INSIDENEWS

MEET THE FACULTY

MEET THE CURRENT RESIDENTS

GRADUATION 2005SOCIETY EVENTS

SECOND YEAR RESIDENTS

INCOMING RESIDENTS

PLASTIC SURGERY OBSERVERSHIP

PROGRAM

MEET THE NEW PROFESSORS

RESIDENTS ENDOWMENT FUND

MIAMI SOCIETY OF PLASTIC SURGERY

WORD FROM THE CHIEFA years. He should be remembered for his

experimental work with one of our currentactive voluntary faculty Dr. GeorgeLevine at Children’s in the field of replan-tation and one of the first mandibulardistractions. Dr. Millard following hissecond tour of duty in Korea was briefly inpractice in Beverly Hills prior to movingpermanently to Miami.

In the 1960’s, the Medical Schoolappointed, Dr. Dean Warren, the Chair-man of the Department of Surgery. Hisgoal according to Dr. Snyder was to trans-form the Department of Surgery into aworld renowned institution. Dr. Jude wasrecruited from The Johns Hopkins Schoolof Medicine to direct the Division ofCardiothoracic Surgery and at his sugges-tion; Dr. Warren interviewed Dr. Snyderwho recently completed his plastic surgeryresidency at the same institution with Dr.Milton Edgerton to fill the vacancy aschief of a newly formed Division of PlasticSurgery. Dr. Snyder along with a wife andthree children embarked upon this chal-lenge in the summer of 1964. Dr. GilSnyder was responsible for initiating thefirst residency at Jackson.

Dr. Snyder was joined by all of hisplastic surgery colleagues within the com-munity who aided him in presentinglectures on pertinent topics to theUniversity of Miami Mel Lesavoy medicalstudents. Dr. Snyder was also given thetitles of chief of the tumor clinic responsi-ble for both resection and reconstructions,chief of the hand clinic with the assis-tance of the department of orthopedics,and initiating a plastic surgery clinic.

In addition, Dr. Snyder arranged forpsychiatry residents to rotate through theplastic surgery clinic and dermatologyresidents to learn techniques and performminor surgical procedures. Dr. Millard wasalso active clinically at Jackson workingwith Walter Garst who was a generalsurgery resident at JMH. Dr. Millard wasalso assisted by fellows initially fromEngland who were supported by RobertWood Johnson who lived here at thattime.

Dr. Snyder states that the first plasticsurgery resident was Charles Wilsonfollowed by Ghassan Khalil. After theJMH program received approval for a full

plastic surgery training program, PeterStokley arrived from Grady MemorialHospital. During his two year tenure atThe University of Miami, Dr. Snyder withthe assistance of Dr. Thomas Zaydon,Senior established the Miami Society ofPlastic Surgery following the close associ-ation we have with our colleagues in ourplastic surgery community.

In 1967, Dr. D. Ralph Millard wasappointed interim chief of the Divisionof Plastic Surgery by Dr. Dean Warren.Peter Stokley (now deceased) was thefirst resident chosen by Dr. Millard followedby Dr. Walter Garst who went into jointpractice with Dr. Millard in 1970 andremained together for approximately 5years. Dr. S.A. Wolfe returned from Parisin 1975 and they overlapped in practice forabout 6 months before starting his ownprivate practice in Miami. BetweenStokley, Garst remains somewhat lacking.Les Hovey was the chief resident in 1972when Dr. Wolfe commenced his plasticsurgery training. Dr. Hovey was in themilitary and became a long-time memberof the plastic surgery faculty at Stanford.Following was Gene Tansky who eventu-ally went into practice in Chicago. Thisbegan the period of two residents peryear. Following Tansky, Wolfe and GaryBurget who had been friends with WalterGarst was in the first year of plasticsurgery at Columbia. Garst ended up hissecond year of plastic surgery at Miami.Dr. Barnie Barrett followed Burget andwent into practice in Houston.

In completing 1975, Bill Little arrivedin Miami as a resident. Interestingly, hehad already completed a plastic surgeryresidency in Cleveland and desired asecond plastic surgery residency. Residentsthat followed included: Larry Ketch, Bill Riley,Mel Lesavoy and Scott Spear all of whomhave made significant contributions tovarious plastic surgery organizations.

Felix Freshwater, Greg Lovaas, andBuster Mullin completed their trainingduring the later 1970’s and early 1980’s. Inaddition to the residents, there were anumber of fellows who generally stayedfor almost 6 months. This built the foun-dations for today’s residency program.

We find ourselves completing ourthird annual alumni newsletter. As wecontinue to expand and develop theDivision of Plastic Surgery, at TheUniversity of Miami Miller School ofMedicine, I thought it would be interest-ing to review our history. According to Dr.Gil Snyder: “In the beginning, in Miami,there was no plastic surgery training pro-gram as we now know it”. According toTony Wolfe the first plastic surgeon, wasClifford Snyder. Both Drs. Clifford Snyderand Millard would be at the Cleft Clinictogether. Eventually, Dr. Snyder movedonto Utah where he was chief for many

