The Department of Surgery offers didactic instruction as well as clinical and other practical experiences for medical students. It also hosts a wide spectrum of clinical and scientific research.
Faculty
The faculty's strengths center on pathophysiology and problems of severe burns, trauma, organ transplantation, surgical control of morbid obesity, surgical oncology, bowel disease, biliary tract disease, pediatric surgery, endocrine disease, plastic surgery, diseases of the esophagus, artificial organs, transplantation, and vascular surgery. Research also is underway in the sequence of mutations and in the localization of genes predisposed to cancer.
Department of Surgery courses provide a unique combination of experiences oriented toward patient care and understanding of surgery's place among a physician's skills. Surgery courses are open only to MD students and qualified students in associated health sciences.
Students develop an awareness of surgery's role in the treatment of disease. Emphasis is placed on general surgery, basic emergency surgery, trauma, oncology, burns, gastrointestinal and biliary tract disease, endocrine disease, pediatric surgery, transplantation, plastic and reconstructive surgery, and peripheral vascular surgery.
The majority of surgery courses involve patient-centered discussions and practical exercises interwoven with operating room experience. Lectures and conferences are scheduled regularly on specific topics.
The department offers independent study courses in selected surgery topics and clinical experiences; some are available to fourth-year MD students by arrangement with the faculty.
Abundant patient contact provides education on a wide variety of surgical diseases. The Department of Surgery provides training in the only burn unit in Iowa approved by the American College of Surgeons and in the Level I Trauma Center at University of Iowa Health Care.
Laboratories provide equipment, space, and technical expertise to support teaching and a wide spectrum of clinical and scientific research. Projects are available in gastrointestinal surgery, surgical microbiology, peripheral vascular surgery, transplantation, wound healing, organ preservation, vascular surgery, pediatric surgery, and surgical oncology.
The laboratories are also used for supervised teaching exercises in surgical techniques for medical students and junior residents and for the refinement of techniques for senior residents and faculty members.
