2020 Resident and Fellow Graduation Department of Surgery

Department of Surgery Resident and Fellow Graduation

June 2020 Improve Every Life

DEPARTMENT OF SURGERY GRADUATION Medical Student Awards Presented by Paul Montero, M.D.

Golden Apple Teacher of the Year Awards Faculty Award - Granville Lloyd, M.D. Resident Award - David Sprunger, M.D.

Alden Harken Clinical Research Awards Davis Aasen and Alexander Schulick

Owens-Swan Award for Promising Career in Surgery Adam Carroll

George Packard Awards for Outstanding Performance Jaclyn DeRieux and Alexander Schulick

DeLauro Scholarship Award Erika Baird

Grover Surgical Society Eiseman Faculty Teaching Award David Campbell, M.D.

Residency Awards

Department of Surgery Annual Research Symposium Awards Clinical and Basic Science Presentations Presented by Robert Meguid, M.D.

Ernest E. Moore Award for Basic Science Robert Torphy, M.D.

Frederick Grover Award for Clinical Research Heather Carmichael, M.D.

Ben Eiseman Research Awards

Presented by Martin D. McCarter, M.D. Heather Carmichael, M.D. - Clinical Research Michael Jarrett, M.D. - Basic Science Research

J. Cuthbert Owens Award Presented by Mark R. Nehler, M.D. Maggie Hodges, M.D.

Presentation of Research Fellowship Certificates

Presented by Mark Nehler, M.D.

Matthew G. Bartley, M.D. GI, Trauma & Endocrine Surgery – Ernest Moore, M.D. Rashikh Choudhury, M.D. Transplant Surgery – Trevor Nydam, M.D. Christian V. Ghincea, M.D. Cardiothoracic Surgery – Brett Reece, M.D. Michael J. Jarrett, M.D. Cardiothoracic Surgery – David Fullerton, M.D. Alexandra F. Kovar, M.D. GI, Trauma & Endocrine Surgery – Ethan Cumbler, M.D. Teresa Jones, M.D. Thomas Robinson, M.D. Sarah Tevis, M.D. Frank Wright, M.D. Atsushi Oba, M.D., Ph.D. Surgical Oncology – Marco Del Chiaro, M.D. Anastasia Plotkin, M.D. Vascular Surgery – University of Southern California - Fred Weaver, M.D. Robert J. Torphy, M.D. Surgical Oncology – Yuwen Zhu, Ph.D. Navin G. Vigneshwar, M.D. GI, Trauma & Endocrine Surgery – Ernest Moore, M.D. Cardiothoracic Surgery – Mohammed Aftab, M.D. Allana M. White, M.D. Cardiothoracic Surgery – Michael Weyant, M.D.

Department of Surgery Graduates General Surgery Residency

Program Director, Mark R. Nehler, M.D. Peter Einersen, M.D. Oliver J. Fackelmayer, M.D. John H. Frankel, M.D. Alicia Heelan Gladden, M.D. Samuel J. Michel, M.D. Eliza Moskowitz-Kassai, M.D. Benedetto Mungo, M.D. David B. Sprunger, M.D. Daniel G. VanDerPloeg, M.D. Bradley J. Wallace, M.D.

Burn Surgery Fellowship

Program Director, Arek Wiktor, M.D. Jessicah A. Respicio, M.D.

Cardiothoracic Surgery Residency Program Director, David Fullerton, M.D. Christopher Holley, M.D. Andrew Mesher, M.D.

Congenital Cardiac Surgery Fellowship Program Director, James Jaggers, M.D. Taufiek Konrad Rajab, M.D.

Pediatric Bariatric Surgery Fellowship Program Director, Thomas Inge, M.D. Sarah B. Ogle, M.D.

Pediatric Colorectal Surgery Fellowship Program Director, Andrea Bischoff, M.D. John Wiersch, M.D.

Pediatric Surgery Fellowship

Program Director, Jennifer Bruny, M.D. Mohammed Ageel, M.D.

Pediatric Urology Fellowship

Program Director, Duncan Wilcox, M.D. Sarah Hecht, M.D.

Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery Residency Program Director, Tae Chong, M.D. Salih Colakoglu, M.D. Andrew Peredo, M.D.