June 2006Volume 3, Number 3

N E W S L E T T E RPLASTIC SURGERYPLASTIC SURGERY

ROGRAM DIRECTOR’S STATEMENTP

In today’s environment, programdirectors survive within an extremelychallenging situation. They must be ableto maintain an active clinical practice tocover their salaries as well as keep up anddocument the ever increasing require-ments set forth by accrediting agencies.However, the growth and developmentof a plastic surgery resident into an inde-pendent operating plastic surgeon alsohas its rewards. The UM/JMH PlasticSurgery residency has continued toevolve and develop over the years inorder to endure. We currently have sixresidents (three per year) in a fullyaccredited independent type plasticsurgery training program. Three yearsago, we decided to accept applicationsfrom only those candidates that havecompleted a surgical residency which hasresulted in an increase number of appli-cants from which to choose from. Overthis period of time, the caliber ofresidents has continued to improvemaking selection even more demanding.In addition, we have a hand and micro-

faculty with a “report card” of their per-formance detailing the competencies.On Thursday AM for our weekly didac-tic sessions, the residents are givenquizzes which gauge their capacity todigest a basic quantity of knowledge on aspecific plastic surgery topic. Surveys arepresented to patients and nurses to assistthe faculty in a so-called 360 degreeevaluation of their communicationsskills and professionalism. Special OSCEexaminations of simulated clinicalincidents are recorded and evaluatedwith the individual resident to assesstheir progress in these competencies.We have developed a set of trainingsessions consisting of video examination,reading assignments, and quizzes toassess their capacity to perform certainsurgical procedures prior to actuallygoing into the operating room for theactual surgery. In the future, we hope towork with Plastic Surgery industry todevelop and produce actual simulationlabs or situations in order to provideour residents with increasing guidanceand educational venues. Yes this is adif ferent residency education andprogram and will continue to evolve asneeded.

surgery fellowship under the stewardshipof Dr. Milton Armstrong with two fel-lows per year. We are in the process ofapplying for ACGME Accreditation forthis program. In collaboration with Dr.Wolfe and Miami Children’s Hospital,we participate in the craniofacial fellow-ship which is also applying for ACGMEaccreditation. Last ly, we have had anopportunity to develop a basic scienceresearch program in collaboration withthe vascular biology laboratory at TheUniversity of Miami and employ afull-time research fellow.

Once matriculated into the program,we have each resident immediatelyinvolved in a rigorous curriculum that willhelp them develop a basic fund of knowl-edge to ultimately practice the specialtyof plastic surgery. Present day academicrequirements are now based on theconcept of outcomes in six so-called“competencies” This demands that oureducational program develop a numberof initiatives that fulf ill these meansof measurements. For instance, eachWednesday during our indications confer-ence, our house-staff may be presentedwith an unknown case for discussion andreceive immediate feedback from the

EET THE CURRENT RESIDENTSM

general surgery residency in 2002 in theUniversity of Puerto Rico program.Afterwards, he completed a breastcancer fellowship at the Oregon Healthand Science University, Portland, OR.During this fellowship his involvement inreconstructive breast surgery generatedthe idea of combining both the initialmanagement of breast cancer and thesubsequent reconstruction by the samesurgeon evolved. Therefore, he appliedfor a plastic surgery residency spot, andwas accepted at Jackson MemorialHospital. Prior to starting his residency,he completed a Microsurgery & HandSurgery fellowship at the same institu-tion. He met his wife during generalsurgery residency, subsequently marriedin 2002, and they have been blessed withtwo children. Upon his return to PuertoRico he plans to start a practice anddevote part of his time to the improvingthe availability of reconstructive surgeryto his community.

SEAN SIMONSean graduated in the top of his class

in 1999 from the University of Miamimedical school. He continued at theUniversity of Miami for general surgeryand plastic surgery training. He becameboard certified with the American Board

RICARDO JIMENEZ-LEERicardo Jimenez-Lee was born in

Puerto Rico on April 14th, 1971.Following in his father’s footsteps, hepursued a career in surgery completing a

of Surgery in March 2005. Sean is mar-ried to a prominent local internist andthey are blessed with two beautiful girls.Interestingly enough, Sean has an identi-cal twin, Michael, who is a successfulHollywood Urologist. Sean will begin hiscareer in private practice in the SouthMiami area this summer.

JEFFREY HAMMOUDEHDr. Hammoudeh completed a double

doctorate at Northwestern UniversityMedical School. After medical school hefulfilled his 3 year pre-requisite in generalsurgery followed by completion of Oraland Maxillofacial surgery residency atThe Mass General Hospital. He subse-quently was accepted at University ofMiami/JMH Plastic Surgery program andnow is in his last year of training in plasticsurgery. Dr. Hammoudeh has co-authored several book chapters during hisplastic surgery training. Currently Dr.Hammoudeh is one of the senior plasticsurgery fellows and after graduation hewill be starting a fellowship in Cranio-facial Surgery at USC. He will be gettingmarried and moving to SouthernCalifornia where he plans to practice. Idream to be a BIG TIME player!! Bighouse, big cars, and BIG money!!!!

2

KERRY LATHAMDr Kerry Latham is one of our first year residents. She was

born and raised in the Washington DC area, went to PrincetonUniversity and then accepted a commission as an Air ForceOfficer and attended The Uniformed Services University of theHealth Sciences in Maryland. She recently completed herGeneral Surgery Residency at UTSA/ WHMC in San Antonio,Texas. She remains on active duty status while training inMiami, and plans to be a career Air Force surgeon and thenpursue private practice after retirement from the military. DrLatham is has already been on several humanitarian missionsand plans to continue in this endeavor.

