Welcome from the Program Director

I am pleased to share more information with you about our leading vascular surgery clinical program and fellowship. The Englewood Vascular Surgical Service was created in 1976 after Englewood Hospital saw extraordinary growth in the number of limb salvage cases. This growth was the direct result of the introduction and FDA approval of the umbilical vein graft, which was invented by the late Dr. Herbert Dardik, a longtime physician at Englewood Health. Prior to the development of this approach, amputation was often the only option for patients who required vascular reconstruction but lacked suitable veins, or in whom a prosthetic graft would likely fail.

Since that time, Englewood has maintained a regional, national, and international reputation in the vascular community and is well known as a respected training ground for vascular surgeons. The first Vascular Fellowship program at Englewood began on July 1, 1978 and continued for over 3 decades graduating 37 fellows under the Englewood program, and 10 fellows under the combined Englewood/Mount Sinai program. Some of those fellowship graduates continue to be part of Englewood and have provided skilled and compassionate care to our community for years including:

• Barry Sussman, MD (1978-1979; retired)
• Steven Elias, MD (1984-1985)
• Fred Wolodiger, MD (1985-87)
• Theresa Impeduglia, MD (2001-2003)

In addition to these well respected clinicians, the fellowship program has also achieved academic prominence through awards, published manuscripts, and presentations based on clinical and laboratory research. The successful Vascular Research Laboratory is a unique model of basic science and translational research in a community setting. It has trained countless residents, pre-medical students, and high school students.

As the paradigm related to vascular surgery has dramatically changed over the years, Englewood has continued to evolve its clinical care models. We have seen the development of the Aortic Center, Wound Care Center, and Vein Center and remained on the cutting edge of endovascular care delivery.

I am thrilled that our fellowship program, which was reinstituted in 2019, will continue enhancing care for our community and contribute to the next generation of great vascular surgeons.

Best regards,

Thomas Bernik, MD, FACS, FSVS
Chief, Section of Vascular Surgery
Vascular Surgery Fellowship Program Director