Reconstructive Urology Fellowship Program Director, Brian Flynn, M.D. David Koslov, M.D.

Surgical Critical Care Fellowship

Program Director, Clay Cothren Burlew, M.D. Jonathan Meizoso, M.D. Cordelie Witt, M.D.

Trauma and Acute Care Surgery Fellowship Program Director, Clay Cothren Burlew, M.D. Amy Gore, M.D. Alexander Schwed, M.D.

Transplant Surgery Fellowship Program Director, Trevor Nydam, M.D. Hillary Yaffe, M.D.

Urology Fellowship

Program Director, Randall B. Meacham, M.D. Matthew Danzig, M.D. Timothy Vanadurongvan, M.D. Cole Wiedel, M.D.

Vascular Surgery Fellowship

Program Director, Rafael Malgor, M.D. Sammy Siada, D.O.

General Surgery Chief Resident Presentations Award Presentations

Faculty Teacher of the Year Award Eric Peltz, D.O. Todd Arcomano, M.D.

Intern of the Year Award Martin Barrio, M.D.

APP of the Year Award Brennen Griffin, PA-C

General Surgery Chief Residents

Peter Einersen, M.D. enrolled in the University of Colorado General Surgery Residency program after graduating from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in 2013. Peter spent two years in the research laboratory with Dr. Ernest “Gene” Moore in the Trauma Translational Research laboratory. Peter received the Grover Clinical Science award for his presentation at the 2016 Department of Surgery Research Symposium. Dr. Einersen did an elective month as a postgraduate year 4 at Zhenjiang University in Hangzhou, People’s Republic of China in Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Surgery and one month at St. Anthony’s Hospital in General Surgery. Following his General Surgery training, Dr. Einersen will be continuing his training with a Minimally Invasive Surgery Fellowship at Mount Sinai Health System in New York City.

Oliver James Fackelmayer, M.D. received his medical degree from New York Medical College and started his residency program in General Surgery at the University of Colorado in 2015. He did his postgraduate year 4 elective in Global Surgery at the University Teaching Hospital of Kigali, in Rwanda.

Upon completion of his residency, he will be moving to California, with his wife Lawson, to begin a fellowship in Endocrine Surgery at the University of California, Los Angeles.

John H. Frankel, M.D. graduated from Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center and enrolled in the residency program in General Surgery at the University of Colorado in 2014. After the first two years of clinical training, he completed a one-year surgical research fellowship in the Burn research laboratory under the mentorship of Dr. Elizabeth Kovacs. His postgraduate year 4 elective was in General Surgery at Hospital do Servidor PĂşblico Estadual in Sao Paulo, Brazil. John will stay in the Department as a Fellow in Minimally Invasive Surgery.

Alicia Heelan Gladden, M.D., M.S. was born and raised in the Colorado mountains. After attending college in Massachusetts and graduate school in New York, Alicia attended The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences in Washington D.C. Graduating in 2013, she was thrilled to return to Colorado to join the General Surgery Residency program. During residency, Alicia completed the two-year Quality Improvement and Leadership in Surgery fellowship under the mentorship of Dr. Ashley Vavra and Dr. Franklin Wright and completed clinical outcomes research in breast surgical oncology under the mentorship of Dr. Colleen Murphy. She was nominated as Administrative Chief resident by her peers, serving during her postgraduate year 6 and postgraduate year 7. After graduation, Dr. Heelan Gladden will begin a Breast Surgical Oncology Fellowship at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.

Samuel J. Michel, M.D. was born and raised outside of Boston, Massachusetts. He attended Harvard College and then Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine before moving west in 2015 to join the General Surgery Residency at the University of Colorado. During residency, Sam explored his interests in rural surgery and global health with electives in Thermopolis, Wyoming and Kigali, Rwanda. Outside of the hospital, Sam spent much of his free time exploring the mountains of Colorado and the surrounding states. After a summer sabbatical, Sam will be moving this fall with his partner, Jordan, to Olympia, Washington, where he will be joining a General Surgery practice and fishing for salmon from a kayak.