JAY JENOFFI am very thankful to be able to continue my training at

UM/JMH. I was born in Silver Spring, MD, and raised inMarlton, NJ. I received a B.A. in Biology at Rutgers College inNew Brunswick, N.J. in 1995. From there I began medicalschool at Jefferson Medical College, Thomas JeffersonUniversity, and subsequently stayed for the next ten yearsincluding six years of a general surgery residency. This was myfirst exposure to plastic surgery, and would influence my futurecareer path. I feel privileged to have obtained a plastic andreconstructive surgery residency spot, and look forward to thisnext step in my academic and professional development.

JONATHAN FISHERJonathan G.R.S. Fisher was born in Berkeley, California and spent his formative years in the San Francisco Bay area. Following

stints as a marine biological field worker for the University of California at Berkeley in Fiji and French Polynesia, and a theaterresidency at St. Peter’s College in Oxford, England, he attended Harvard College, and graduated with a degree in Philosophy.Dr. Fisher earned a Master’s Degree in Applied Physiology and his Doctorate of Medicine at Chicago Medical School. He completedhis internship in General Surgery and his residency in Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at Baylor College of Medicine, andwas Board Certified in 2004. Dr. Fisher became interested in the challenges of reconstructive surgery when treating head and neckcancer patients in a multidisciplinary setting, and is currently a first year resident. He looks forward to the remainder of his tenure inMiami, and plans to return to the Bay Area.

AND ANDMICROSURGERY FELLOWH

JASON HESSAfter medical school at Wright State University, Jason trained in General Surgery

for three years at the University of Texas in Houston. He then completed a peripheralnerve research fellowship at Washington University in St. Louis. Jason is currentlystudying hand surgery at the University of Miami and is looking forward to PlasticSurgery training in St. John’s Health System of Southfield, Michigan. His future pur-suits are uncertain, but he hopes to continue to research in peripheral nerve regenera-tion and motor re-innervations after injury.

ECOND YEAR RESIDENTSS

3

NCOMINGRESIDENTSI

Michelle DeSouzaA description of myself: I was born in New Jersey, but raised in Kansas where I had all ofmy education. Now that I’m “not in Kansas anymore,” I am completing my general sur-gery residency in New Jersey. My interests include tennis, snowboarding, traveling, andmost recently, golf. Currently, I don't know in which field I would like to specialize, but amlooking forward to the broad spectrum of plastics.

Mitchell CassidyDr. Mitchell was born inGreen Coves Spring,Florida and brought up andreceived his education inNebraska. He received aBS in Chemistry fromCreighton University andhis MD from the same

institution in May 2000. He will have completed his fullGeneral Surgery residency at The University of IowaHospital and Clinics.

Jason AltmanDr. Altman obtained a BAin Biophysical Engineeringfrom Dartmouth Collegein 1997. He received hisMD from SUNY StonyBrook with high honors in2001. He will have com-pleted his training as an

intern and resident in Otolaryngology-Head and NeckSurgery at Mt Sinai School of Medicine where he par-ticipated in a number of research projects resulting inpresentations and first author publications.

Research is progressing well in the lab and with upcoming clinicaltrials. Noor Kassira, the current research fellow, is going to present“Estrogen Deficiency and Smoking Increase Collagenolysis ThroughMMP-13 Activation in Aging Mice” at the annual PSRC meeting inDana Point, CA on May 19, 2006. Several grants have been submittedto the PSREF and University of Miami for funding in the coming year.An ADA grant is currently being prepared for submission this summer.Noor is currently working on the effects of estrogen on metallopro-teinases in diabetic wound healing in the lab. As for clinical research, wehave recently completed an anti wrinkle cream study and are set tobegin a Phase 4 antibiotic/complicated skin and skin structure infectiontrial with Pfizer Inc as well as a facial filler trial with ConturaInternational in the upcoming months.

ESEARCH NEWS: by Dr. Noor KassiraR

4

ALUMNI

NEWS

JAY GRANZOW SAYS:

Things have kept me quite busy. Just tocatch up, I finished a fellowship in New Orleanslast year with Bob Allen in microsurgery andthen another fellowship in Melbourne,Australia, with Bryan Mendelson in aestheticsurgery. Afterwards I took the time to visitmany other top plastic surgeons around theworld and take the time to do some great travel-ing as well before I start back in Los Angeles.Among everyone I visited were Dr. Tebbetts, Dr.Hamra and Dr. Duffy in Dallas, Texas, Ian Taylorand the Royal Melbourne unit and WayneMorrison and the St. Vincent’s unit inMelbourne, Dr. Fu-Chan Wei’s unit in Taiwan,Dr. Isao Koshima’s unit in Tokyo, the unit of Dr.Jaume Garcia in Barcelona, Spain, Eva Mithof atCanniesburn and the Royal Infirmary inGlasgow, Scotland, the unit of Philip Blondeel inGent, Belgium, and the unit of Dr. VenkatRamakrishnan outside London. I also visitedother individuals and hospitals in places such asLondon, including the Royal Marsden and RoyalFree Hospitals for cases. Still on the scheduleare visits with additional surgeons, such asSherrell Aston, Dan Baker and David Hidalgo inNYC.

In Spain I also was able to go to the perfora-tor flap microsurgery meeting at the beginning ofOctober. I had a well received oral paper presen-tation on SIEA flaps and one of our LSU resi-dents presented another one of our papers as aposter. I also had the chance to assist on the ORfor a breast reconstruction with a free SIEA flapfor the live conference video demonstration,which went very well. During my travels I alsoreturned to Los Angeles briefly for one week tointerview for a full-time faculty position atHarbor-UCLA.

The interviews went great and I was offered and accepted the position. It seems likea great fit and includes a significant private prac-tice component in the practice of Jim Black andBrian Boyd, which I was originally going to joinanyway. They are both closely affiliated withUCLA as well, Brian Boyd being full-time andJim Black being clinical faculty.

RAJEEV VENUGOPAL SAYS:

I have been practicing at The UniversityHospital of The West Indies in Kingston,Jamaica; since my return from JacksonMemorial in January 2001. Plastic Surgery teamhave established a full time service at this institu-tion and offer weekly clinic with operatingschedules being piggy backed on other servicesdue to the constrains on the operating time. Thissituation has been scheduled to dramaticallyimprove in 2006.

SABRINA LAHARI SAYS:

I am working as usual. I just finished my thirdyear in private practice. It has been challenging.I also moved into my new office two weeks agowhich is 4500 sf. It includes a full service medicalspa. I have two aestheticians now. The newspace is very convenient. It is located 2 floorsabove the surgery center that is physician andhospital owned. Jimmy and I are both partners.Reconstruction continues to be a part of mypractice. I have emphasized breast reconstruc-tion so that many women in my community donot have to go to MD Anderson for their treat-ment. I am sure you will be happy to know thatI will never be just a cosmetic surgeon. Jimmyand I bought a small ranch (about 34 acres). Weplan on building a house, having horses, andJimmy wants some cows (funny). It is about 15minutes from the hospital. Jimmy also bought aford, king ranch truck. We are fitting in quitewell I was inducted as a Fellow of the Americanof Surgeons this past October Wolf Losken isProfessor of Plastic Surgery at University ofNorth Carolina and now only working part time.He went on a Mission to JiuJiang, China andthe team operated on 99 children with cleft lipand palate and it brought back memories of allthe wonderful pearls that were learnt during theMaytag Fellowship with Dr. Ralph Millard. Wolfwas honored at the International Cleft Palatemeeting in Durban, South Africa for havingstarted Craniofacial Surgery in South Africa. Hewas honored by UNC by creating the ‘Wolf andDaisy Craniofacial Research Fellowship’ His sonBert was 2 years old when the family was inMiami. He is now an attending Plastic Surgeonat Emory.

CONTINUE NEXT PAGE

5

ALUMNI

NEWS

cont.

AL ALY SAYS:Well I have just had another baby and now I

have two children. A boy and girl. I have left theUniversity of Iowa and I am in private practice inIowa City. My book entitled "Body ContouringAfter Massive Weight Loss" is about to be pub-lished at the end of this month.

DAVID O’DONOVAN SAYS:

Consultant Plastic Surgeon, Dept. of Plastic Surgery, St James's Hospital, Dublin 8, Ireland.Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children, CrumlinDublin 12, Ireland. Also have a private practicebased at the following: Suite 9, Blackrock Clinic,Rock Road, Co. Dublin, Ireland & Suite 4, StJames's Private Clinic, St James's Hospital,Dublin 8 Ireland. In public practice, specializedareas are pediatric plastic surgery, breast recon-struction, facial reconstruction & skin oncology.In private practice, areas include breast & facialaesthetic surgery & general plastic surgeryreconstruction. Recently elected as Secretaryof the Irish Association of Plastic Surgeons(IAPS) and as a member of the BritishAssociation of Plastic Surgeons (BAPS).

ANTHONY WOLFE SAYS:

The caseload of the Plastic Surgery Serviceat Miami Children’s Hospital continues to growat about 20% per year, and is now the third mostactive surgical service, after ENT and PediatricSurgery. The University of Miami plastic sur-gery residents continue to have a busy rotationat Children’s, with the Plastic Surgery facultyconsisting of Wolfe, Thaller, Marshall, Garri,Gottenger, and others. The Hand Fellowshipbegun by Drs. Thaller, Armstrong and Panthakiis becoming a reality, and will include a rotationat MCH.

A film crew has been present at many of thecraniofacial conferences putting together tenone hour segments for the Discovery Channelon the Craniofacial Team at MCH, and many ofthe faculty, fellows, and residents, along withmany of the patients, will be featured.

JOE GARRI SAYS:

After the completion of the craniofacialfellowship at UCLA, I joined private practicehere in Miami and have just recently celebratedmy one year anniversary. My academic endeav-ors in 2005 include two papers published in theJournal of Craniofacial Surgery as well as beinga coeditor along with Dr. Seth Thaller and Dr.James Bradley on a book on craniofacial sur-gery (due for release next year). My actingcareer (which started in LA during my fellow-ship) has also shown some progress and I have asmall scene in an upcoming film titled Runningwith Scissors, due for release in 2006. I've con-tinued to stay involved with the UM PlasticSurgery program on a voluntary basis and trulyenjoy that aspect of my professional life.

FELIX FRESHWATER SAYS:

Buster Mullin and Felix Freshwater arenow sharing office space in a symbiotic mannerat 9100 S Dadeland Boulevard in Miami. Busteris practicing primarily cosmetic surgery whileFelix is no longer doing cosmetic surgery hispractice is over 90% hand surgery. Buster'sphone number still is 305-325-1441. WalterGarst retired in June 2005 and plans to spendmore time traveling ad collecting art. ‘Formerresident Daniel Gruver will receive the VascoNunez del Balboa Award from the President ofPanama in May 2006 for his humanitarian workwith the Cuna Indians. This award is thePanamanian government's highest civilianhonor. Dan has been retired from private prac-tice for the past two years living in BismarckNorth Dakota, but he and Jane are planning tomove to Jacksonville.

