Thousands of operations performed
Experience matters when patients face high-stakes decisions. My personal case volumes are among the highest in the Providence Health System overall, paired with careful case selection and preparation.
Adult cardiac surgery
Clear judgment for serious heart surgery.
My goal is to help patients and families understand when cardiac surgery is indicated, what advantages it may provide, what risks come with it, and what to expect during recovery.
Patients deserve explanations that are understandable, honest, and grounded in current evidence and guidelines. Virtual consultation is available for patients located in Washington state when clinically appropriate.
MD, JD, MPH
Medical, legal, and public-health training
Thousands
of cardiac operations performed
CVICU & ECMO
Surgical director and clinical leader
Experienced hands, careful judgment.
My clinical work spans adult cardiac surgery, including coronary artery bypass, valve surgery, aortic surgery, ECMO, and mechanical circulatory support. I practice at Swedish Medical Center, the busiest cardiac surgery program in the Pacific Northwest, and my personal case volumes are among the highest in the Providence Health System overall. The foundation is preparation, repetition, humility, and communication with patients and families.
High-volume program
Cardiac surgeon at Swedish Medical Center, the busiest cardiac surgery program in the Pacific Northwest, caring for adult patients with complex heart disease.
CVICU and ECMO leadership
Current surgical director of the Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit and ECMO Program, with a focus on coordinated care for the sickest cardiovascular patients.
Serious work, steady hands.
What patients can expect.
Cardiac surgery can be overwhelming. I try to make the decision-making process clearer, more direct, and more humane.
Clear indications
I explain why surgery is being considered, what problem it is meant to solve, and how guidelines and evidence inform the recommendation.
Honest risk discussion
Good care requires a direct conversation about risk, uncertainty, alternatives, and what recovery may realistically involve.
Long-term perspective
The best operation is not only the one that gets a patient through surgery, but the one that gives the most durable and meaningful result.
A personal approach to serious work.
Cardiac surgery requires focus, stamina, patience, technical discipline, and an eye on the long game.
Steady, direct, and approachable
I bring a blue-collar work ethic to cardiac surgery. I believe in preparation, endurance, honesty, and showing up fully for the task in front of me. Patients and families often meet surgeons at one of the most stressful moments of their lives, and my goal is to be clear, steady, and approachable without ever minimizing the seriousness of the situation.
At ease, but never casual
You will find me at ease talking about cardiac surgery because I am at ease doing cardiac surgery. That does not mean casual. It does not mean my guard is down. It means this work is deeply familiar to me. It is a demanding environment, but it is also the environment I have trained for and committed my professional life to.
The operation matters, but so do the preparation before surgery, the ICU course afterward, the recovery, and the long-term durability of the result. I have spent my career training for concentration under pressure, endurance through long and complex operations, and the judgment to think beyond the next step.
Serious heart surgery calls for calm communication, disciplined preparation, and a surgeon who can think beyond the next step.
My work combines operative experience, systems thinking, outcomes training, and a practical commitment to helping patients and families understand what is happening and why.
Training and formation.
My training reflects a long commitment to cardiac surgery, surgical outcomes, quality improvement, and patient-centered communication.
University of Michigan Medical School
Medical training at one of the nation’s leading academic medical centers, including top grades in surgical clerkship rotations at one of the most esteemed surgical training programs in the country.
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center
Early surgical training in an environment known for institutional quality collaboration and surgical outcomes improvement, with exposure to thought leaders in systems-based surgical care.
Brigham and Women’s Hospital / Harvard
General surgery training and research through the Center for Surgery and Public Health, with additional public-health training at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
Master of Public Health training in quantitative methods, with mentorship from Atul Gawande, an internationally renowned public-health researcher and author.
UCLA Cardiothoracic Surgery
Advanced cardiothoracic surgery fellowship training at UCLA, where I was selected and trained under Dr. Richard Shemin, a distinguished leader in cardiothoracic surgery.
Clinical leadership and advisory perspective.
My work also includes leadership in critical care systems, ECMO, quality improvement, risk communication, and the broader structure of high-performing cardiac surgical programs.
Clinical leadership
Surgical director of the CVICU and ECMO Program, with emphasis on team coordination, multidisciplinary decision-making, and high-acuity cardiovascular care.
Judgment under uncertainty
Cardiac surgery requires decision-making in complex clinical situations. My legal and public-health training help inform how I think about evidence, risk, communication, and systems.
Advisory and consulting work
Available for selected advisory work related to cardiac surgery, clinical quality, health systems, patient communication, risk, innovation, and cardiovascular program development.
Academic work and recognition.
Scholarship, teaching, and careful review of evidence are part of how I approach clinical judgment and patient communication.
Academic work
Research and academic interests include surgical outcomes, quality improvement, patient-centered care, risk prediction, and the organization of complex surgical systems.
Recognition
Training and professional recognition across surgery, public health, leadership, and complex adult cardiac surgical care.
Contact and appointments.
To request an appointment with Swedish Cardiac Surgery, please call the clinic directly. Virtual consultation may also be available for patients located in Washington state when clinically appropriate. For non-urgent professional or patient-related communication, you may also contact me by email.
Please do not send urgent symptoms or emergency concerns through this website or email. For emergencies, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department.