Eliza “Shevie� Moskowitz Kassai, M.D. was born and raised in Denver by parents Jay and Joyce. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology at Yeshiva University in New York City. She completed her Doctorate in Medicine at the Technion Institute in Haifa, Israel. She subsequently returned home to complete her residency in General Surgery at the University of Colorado. During her training, she completed a year-long Trauma Surgical Outcomes Research Fellowship under the mentorship of Dr. Thomas Schroeppel. She was elected President of the Housestaff Association of the University of Colorado Hospitals by her peers and served in this position for one year. She and her husband Daniel are the proud parents of three children: Aaron, 11, Michael, 7, and Lily, 1. Dr. Kassai looks forward to staying close to home and giving back to the greater Denver Community. After completion of her training, she will be joining a General Surgery and Trauma and Acute Care practice with Mountain View Surgical Associates in Parker this fall.

Benedetto Mungo, M.D. attended the University of Padova in Italy and obtained his Doctor of Medicine degree in 2010 prior to enrolling in the Johns Hopkins Surgery Residency program for the first two clinical years of surgery residency. Dr. Mungo was a postdoctoral research fellow in Thoracic Surgery at Johns Hopkins University from 2013 to 2015. He then transferred into the University of Colorado General Surgery Residency program as a postgraduate year 3. Dr. Mungo’s postgraduate year 4 elective was at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in Surgical Oncology with a Murray F. Brennan scholarship. Dr. Mungo was awarded the J. Cuthbert Owens Award for Professionalism at the 2019 Surgery graduation and awards ceremony. He has matched with the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center for a Complex General Surgical Oncology fellowship after graduation.

David B. Sprunger, M.D. graduated from the University of Colorado School of Medicine in 2013, prior to joining the University of Colorado General Surgery Residency Program. He did a two-year research fellowship with Dr. Swigris at National Jewish Hospital. David’s postgraduate year 4 elective was done at Poudre Valley Hospital in General and Vascular Surgery. He plans to work in community practice after graduation.

Daniel Glenn VanDerPloeg, M.D. came to the University of Colorado General Surgery Residency program after graduating from the University of Kentucky College of Medicine in 2015. During his residency, he completed an elective in Cardiothoracic Surgery. Daniel will be staying at the University of Colorado to do a one-year Surgical Critical Care fellowship.

Bradley J. Wallace, M.D. graduated from medical school in 2013 at the University of Texas Southwestern prior to joining the University of Colorado General Surgery Residency program. He did two years of research with Dr. Steven Abman in Neonatology during his 7-year training program. He served as Administrative Chief Resident both as a postgraduate year 4 and postgraduate year 5. His postgraduate year 4 electives were at Presbyterian St. Luke’s Hospital in Pediatric Surgery and at Zhejiang University in Hangzhou, People’s Republic of China, in Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Surgery. Dr. Wallace received the Ernest E. Moore Basic Science Award for his presentation at the 2017 Department of Surgery Research Symposium. Bradley has accepted a fellowship position in Pediatric Bariatric Surgery at the University of Alabama for the next academic year.

Burn Surgery Fellowship

Jessicah A. Respicio, M.D. was born and raised in St. Louis, Missouri.

She graduated from Saint Louis University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology, and then attended Saint Louis University School of Medicine. Jessicah came to the University of Colorado for her General Surgery residency, of which she has completed three years. She is currently completing a two-year Burn Surgery Fellowship at the University of Colorado; she will return July 2020 to finish her last two years of General Surgery residency training.

Cardiothoracic Surgery Residency

Christopher Holley, M.D. obtained his undergraduate and medical degrees from Creighton University prior to enrolling at the University of Minnesota for general surgery residency in 2010. He began his Cardiothoracic Surgery Fellowship at the University of Colorado in 2017. Upon graduation at the University of Colorado, Christopher has accepted a position at Park Nicollett Methodist Hospital in St Louis Park, Minnesota.

Andrew Mesher, M.D. completed his undergraduate education at Stanford University in 2005. He obtained his medical degree and completed his General Surgery residency at the University of Washington School of Medicine. During residency, he completed a Fellowship in Pediatric Extracorporeal Life Support at Seattle Children’s Hospital and the Biodesign Innovation Fellowship at Stanford University. He began cardiothoracic surgical training at the University of Colorado in 2017. Upon completion of his clinical fellowship, Dr. Mesher will be joining the St. Luke’s Health System in Boise, Idaho.

