Surgery

Divisions
Message from the Director
Research
Residency and Fellowships
Contact Us / Directions

Welcome to the Department of Surgery

Message from the Director

Steven L. Lansman, MD, PhD
Director, Department of Surgery
Director, Cardiothoracic Surgery
Professor of Surgery
Westchester Medical Center

"Honoring the Past, Building the Future"

Welcome to the Department of Surgery at Westchester Medical Center (WMC), Valhalla Campus, the flagship hospital of the Westchester Medical Center Health Network and the premier provider of advanced medical care in the Hudson Valley. The Department of Surgery’s mission is to provide all patients with state-of-the art clinical services from world-class clinicians, regardless of case complexity. In order to achieve our mission we are enhancing the department by building an academic and research program in which every member can reach his or her fullest potential.

Our main objective is to grow the clinical, academic, and research portfolios of the Department of Surgery by providing advanced teaching and education to residents, medical students, fellows, and allied health professionals. We are continually expanding our outreach and community initiatives across the Hudson Valley and beyond. Our motto is to honor the past, but at the same time, build and shape the future of surgery.

The Department of Surgery at WMC Health is home to the best surgical leaders both nationally and internationally. We perform the most complex and advanced surgical procedures available today, using state-of-the-art robotic technology, telemedicine, interdisciplinary collaborative approaches, and evidence-based practices. Our department has a long and rich clinical and research history in collaboration with New York Medical College, which includes Cardiac Surgery (including heart transplant), Bariatric and Minimally Invasive Surgery, Burn Surgery, Colorectal Surgery, General Surgery, Intra-abdominal Transplant Surgery, Pediatric Surgery, Plastic Surgery, Surgical Oncology, Thoracic Surgery, Trauma and Acute Care Surgery, and Vascular Surgery. WMC is also the home to the Joel A. Halpern Trauma Center, a Level 1 Adult and Pediatric Trauma Center, which is accredited by the American College of Surgeons/Committee and serves the entire Hudson Valley Region.

Our faculty at WMC Health take great pride in training the surgeons of the future. The General Surgery Residency Program, Surgical Critical Care Fellowship, and Minimally Invasive Surgical Fellowship are highly competitive and sought after training programs, which have trained and continue to train some of the world’s leaders in surgery, trauma, critical care, and minimally invasive surgery.

The newly established Department of Surgery Clinical Research Unit (DSCRU) at WMC is a catalyst to enhance research and publications of the department. The DSCRU provides support for attending staff, residents, and fellows through a number of initiatives and programs, including the International Research Fellowship. Finally, thank you for visiting the website of the Department of Surgery at WMC Health Network. I am delighted to show you our department, and welcome you to meet our clinical and research faculty, residents, and fellows.

Research

Introduction

The Department of Surgery has a long and rich history of clinical research, aiming to grow a serious academic portfolio, and advance teaching and education of medical students, residents, fellows, and allied health staff while at the same time expand our research activites into translational research and pursue grant applications and industrial partnerships.

In order to achieve the highest quality and coordination within the research realm, our department has created a professional and dedicated research team called the Clinical Research Unit. The faculty of the research unit consists of highly trained professional researchers who are available 24/7 to satisfy the entire department of surgery's research needs.

The Department of Surgery Clinical Research Unit (DSCRU) will act as a catalyst to enhance the research activity of the department, and will also be responsible for research support for attending staff, residents, and fellows through a number of initiatives and programs including the International Research Fellowship. They also analyze large amounts of clinical and operational data that is used for quality assurance projects, research publications and conference presentations.

Research Priorities

Aortic dissection repair
Aortic valve repair
Bariatric surgery
Breast cancer disparities
Breast surgery
Carotid artery revascularization
Colorectal cancer surgery
Complex abdominal wall reconstruction
Congenital anomalies surgery
Diverticulitis surgery
Firearm deaths
Heart, liver, kidney transplantation
Lower extremity artery revascularization
Pediatric and adult emergency general surgery
Robotic-assisted surgery
Surgical critical care and COVID-19
Trauma surgery of the abdomen, pelvis, chest and skull
Traumatic brain injury
Ventricular assist device

Associate Director

David J. Samson, MS

David J. Samson, MS, has had nearly 30 years of experience in evaluating clinical research. With training and experience in both chronic disease epidemiology and clinical epidemiology, his strengths include research design, research methods, biostatistics, critical appraisal of studies, health technology assessment, systematic review, comparative effectiveness research, meta-analysis and economic evaluation of healthcare practices. He previously worked in health technology assessment programs at the ECRI Institute and the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. David has written over 100 technology assessment reports in all areas of clinical medicine. Since 1997, he fulfilled contracts with the US Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, completing highly rigorous systematic reviews on prominent healthcare questions. He has authored many major government reports and journal articles on comparative effectiveness. He has sat on panels for specialty society clinical practice guidelines and served as a member of the Medicare Evidence Development & Coverage Advisory Committee at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. He has presented at numerous conferences and training seminars. At the Westchester Medical Center Department of Surgery Clinical Research Unit, he advises on research design, guides projects through institutional approval, conducts statistical analyses, writes and edits journal manuscripts, prepares grant proposals and provides training in clinical research.

Please CLICK HERE for a list of Dr. Samson's publications.

VIEW THE DEPARTMENT OF SURGERY CLINICAL RESEARCH UNIT ANNUAL REPORT for a research and publication overview.

The research team includes:

Anuritha Tirumani, MD, Associate Director, Clinical Trials

Falyn Katzman, Research Coordinator

Daniela Vargas, Research Coordinator

Gabriel Rodriguez, PHD, Research Scientist

Mikaiel Ebanks, Statistician