6

MEET THE FACULTY

SETH THALLER, M.D.

MILTON ARMSTRONG, M.D.

ZUBIN PANTHAKI, M.D.

LAWRENCE ITELD, M.D.

7

PLASTIC SURGERY RESIDENT’S FUND IS CREATED:By Dr. Joe GarriUM

Due to the ever increasing financial pressures on training programs and their impact on resident education, we atUM's plastic surgery program have started a resident's education fund, to help with expenses involved in resident trav-el and lodging for courses and presentations. The fund is being managed by the University of Miami’s fundraising officeand will be designated specifically for resident education only. It will be structured in such a way as to protect the prin-cipal and allow only for the utilization of interest earned. The suggested contribution from the current alumni of the pro-gram is for a total of $5000 evenly divided at $1000 per year for five years. Our initial response has been very positiveand we've collected over $30,000 in contributions and pledges thus far. Our goal is to collect $100,000 from our exist-ing alumni and hope to continue to inspire contributions from our future graduates to create a fund of $250,000 overthe next 10 to 15 years. I am very proud to be involved in this effort; one which I think is extremely worthwhile. If youhave not already, expect to hear from me in the not to distant future to request a contribution. On behalf of the currentand future residents, I would like to thank you and ask you to give some serious consideration to this project.

The DeWitt Daughtry Family Department of Surgery has a number of funds that provide support for research, education and training.Over the next year, our goal in the Division of Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery is to fully fund the Plastic Surgery Resident’s EndowmentFund exclusively established to help cover the costs of resident activities such as educational meetings, travel expenses to present abstracts,books, and journals for the resident’s library.Below is a pledge form for your completion and return. Please feel free to contact either of us if you have any questions.Thank you in advance for your interest in supporting the University of Miami, Division of Plastic Surgery efforts.

Seth R. Thaller, M.D., D.M.D. Jose I. Garri, M.D., D.M.D.Professor and Chief Plastic SurgeryDivision of Plastic Surgery Oral & Maxillofacial SurgeryThe DeWitt Daughtry Family Department of Surgery 305-665-8730305-585-5285

Yes, I want to make a gift!

Yes, I/we want to make a tax deductible gift/pledge to the Plastic Surgery Resident’s Endowment in the amount of $ _______________ . My pledge balance will be paid in ❏ monthly,❏ quarterly, ❏ semi-annual, or ❏ annual installments of $ _____________ beginning ____________.

____________________________________________ ____________________________________________Name (please print) Signature____________________________________________ ____________________________________________Address E-mail

____________________________________________ ____________________________________________City State Zip

❏ Check enclosed (payable to University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine

❏ Gift of Stocks & Securities: Please call our office at 305-243-5605to make a gift of stock or securities.

❏ Information About Estate and Planned Giving: I would like informationabout various charitable giving vehicles, including gift that provide me (and/oranother beneficiary) with an income for life.Or visit www.miami.edu/estateaangiftplanning

Thank you for your generous gift to the University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine!All donations are tax deductible to the extent provided by law.

Please mail pledge terms and gifts toAngelique S. O. Grant, Ph.D.

Director of Miami, Miller School of MedicineP.O. Box 016960 (R-100) • Miami, Florida 33101

305-243-5605 Phone • 305-243-7450 Fax • agrantl@med.miami.edu

Credit Card Payment❏ Discover❏ Visa❏ MasterCard❏ American Express__________________________________Credit Card # Exp. Date

__________________________________Signature

8

A TRIBUTE TO JOHN DEVINE, M.D.FELIX FRESHWATER, M.D.

Thinking about John there are twoaspects of John's personality that are mostworthy of admiration:

He was passionate about becoming andbeing a plastic surgeon. When most men ofhis age were thinking about winding downtheir surgical careers John was closing hisgeneral surgery practice in Virginia andcoming to Miami to learn plastic surgery,first as Millard's fellow and then as a resident.He probably was the first plastic surgeon toget a Medicare card before a certificatefrom the board. He loved plastic surgeryand until he retired from private practicewould continue to take ER call at severalhospitals despite the fact that he could havebeen exempted because of his age.

John was a safe surgeon because he wasacutely aware of his limitations as a surgeonand knew when to ask for help. If he wasdoing a longer case such as a breast reductionhe would ask the senior resident at the VAto assist him and he would offer to pay theresident an assistant's fee. I still remembera couple of complex emergency hand casesthat John referred to me early in my careerwhen he believed that it was in thepatient's best interest to be treated by a subspecialist including the first thumb deglovinginjury that I treated in private practice.

S. ANTHONY WOLFE, M.D.John Devine spent most of his

career in Frederickburg, Virginia, as a generalsurgeon. For some reason, he decided thathe would like to go into plastic surgery inhis mid- 60’s, an age at which many of hiscontemporaries were retiring. He showedup on Dr. Millard’s doorstep, and told himof his desire. Predictably, DRM told him,“Ridiculous, You’re too old.” But John waspersistent. DRM had an opening for a fellowat that time, and took John---- about 64.John worked like a fiend, and so impressedDRM that he indeed did take John as a res-ident---- at age 65, which still must standas a record. John did a good job as a resi-dent, and passed the ABPS exam withoutdifficulty--- again setting an age record.