Congenital Cardiac Surgery Fellowship

Taufiek Konrad Rajab, M.D. was educated at the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge. Subsequently he trained in general surgery and cardiothoracic surgery at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital / Harvard Medical School. At Harvard, Konrad also invented and patented a technique for molecular enhancement of donor organs. Konrad feels very grateful for the privilege to learn the art and science of congenital cardiac surgery under the mentorship of Dr. James Jaggers at Children’s Hospital Colorado. Upon graduating from Colorado, Konrad plans to join the Medical University of South Carolina as Assistant Professor and Director of Congenital Cardiac Surgery Research.

Pediatric Bariatric Surgery Fellowship

Sarah B. Ogle, D.O., M.S. was born and raised in Saint Charles, Illinois by parents Caroline and Russ. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Northern Illinois University in Dekalb, Illinois in 2007. She then attended medical school at Midwestern University and graduated in 2012. She went on to pursue surgical training at the University of Arizona Phoenix. During residency, Dr. Ogle completed a two-year research fellowship with Jonathan Lifshitz, Ph.D., and Theresa Currier Thomas, Ph.D. in the Translational Neurotrauma Research Program at the University of Arizona and Phoenix Children’s Hospital studying synaptogenesis after traumatic brain injury and obtained her Master’s degree in Clinical Translational Science. Dr. Ogle will complete fellowship in Pediatric Bariatric and Minimally Invasive Surgery on July 31, 2020, and will start a fellowship in Surgical Critical Care Pediatrics at the University of Colorado in August 2020.

Pediatric Colorectal Surgery Fellowship

John Wiersch, M.D. was born in Great Falls, Montana, to Glen and Rhonda Wiersch. He and his four siblings eventually came to call Colorado home after his father transitioned from a military to a civilian career. John earned his bachelor’s degree in Emergency Medicine from the University of Pittsburgh in 2005. He attended medical school at Pennsylvania State University’s College of Medicine, graduating in 2009. John started his surgical training at the University of Texas Health Sciences Center at San Antonio. During training, he completed a three-year research fellowship with Dr. George Gittes at the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh studying pancreatic development and islet cell biology. He continued his research fellowship for an additional year with Dr. Ross Willis at the University of Texas Health Sciences Center at San Antonio studying surgical education with additional work in clinical trials. After graduating from General Surgery residency, John completed a fellowship in Surgical Critical Care at the Children’s Hospital of Michigan. After his current fellowship at Children’s Hospital Colorado in Pediatric Colorectal Surgery, he will return to Detroit to start his Pediatric Surgery Fellowship at Children’s Hospital of Michigan. He will be accompanied by his loving wife, Mallory, and his rabbit, Patch.

Pediatric Surgery Fellowship

Mohammed Ageel, M.D. was born and raised in Lansing, Michigan by parents Hamza and Alawia. He moved to Saudi Arabia when he was in high school and earned his Medical Degree from Umm Al-Qura University Makkah, Saudi Arabia in 2006. He went on to pursue surgical training at King Abdulaziz Medical City in Jeddah Saudi Arabia. During residency, Dr. Ageel was granted a Scholarship to pursue his dream to become a pediatric surgeon in which he came back to The States and repeated his General Surgery training at The University of Toledo in Toledo, Ohio. The journey back to The States was successful when he joined the Pediatric Surgery Fellowship program at the University of Colorado. Dr. Ageel will complete his fellowship in Pediatric Surgery on July 31, 2020, and will start a faculty appointment with the Surgery Department at Umm Al-Qura University in October of 2020. He is married to Hadeel Sunbul, and they have four beautiful Children Hamza, Talah, Maryam, and Ali.

