgery, colorectal and anal cancer, surgical management of inflammatory bowel disease, colonic diverticular disease, benign anal and rectal conditions, and colonoscopy. His research interests include surgical outcomes research for benign and malignant colorectal conditions as well as colorectal racial disparities research.
Ashley Slaughter, MD
Assistant Professor of Surgery
Division of Acute Care Surgical Services
Dr. Slaughter received her medical degree from the University of Rochester and went on to complete her general surgery residency here at VCU. She completed her fellowship in surgical critical care at Medstar Washington Hospital Center in Washington, D.C. Dr. Slaughter has particular interest in acute care and trauma surgery, injury and violence prevention, as well as community outreach.
Arturo Cardounel, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor of Surgery
Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery
Dr. Cardounel joins us from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center where he completed his cardiothoracic surgery residency. Prior to joining University of Pittsburgh, Dr. Cardounel completed his PhD here at VCU and his MD at the Ohio State University. He is currently pursing basic cardiovascular research that aligns with his clinical interest in heart failure. In this regard, he is building on his expertise in redox signaling to identify novel molecular pathways involved in the pathophysiology of right ventricular dysfunction.
Lauren Nigro, MD
Assistant Professor of Surgery
Division of Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery
Dr. Nigro received her medical degree from the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey's Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. She then completed her Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery residency here at VCU and her fellowship in Breast and Microsurgical Reconstruction at Mercy Medical Center. Dr. Nigro's clinical interests include autologous breast reconstruction. Her research interests include improving aesthetic and functional outcomes of implant-based and autologous breast reconstruction.
Mack Drake, DO
Assistant Clinical Professor
Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
Dr. Drake received his doctor of osteopathic medicine degree from Pikeville College School of Osteopathic Medicine. He later completed his internship at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, residency at Virginia Tech, and his fellowships in trauma and critical care at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine. Dr. Drake's research interests include trauma and burn frailty and outcome measures, remote burn care in medically underserved regions, and critical care optimization of potential organ donors.
Jill Peysha, MD
Instructor
Division of Colon & Rectal Surgery
Dr. Peysha received her medical degree from the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine and then completed her residency here at VCU. Dr. Peysha has particular interest in trauma and acute care surgery as well as disorders of the colon and rectum to include rectal cancer and inflammatory bowel disease. She will jointly support the Divisions of Colorectal Surgery and Acute Care Surgical Services.
Stacy Street, MD
Assistant Clinical Professor
Division of Acute Care Surgical Services
Dr. Street received her medical degree from Marshall University School of Medicine, now the Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine at Marshall University. She went on to complete her general surgery residency at the Medical College of Georgia and surgical research at the Institute of Molecular Medicine and Genetics. Her areas of expertise and interest include wound healing, advanced wound care, hyperbaric oxygen therapy, and research related to clinical practices in wound care.
Faculty Promotions
Congratulations to the following faculty on their recent promotion and/or tenure:
Rahul J. Anand, MD | Professor
Michael J. Feldman, MD | Professor
Stefan W. Leichtle, MD | Associate Professor
Kandace P. McGuire, MD | Professor
Jennifer L. Rhodes, MD | Professor
(June 2020)
Employee Spotlight
Meet Dannette Arezzi, Division Supervisor for Acute Care Surgical Services
Dannette joined the department 14 months ago and her responsibilities at ACSS is office management and being the administrative liaison between the attending-faculty surgeons, her administrative staff, and the health system. She also provides administrative support to division faculty Dr. Paula Ferrada, Dr. Jill Peysha, Dr. Alan Rossi, and Dr. James Whelan, and is the ‘go-to’ support person for the division’s Advanced Practice Providers.
Dannette is committed to building morale among her coworkers and is focused on increasing her team’s engagement with and connection to the Division. Her dedication to her staff is shared in her email signature: “Just like the Lotus…we too have the ability to rise from the mud, bloom out of the darkness and radiate into the world.”
When we asked Dannette to describe the most satisfying part of her day she said “seeing the team come together with new ideas and initiatives, then implementing them with positive results.” As a balance, she also offered the most frustrating part of her job – “knowing how to fix a problem but having to first convince others it can be done.”
A self-avowed bookworm, Dannette relaxes away from work by reading up on books about metaphysics and emotional intelligence. When she’s not having fun cooking with her family, Dannette enjoys crocheting and knitting.
Announcement from Dr. Kasirajan
All Hands on Deck: Tackling Covid-19
To each of our team members, I want to thank you for what you do each and every day.
The entire Department of Surgery has stepped up in ways unimaginable to tackle this monster together. We want to especially recognize the following team members for stepping up to lead us through this "all hands on deck" action.
- David Lanning, MD: Interim CMO leading our organization from preparation into surge planning
- Anthony Cassano, MD: Associate CMO leading surgical services preparations
- Tony Herndon, MD: Children's Surgery and resident education planning
- Aimee Grover, MD: Wellness activities with the Health System and the School of Medicine
- Kandace McGuire, MD and Vinay Kumaran, MD: Reviewing testing vs. CT scans for all operative patients
- James Whelan, MD, Kwame Akuomoah-Boateng, DNP, Jill Peysha, MD, & Brian Kaplan, MD: Inpatient staffing leaders
- Laura Boomer, MD, Christin Kim, MD & Paula Ferrada, MD: ICU resource champions
- Levi Procter, MD: OR PPE Taskforce
- Guilherme Campos, MD, Mena Dous, Jeremy Powers, MD, & Erin MacMillan, PA: Outpatient staffing planning leaders
- Sterling Hundley & Amanda Jabri: Incredible work to identify alternate sources of masks to include 3D printing
- Martin Mangino, PhD & Kirsty Dixon, PhD: Generously donated PPE from ORBIT
- Katie Golob & Nikki Meador: Incredible administrative and operational leadership
- Our Associate Administrators and staff: Without you, we would all be lost
Vigneshwar Kasirajan, MD
Chair, Department of Surgery
Keeping Up with VCU Surgery
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Latest News
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The VCU College of Engineering and leaders in economic development and private business have a plan to strengthen the region as an emerging business cluster.
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The suspension comes after federal health agencies on Tuesday called for an immediate pause in use of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
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The link to the vaccine isn’t definite, and cases are rare, but caution is necessary to ensure patient safety.
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The study provides important information for smokers who may be trying to use e-cigarettes as a means to cut down on their smoking habit.
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Gift from Helene Fuld Health Trust supports scholarships for master’s students at the VCU School of Nursing.
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Black Americans experienced highest per capita excess death rates, while regional surges contributed to higher excess death rates from COVID-19 and other causes, a VCU-led JAMA study finds.
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A new study led by VCU researchers surveyed 788 people. Among its findings: Older people were less likely to support donating vaccines, as were Republicans.
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“If we have a relative rate of vaccination that’s aligned with our relative rate of infection and death, that’s a more equitable approach.”