SUS/AAS - Key Persons

I am a surgeon/scientist at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. My overall goal is to become a productive researcher using novel approaches to investigate the role of innate immunity in intestinal diseases of prematurity. I trained in general surgery and pediatric surgery at the University of Cincinnati and Vanderbilt Respectively.Colin A. Martin, MD is an Associate Professor and Associate Vice Chair for Diversity Equity and Inclusion at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He completed his general surgery training at the University of Cincinnati and Pediatric surgery training at Vanderbilt University. Dr. Martin has a traditional clinical pediatric surgical practice with a specific interest in patients with intestinal failure and serves as the surgical Director of the Children's of Alabama/UAB Center for Advanced Intestinal Rehabilitation. He also has developed a basic science and translational research program that focuses on understanding the effects of environmental influences on neonatal immunity which has been funded by the NIH, American Surgical Association, Society for Surgery of the Alimentary Tract, and the Association for Academic Surgery (AAS). He is on the editorial board of the Journal of Surgical Research and the American Journal of Surgery. He also holds numerous national surgical societal leadership positions including serving as an executive committee member for the Society for Black Academic Surgeons and the AAS.

Job Titles:

• Professor of Surgery and Pediatrics / Division of Pediatric Surgery / Division of Hematology, Oncology, Blood and Marrow Transplantation

Dr. Eugene Kim is Professor of Surgery and Pediatrics, Division of Pediatric Surgery and Division of Hematology, Oncology, Blood and Marrow Transplantation at the University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine in Los Angeles, California. Dr. Kim has clinical expertise in pediatric surgical oncology, the management of chest wall deformities and anorectal malformations. Dr. Kim is the principal investigator of a basic science laboratory focused on novel preclinical therapeutics for the aggressive childhood malignancy, neuroblastoma. His research interests are focused on the mechanisms and pathways responsible for recurrent metastatic disease, the primary cause of death in children with high-risk neuroblastoma.

Job Titles:

• Program Director, General Surgery Residency

Joon Shim, M.D., M.P.H., FACS is a fellowship-trained, minimally invasive and bariatric surgeon. Dr. Shim specializes in general surgery, bariatric surgery, minimally invasive surgery, robotic surgery, reflux, hiatal hernia and endoscopy. She is the general surgery residency program director at Bassett Medical Center in Cooperstown, New York. She earned both her medical degree and her master's degree in public health from George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences. She completed her residency in general surgery at the University of Massachusetts and a fellowship in advanced minimally invasive surgery and bariatric surgery at Brown University. She served as an active duty Army surgeon for four years and completed two tours as a combat trauma surgeon for Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. She was awarded the Army Meritorious Service Medal.

Job Titles:

• Professor & Clinical Scholar Department of Surgery Keck School of Medicine University of Southern California

Job Titles:

• Associate Professor
• Member of the Coordinating Committee

Dr. Arora is an Associate Professor in the Department of Surgery at Augusta University at the Medical College of Georgia and the Program Director of the General Surgery Residency. She has completed ABS Certification in General Surgery and Complex General Surgical Oncology. Her clinical interests include breast cancer and complex GI oncology. In surgical education, she is interested in curriculum development, evaluation and methods of coaching. She is working on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at local and national levels. She was the inaugural GME subcommittee Chair of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Health Disparities for Augusta University and now serves as the Assistant Dean of Learner DEI for the Medical College of Georgia. In surgical organizations, she is the Vice Chair of the Association of Program Directors in Surgery's Committee on Diversity and Inclusion and a member of the Diversity Taskforce for the Academic Association of Surgeons and the American College of Surgeons Committee on Diversity. She is the Vice Chair for the Association of Surgical Education Committee on Citizenship and Global Responsibility.

Job Titles:

• Chief Value Officer and Interim Executive Medical Director at Huntsman Cancer Institute

Dr. Thomas Varghese Jr. is the Chief Value Officer and Interim Executive Medical Director at Huntsman Cancer Institute; Head of the Section of General Thoracic Surgery, Program Director of the Cardiothoracic Surgery Residency, and a Professor (Tenure-track) in the department of Surgery at the University of Utah. Dr. Varghese holds national leadership positions in the Society of University Surgeons, Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS), Thoracic Surgery Directors Association (TSDA), American College of Surgeons (ACS), and the National Cancer Care Network (NCCN). He serves as the Deputy Editor for Digital Media and Digital Scholarship for the Annals of Thoracic Surgery. He is a health services researcher who helped create the American College of Surgeons Strong for Surgery program (https://www.facs.org/quality-programs/strong-for-surgery and is a co-PI on the National Cancer Institute RO1-funded clinical trial on the role of Precision Exercise Prescription (PEP) for elective lung cancer surgical resection (https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03306992 ). Tom spends his free time with his family, as well as actively engaging on social media.