Pediatric Urology Fellowship

Sarah Hecht, M.D. was born and raised skiing and hiking in Salt Lake City, Utah. She left home to attend college at Yale University, followed by medical school at the University of Michigan. She completed her Urology Residency at Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, Oregon. She then came to Children’s Hospital Colorado to pursue subspecialty training in Pediatric Urology, under the mentorship of Dr. Duncan Wilcox. This summer, she will be returning to Oregon Health & Science University as an Assistant Professor of Pediatric Urology, where she will focus on pelvic reconstruction and pediatric renal transplantation.

Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery Fellowship

Salih Colakoglu, M.D. was born and raised in Istanbul, Turkey. After completing his medical training at the Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, he cultivated his interest in plastic surgery as the Peter Jay Sharp Reconstructive Breast Surgery Research Fellow at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. Salih spent a preliminary year at Massachusetts General Hospital and then completed his General Surgery training at New York-Presbyterian Queens, an affiliate of Weill-Cornell Medical College. After graduation, Dr. Colakoglu will be moving back to the east coast to complete a Reconstructive Microsurgery Fellowship at the Johns Hopkins Hospital.

Andrew L. Peredo, M.D. was born and raised in New York City. He graduated from Fordham University and St. George’s University for Medical School. Andrew completed his General Surgery training at Stony Brook University on Long Island, New York. He then went on to do a Burn & Reconstructive Fellowship at Jacobi Medical Center in the Bronx, New York, before coming to the University of Colorado. He and his wife Christina, an OR nurse at UCH, recently welcomed their first child, Jackson Louis Peredo. Along with their two fur babies, Maverick and Goose, Andrew’s family will be moving back home to Long Island, New York, where he will go into private practice.

Reconstructive Urology Fellowship

David Koslov, M.D. grew-up in Middleton, Wisconsin with his two sisters, Becca and Kathryn, and his parents Steven Koslov and Mary Fulton. He received his Doctorate in Medicine from the University of Toledo College of Medicine in 2012. He then completed his residency in Urological Surgery at Wake Forest University in 2018. After his completion with the Reconstructive Urology Fellowship at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, Dr. Koslov will be joining San Bernardino Urological Medical Group in California. He will be joined by his girlfriend, Dr. Quynh Nguyen, DVM who will be practicing emergency veterinary medicine, and their two cats, Tip & Lovey (both 15 years old) and dog, Callie, (10 years old).

Surgical Critical Care Fellowship

Jonathan Meizoso, M.D., M.S.P.H. was born and raised in Miami, Florida. After obtaining a B.S. in microbiology/immunology and an M.D. from the University of Miami, Jonathan completed a residency in general surgery at Jackson Memorial Hospital/University of Miami in Miami, FL. During this time, he also completed a postdoctoral research fellowship in trauma, surgical critical care, and burns at the Ryder Trauma Center and earned a Master’s of Science in Public Health degree from the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. He is currently a Fellow in Surgical Critical Care at the Denver Health Medical Center/University of Colorado and will be staying on for an additional year of training in Trauma and Acute Care Surgery. During his time off, Jonathan frequently travels back to the tropics (i.e., Miami) to spend time with family, friends, and his girlfriend, Ashley.

Cordelie E. Witt, M.D., M.P.H. was born and raised in Seattle, Washington. She attended the University of Michigan for medical school, and completed her General Surgery Residency at the University of Washington.

During residency, she completed a NIH-funded research fellowship in trauma outcomes at the Harborview Injury Prevention and Research Center, and earned her Master’s in Public Health in Epidemiology from the University of Washington School of Public Health. She has spent this past academic year as a Surgical Critical Care fellow at Denver Health and the University of Colorado and will continue next year as a Trauma and Acute Care Surgery fellow.

Trauma and Acute Care Surgery Fellowship

Amy Gore, M.D. grew up in Summit, NJ. She attended the University of Maryland, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in physiology and neurobiology.

She then continued her education with a master’s degree in Physiology from Georgetown University before going back home to New Jersey to complete her medical doctorate in 2011 at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School (formerly UMDNJ). Dr. Gore continued at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School for General Surgery Residency. During residency, she completed a two-year National Institutes of Health T32 research fellowship evaluating the effect of mesenchymal stem cells on wound healing and anemia following injury, shock, and chronic stress. During her clinical training she participated in short term surgical missions to Kenya, Haiti, and Ghana, and held a leadership role within the International Surgical Health Initiative. Upon completion of her training program, Dr. Gore has taken a position as Assistant Attending at Rutger’s New Jersey Medical School with their trauma team.

Alexander Schwed, M.D. was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York.

He studied English Language & Literature at Yale, where he was also an improvisational comedian, community health educator, and a moderate gadabout. After medical school at the University of Pennsylvania, Alex and his wife, Cody, moved to Los Angeles where Alex completed his general surgery training at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center. Following completion of his Surgical Critical Care and Trauma and Acute Care Surgery fellowship here in Denver, Alex, Cody, and their son, Henry, are moving back to Brooklyn where Alex will join the faculty at New York University. He will also be reunited with sarcasm, all-black clothing ensembles, and good carbohydrates, which he has missed dearly during his graduate medical education. He would like to express his sincere thanks to the Surgical Faculty at Denver Health for a wonderful two years.

Transplant Surgery Fellowship

Hillary Yaffe, M.D. is a graduate of the Sackler School of Medicine New York State/American Program. She completed her General Surgery Residency at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine/Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx, New York in June 2018. Her residency included a two-year research experience studying hepatocyte transplantation in rodent models of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis and Crigler-Najjar syndrome. Hillary was thrilled to be accepted to the Transplant Fellowship Program at the University of Colorado. She began her fellowship training in August of 2018, under the tutelage of an amazing faculty, including her longtime mentors, Drs. Pomfret and Pomposelli, who performed her father’s living donor liver transplant in July of 2008.

Hillary’s work during this training period spanning nine years would not have been possible without the unwavering support of her husband, Matthew Harris, their children, Ayelet and Benjamin Harris (age 6 years), and her entire family. Hillary is grateful to have worked within the Division of Transplant Surgery with such dedicated, inspiring, and kind individuals. She and her family will next return to New York where she will be an Attending Abdominal Organ Transplant surgeon at Montefiore Medical Center.

Urology Chief Residents

Matthew Danzig, M.D. was raised in East Brunswick, New Jersey. He attended Wesleyan University followed by medical school at Mount Sinai in New York City. He then completed a surgery internship at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and Urology Residency at the University of Colorado. Matt’s wife Elisabeth served in the emergency room at the University of Colorado hospital as a Behavioral Health Evaluator during his training. Their daughter Hannah was born on December 2, 2017. Hannah’s favorite Denver activities have included the elephant show at the Denver Zoo and digging for “fossils” in the dirt at Cheesman Park. Matt and his family will be moving to Milwaukee where he will complete a Fellowship in Pediatric Urology at the Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin.

Timothy Lynn Vanadurongvan, M.D. was born in Sioux Falls, South Dakota and raised in Milbank, South Dakota by parents Vichit and Kanya Vanadurongvan, along with two older siblings, Tommy and Tyler Vanadurongvan. He graduated from Saint Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota.

He completed his Doctorate of Medicine at the University of South Dakota Sanford School of Medicine. He then completed his preliminary general surgery years and urologic training at the University of Colorado. Dr. Vanadurongvan will be starting a private practice job with Urological Associates of Western Colorado in Grand Junction, Colorado in the fall.

Cole Wiedel, M.D. was raised in Colorado and attended Saint Louis University where he earned a degree in philosophy. He returned home and obtained his medical degree and completed a residency in Urology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. Dr. Wiedel will be moving to Salida, Colorado with his wife, Taisa, and children, Maura and Gus, to practice general urology for the region.

Vascular Surgery Fellowship

Sammy Siada, D.O. grew up in the suburbs of Detroit, Michigan. He moved with his family to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates as a teenager and completed high school there. He graduated magna cum laude from the University of Texas at Arlington Honors College with a BS in Biology in 2009 and subsequently completed his medical education at the University of North Texas Health Science Center in Fort Worth, Texas. Sammy then completed a General Surgery Residency at the University of California, San Francisco/Fresno in 2018 after which he moved to Denver to complete his Fellowship in Vascular and Endovascular Surgery at the University of Colorado. He plans to move back to Fresno this summer to join the Department of Surgery at the University of California, San Francisco Fresno as Assistant Clinical Professor.