There was a need for someone withJohn’s ability to take over any chore, nomater how menial---- and soon DRM hadpassed on to John May of the things that hefound so odious--- such as dealing with theACGME and the RRC, corresponding withresident applicants, and so on. DRM taughtthe residents plastic surgery, and all theother details of running the residency weredone either by John or Evelyn Shields, whowas the only employee of the Division andwho also coordinated the Cleft Clinic.(Evy’s

son had a cleft, and I think DRM did anAbbe for him). John also took over all the“non-operative” areas of plastic surgerythat DRM looked down his nose at-----hair transplants, collagen injections, and soon. John even developed a prototype of apenile prosthesis which he showed at anexhibit at the FMA one year. It was madeby Jack Nestor to John’s specifications, wasstainless steel, with several articulatedjoints, and was truly a fearsome object.Fortunately it was never used, since it proba-bly would have resulted in a fatality. Johnhad the upstairs office space at 1444, andhis daughter helped run the office. LaterJohn Cassel moved into this space, andlater I took it over, and Deirdre came in too.The building has now been razed and theyare building a big condo there. John tookemergency room call at just about every ERin Miami until he was in his early 70’s.With his wife Jean, he bought a house atBay Point, not far from Millard, and thetwo of them became more or less friends. Inhis late 70’s, John retired from active privatepractice, and took a full-time position asChief of Plastic Surgery at the VA. He wasa mixed blessing for the residents. He didprovide some political “cover”for our residents,who had previously been at the mercy ofother services since we had no full-timeattending. But John also tended to hoverover all of their cases, and I felt was oftenoverly “ecumenical”. He often arranged fora general surgery resident to come take offwhatever the skin cancer was before ourresidents did the reconstruction, and oftenour men were more highly trained andcapable than the general surgeon. Towardsthe end, now in his 80’s, John began to be abit forgetful, and there were occasionswhen he went to the VA police and reportedthat his car had been stolen, when in realityhe had forgotten where he parked it. Johnwent into final retirement and he and Jeanmoved to a retirement home on the WestCoast, where, without the stimuli of medical

practice, his memory went into a rapiddecline before his death. John should beremembered as an incredibly motivatedand energetic individual, who more thananything, was devoted to his new specialtyof plastic surgery, to DRM, and in particular,to the Plastic Surgery Residency at theUniversity of Miami, for which he did somuch. He was a kind and unselfish man.

ROBERT FABRIC, M.D.I think at one time he was the oldest

person to enter and then complete a PlasticSurgery Residency Program. I often wonderedwhat motivated him after having a successfulGeneral Surgery practice. Ralph did hisfacelift. I often felt that they actually hadsome similarities in their stature. Johnspent most of his time at the VAH andworked himself up the chain of command.He was very loyal to Ralph and did a lot ofthe residency administrative tasks. Hisbiggest contribution to plastic surgery washis passion for hair transplants and his dualknife blade device. His donor sites were justa straight line scar. I don't think he ever didmicro transplants.

ALAN RAPPERPORT, M.D.In his 80’s John ran the VA Program

and participated in the Resident selection.His longevity and energy serves as anexample for all of us.

JAY ELLENBY, M.D.A kindly old man who loved hair

transplantations.

LAWRENCE KETCH, M.D.I was observing a facelint consultation

in his office. The patient was there with herhusband who was not thrilled with herdesire to undergo surgery. He was listeningintently and questioning and objecting toall of John's statements. John finally said"Look I've had a facelift", at which timethe man got up walked over to John, lookedcarefully at him and said: "Well you needanother one you son of a bitch." ! He wasalways the resident's friend and advocate,and a true gentleman and scholar. He lovedPlastic Surgery and was stimulated to cre-ativity continuously by it.

9

MEET THE NEW PROFESSORS

DR. LAWRENCE H. ITELDAssistant Professor

Division of Plastic Surgery

Dr. Lawrence Iteld joined the facultyof the Division of Plastic Surgery at theUniversity of Miami Miller School ofMedicine this past summer as AssistantProfessor of Clinical Surgery. Larry wasborn and raised in New Jersey and didhis undergraduate training at RutgersCollege. He then received his medicaldegree from the University of MichiganSchool of Medicine and completed anintegrated residency in Plastic Surgery atthe University of Chicago Hospitals. Hethen undertook additional fellowshiptraining in Oncologic and MicrovascularReconstruction at the University of TexasMD Anderson Cancer Center, where healso held an appointment as ClinicalSpecialist.

Dr. Iteld has experience in a broadspectrum of techniques for reconstructionafter cancer surgery, including newer freeflap procedures such as perforator flaps.His clinical interests focus on reconstruc-tive and aesthetic surgery of the femalebreast and facial aesthetics. Other areasof interest include reconstruction of headand neck cancer defects, complexreconstruction of the chest wall andextremities, and research in super micro-surgery.

DR. JOHN OELTJENAssistant Professor

Division of Plastic Surgery

I was born in Lincoln, Nebraskashortly before my father graduated fromlaw school at the University ofNebraska. After a short three weeks wemoved to Chicago for my father’s fellow-ship and then he accepted a job as aProfessor at the Florida State UniversityCollege of Law in Tallahassee.

