Welcome to the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the University of Iowa. The Cardiothoracic Surgery training program at Iowa is the third oldest training program in the country and has a long tradition of training outstanding residents. Our educational mission is to train future Cardiothoracic Surgeons we would be comfortable with them operating on ourselves and our
family.

Our department is the leader in tertiary-level Cardiothoracic Surgery care in the state and the surrounding region. Our patient population is diverse and presents with a variety of cases from “bread and butter” surgical cases to highly complex surgical cases including mechanical circulatory support, heart and lung transplants, ECMO and complex cardiac and thoracic surgeries. We provide a multidisciplinary approach to the care of all our patients. Our clinical services range from outpatient to inpatient at both the University of Iowa and the Iowa City Veterans Affairs Medical Center. We enjoy strong collaborations with the cardiology (adult and pediatric), pulmonology, oncology, and gastrointestinal services, as well as radiation oncology and thoracic radiology.

We are proud to be a part of the financially strong University of Iowa Hospital and the academically strong Carver College of Medicine. The department is fortunate to have faculty members who care passionately about the education of our residents, fellows, as well as our medical students, and colleagues (through continuing medical education.)

Iowa City is an outstanding community, close to several larger cities (Chicago, Kansas City, St. Louis, and Minneapolis-St. Paul) and enjoys low-cost living, little traffic, and a world-class public school system. The area is culturally rich and offers music, literature, college athletics, international cuisine, and fine art of the highest quality.

Our department takes pride in its rich history, while continuing to advance our vision of the future for academic health care, innovation and medical education. We hope you will take the time to become familiar with all that our residency program has to offer.

Kalpaj Parekh, MBBS

Kalpaj Parekh, MBBS is the Chair and DEO of  Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery.