Professor of Surgery Mayo School of Medicine and Science (2018-present)
Chair, Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Mayo Clinic Florida (7/05/2017-2023)
Professor of Su Dr. Pham is certified by the American Board of Thoracic Surgery, the American Board of Surgery, and holds a subspecialty certification in Surgical Critical Care from the American Board of Surgery. Dr. Pham received his medical degree from the University of Pittsburgh, School of Medicine, and completed residency in general, cardiac surgery at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. After his training, he joined the surgical faculty at the University of Pittsburgh as an Assistant Professor in 1992 and became the director of the Adult Heart Transplant and ECMO Programs at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center for 6 years, and director of thoracic transplant research laboratory at the same institution. Dr. Pham was on the team that performed the successful combined heart/liver transplant operation on Robert Casey, Sr., the late Governor of Pennsylvania in 1993. After the transplant the patient returned to finish his remaining 2 years as the governor. In 1998, Dr. Pham was recruited to Miami to be the Director of Heart/Lung Transplant and Artificial Heart Programs at University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital to expand and rebuild the Heart/Lung Transplant Programs. During his tenure at the University of Miami, Dr. Pham had not only increased the volume but also improved the patient survival and has made cutting-edge medical services available to South Floridians. In 2000, Dr. Pham performed the first heart-lung transplant in South Florida. His team's first heterotopic heart transplant in Florida was done two years later (in 2002). In 2006, Dr. Pham performed a rare operation in which a failed transplanted heart (after 12 years) was removed and the patient was supported with two heart assist machines for 48 days until he received a successful combined heart and kidney transplants. His team also supported a 15 year-old girl in a similar fashion for 118 days until she underwent a successful combined heart/kidney transplant operation. Under the leadership of Dr. Pham the heart transplant program at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital was recognized by HealthGrades, a leading provider of comprehensive information about physicians and hospitals, with the Heart Transplant Excellence Award in 2011 for having the best patient survival.( http://med.miami.edu/news/um-jackson-heart-transplant-program-recognized-as-top-transplant-center/) HealthGrades evaluated 116 adult acute care hospitals nationally, and selected the UM/Jackson Heart Transplant Program along with two others for the award. In 2013, Dr. Pham was recruited to the University of Maryland School of Medicine to be a Professor of Surgery and the Director of Heart and Lung Transplantation, Circulatory Assist Device and ECMO Programs at University of Maryland Medical Center. Under his leadership the Adult ECMO program has grown from 50 a year to 180 in 2016. The lung transplant volume has increased from 24 in 2013 to 44 in 2015. The Heart and Lung Program at the University of Maryland became the busiest program in Mid-Atlantic region in 2016. In addition to being a staff the University of Maryland, Dr. Pham also has staff privilege and operated at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. When in Maryland, Dr. Pham performed the first minimally invasive implantation of a left ventricular assist device in the state of Maryland in December 2014. (http://www.baltimoresun.com/health/maryland-health/bs-hs-minimally-invasive-heart-surgery-20140221-story.html)
He also implanted the second Hemolung (an extracorporeal device that remove carbon dioxide) in the US in February 2015 (http://www.baltimoresun.com/health/bs-hs-artificial-lung-20150403-story.html?fb_action_ids=10153260446517996&fb_action_types=og.shares)
In July 2017, Dr. Pham joined Mayo Clinic Florida as Chair of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery to build a program that provide state-of-the art care for patients with heart and lung diseases that requires cardiac and thoracic surgeries, including transplants, ventricular assist devices and ECMO. Dr. Pham has published 170 scientific peer-reviewed papers in leading medical journals. He has received grants from the national institute of health (NIH), the American Heart Association, the American Lung Association, and the Transplant Foundation for his research. Dr. Pham has made several seminal contributions to the field of heart/lung transplantation. His team was the first to use tacrolimus (Prograf) to prevent rejection in heart/lung transplant recipients. Dr. Pham’s team also pioneered in the use of donor bone marrow to prevent rejections in heart and lung recipients. As a tireless promoter of organ transplantation Dr. Pham had served in the Board of The Transplant Foundation, Inc., and had participated in many of educational activities to promote organ donations and organ transplantation. As a tribute to his achievements, Dr. Pham was granted the Award for Excellence in Medical Research by the Vietnamese American Medical Research Foundation in 2005, and the Health Care Heroes Award by the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce in 2007. In addition, The Mayor and the Board of County Commissioners of The Miami-Dade County had declared April 19, 2013 as Dr. Si Pham’s Day.