Thus I grew up in Tallahassee, theoldest of four children, with multiple finememories of water skiing, sailing, camp-ing, and fishing in the great outdoors ofthe Florida panhandle. On occasion wewould venture south to Disney Worldand that huge metropolis far away calledMiami. As a Florida State brat I attend-ed many a Seminole football game andam currently having some reservationsof working for one of the many rivals, theHurricanes.

I graduated high school in 1986, yesmy 20th high school reunion is this sum-mer, and matriculated at DukeUniversity in Durham, North Carolina.In college I majored in Zoology, but tookas many diverse courses as possibleincluding enough credits for a secondmajor in History. Some of my best timein college was spent at the Duke MarineLaboratory on the Outer Banks of NorthCarolina in Beaufort. On a good day Icould finish class and be on the water on

my Hobie Catamaran sailboat in lessthan 15 minutes. I liked Beaufort so muchthat I stayed an extra year after collegeas a research technician.

On a suggestion by the pre-medadvisor at Duke, I interviewed for theMD/PhD program at Baylor College ofMedicine in of all places Houston, Texas.After one long weekend there I was soldon the expanse and numerous medicalopportunities in the Texas MedicalCenter. I began the MD/PhD program in1991 and finally finished in 2000 with aPhD in Molecular Genetics, some post-doctoral research, and the completedMD degree. For my PhD I researched theconservation of non coding DNA acrossspecies, using high throughput sequenc-ing and computer analysis to search thegenome for important regulatory ele-ments.

After I completed my degrees, Iremained at Baylor beginning theIntegrated Plastic and ReconstructiveSurgery Program. Over the past sixyears I have had an immense exposure tothe multiple different facets of Plasticand Reconstructive Surgery and lookforward to sharing and using this train-ing as a member of the University ofMiami faculty.

Lastly, on a personal note, in additionto sailing and camping, I enjoy biking,swimming, running, and any other activ-ity that keeps me outside. I have a won-derful loving wife of three years, Stacey,who is finishing her training as anInterventional Cardiologist just acrossthe street at St. Luke’s Texas HeartInstitute. With her, we have one childthus far, Christopher, who is giving usmore sleepless nights than residency has.The three of us, and the remaining rela-tives we intend to drag along with us,look forward to living in Miami andbecoming part of the University ofMiami family.

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IAMI SOCIETY OF PLASTIC SURGEONS UPDATE - 2005 - 2006By Zubin Jal Panthaki, 1 April 2006M

It has been another exciting yearfor the Miami Society of PlasticSurgeons. This year started out quitechallenging, both for the Miami Societyand its members, because of the multi-ple hurricanes that came throughSouth Florida. Miami plastic surgeonsare a hardy breed, however, and wehave persevered through these trialsand emerged stronger than ever.

Our society was forced to changevenues and reschedule our first meet-ing because of hurricane damage. TheUniversity helped us at the beginning ofthe year by hosting a combined eventat Perricone’s Marketplace Restaurantto welcome Dr. Charles Butler fromMD Anderson who described innova-tive clinical uses for Alloderm.

The continued involvement andguidance from many of our seniormembers has proven to be in-valuableand is greatly appreciated. The aca-demic relationship between theUniversity of Miami - Division ofPlastic Surgery and the Miami Societyof Plastic Surgeons has facilitatedmany outstanding educational activi-ties. The society gratefully acknowl-edges Dr. Seth Thaller, chief of thedivision, for his cooperation, time andinterest.

We have continued the traditionestablished last year of corporate spon-sorship for our meetings. This has beenvery helpful and has significantlycontributed to our continuing medicaleducation. The society would like tothank the following sponsors who havemade these meetings possible: Mr.

Vince Parras of Lifecell Corporationmakers of Alloderm (Nov. 9th, 2005 “Perricone’s Marketplace and Cafe”),Mr. Ken Holtschlag of P.M.T. Cor-poration makers of tissue expanders(Dec. 20th 2005 “Morton’s Steak-house”), Mrs. Maria Bernal of BioformMedical Corporation makers ofRadiesse (Jan. 31st, 2006 “Joe’s StoneCrab”), Mr. Pablo Garzon of InamedCorporation (April 18th, 2006Fleming’s Restaurant) and Mrs. LindaKrinsky of Mentor Corporation (June6th, 2006 The Palm).

Dr. Randy Miller has established aneducational endowment on behalf onthe Miami Society of Plastic Surgeonswith the Division of Plastic Surgery atthe University of Miami. Our relation-ship has become a win-win situationwith visits and lectures by internation-ally recognized professors of plasticsurgery and enhanced divisional educa-tional programs that will be opened toour entire membership. Increased ven-dor sponsorship and our educationalendowment have helped with addition-al support to this year's plastic surgeryvisiting professors; Dr. Charles Butler,Dr. L. Scott Levin, American HandSociety Visiting Professor, and Dr.Robert Walton, PSEF VisitingProfessor.

Distinguished member recognitiongoes out to our hard working full-timeplastic surgeon and full-time politicalactivist doctor Stephan Baker. Dr.Baker continues to provide us withhighly accurate and frequently updatedinformation. Distinguished member

recognition also goes out to Dr. OnelioGarcia. While maintaining activemembership in the Miami Society ofPlastic Surgeons, Dr. Garcia is thecurrent president of the FloridaSociety of Plastic Surgeons. He isresponsible for the strong bondbetween our state plastic surgery soci-ety and our local plastic surgery socie-ty. Dr. Garcia continues to provide veryinformative updates regarding officesurgery regulations and other specialtyissues. These updates have been veryappreciated by the society.

The Miami Society of PlasticSurgeons welcomes the new appli-cants for provisional membership sta-tus, Dr. Newman, Dr. Gottenger, andDr. Iteld. These applications will beevaluated and voted upon during thebusiness meeting of June 6th, 2006.Dr. Max Polo, Dr. Jose Garri, and Dr.Pat Pazmino, were approved for provi-sional membership last year and will beeligible for vote to full active member-ship this year at our June 6th 2006meeting. Dr. Edward Truppman, Dr.Joel Raskin and Dr. Tom Zaydon Sr.have become Life Members of theSociety. The outstanding leadership ofDr. Randy Miller (immediate past pres-ident) was handed down to Dr. TomZaydon Jr. (current president). Dr.Jorge de la Pedraja is the president-elect and Dr. Zubin Panthaki is theSecretary/Treasurer.

On behalf of the Miami Society ofPlastic Surgeons, we would like to wishthe University alumni and friends ahappy, healthy and prosperous year!

All Italian sports cars are the same, right? Performance is great, but the priceis that they are fragile, temperamental beasts; unreliable, best reserved for theweekend, needing constant cosseting to keep running. That theory does notapply to Maserati, and Dr. Zubin Panthaki is part of the proof. Zubin owns a2003 Maserati Coupe Cambiocorsa, purchased from The Collection. It's not a'trophy' car; it is his daily driver, and in 18 months he has clocked up over20,000 trouble-free miles, mostly in southern Florida - he is AssistantProfessor of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at the University of Miami.Zubin specializes in reconstructive rehabilitation of fire and accident victims.

ASSLE-FREE DRIVING INSOUTH FLORIDAH

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Be the proud owner of a University of Miami Alumni tie

and help support the Resident's Trust Fund.

The ties are $100.00 + $10.00 Shipping & Handling,

all proceeds will go to the Residents Trust Fund.

Please place your orders directly with the

Division of Plastic Surgery at:

1611 N.W. 12th Avenue, ET3019, Miami, FL 33136

or call your order in to 305-585-5285.

LASTIC SURGERY’S OBSERVERSHIP ATJACKSON MEMORIAL HOSPITALP

SARAH FERNANDEZ:

The life of a medical student on a surgical rotationis often a difficult one plagued by long hours, high-stress surgeries, and challenging material, relieved onlyby the occasional “hands-on” experience (typicallyconsisting of placing a few subcuticular sutures, orholding a retractor). Thus it was with a slight amountof trepidation that I approached my plastic surgeryrotation at the University of Miami School of Medicinein the Fall 2005 semester.

Not surprisingly, the rotation certainly met myexpectations in terms of the hours and degree of diffi-culty. However, I was pleasantly taken aback by theenthusiasm of the faculty and residents to not onlywelcome a medical student to the team, but to makeme feel like a contributing member of that team fromthe first day. The attendings and residents nevermissed an opportunity to teach not only the theorybut the practical techniques of the surgeries which weperformed. No matter how long the case, they alwaysencouraged me to participate. As I sutured for hoursin the OR, or assessed patients in clinic, I suddenlybegan to feel like a physician rather than a tokenobserver. And in turn, reading about my patients andtheir surgeries became part of my role as their doctor,rather than a student’s chore.

My experience with the Division of Plastic Surgeryat the University of Miami School of Medicine has led

me to the decision to pursue a career as a plastic surgeon.I continue to stay as involved with the department aspossible, and am very grateful to them for providing mewith such a wonderful introduction to the field of plasticand reconstructive surgery.

ADRIANA GOMEZ & LUZ CORREA, MEDICAL STUDENTS FROMCOLUMBIA:

YES, it is possible. The University of Miami offers the observership program for medical students, physi-cians and residents who are interested. It is a very easything to do you just need the interest and to providesome information about your rotation period and yourinterest. You can look for the information and the appli-cation form in the internet. The William J. HarringtonTraining Medical Program for Latin America has anexcellent relationship with the University of Miami andis another way to make your dreams come true.Programs such as The William J. Harrington TrainingMedical Program for Latin America are an importantway of preparing Latin American physicians to becomeleaders of medical education and research when theyreturn to their countries of origin. This observership hasmade all the difference in our lives. We certainly hopethe program will continue to expand, allowing physi-cians, students and educators to improve their skills.

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CAUGHT IN THE ACT AT THE 2005 GRADUATIONAND VISITING PROFESSORS

GRADUATION2005

NEW FORMAT FORIN-SERVICE

DRS. ITELD, LEVIN, &THALLER

DR. ROBERT SIMON

RESIDENTS HARD ATWORK

DR. FIRMIN FROMFRANCE

DR. SPIRA & DR. BAKER

DR. ROBERT WALTON

CAUGHT IN THE ACT AT THECOMMUNITY EVENTS

UNIVERSITY OF MIAMIWELLNESS CENTERMARDI GRAS EXPO

CHAMBERS SOUTH BUSINESS EXPOMARCH 28, 2006

JACKSON SOUTH HEALTH FAIR

MAY 8, 2006

NBC6 HEALTH & FITNESS EXPOMIAMI BEACH CONVENTION CENTER

APRIL 29 & 30, 2006

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We would like to thank the following sponsors...

MIAMI SOCIETY OF PLASTIC SURGEONS

Divison of Plastic SurgeryP.O. Box 016960 (R-88)Miami, Florida 33101

378422