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Transplant Surgery Fellowship Program Virtual Tour
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Department of Transplant

Transplant Surgery Fellowship Virtual Tour

Montefiore Einstein provides a two-year abdominal organ transplant fellowship accredited by the Transplant Accreditation & Certification Council (TACC) of the American Society of Transplant Surgeons (ASTS). The program trains fellows in comprehensive care for patients with end-stage organ disease through multidisciplinary teamwork and hands-on experience in various transplant procedures.

Hillary C. Yaffe, MD
Abdominal Organ Transplant Surgeon
Program Director Abdominal Organ Transplant Surgery Fellowship
Assistant Professor of Surgery

Why our program could be right for you

Over the course of 24 months, fellows dive into the study and treatment of these conditions, acquiring the practical and cognitive skills necessary for successful transplant surgeries, including multi-organ recoveries. Montefiore Einstein provides a comprehensive educational experience, merging formal didactics with clinical practice.

Montefiore Einstein's multidisciplinary team is committed to delivering the highest quality, comprehensive care for our primarily underserved and diverse patient demographic.

Each year, our center performs approximately 55 liver transplants, 250 renal transplants and 20 simultaneous kidney-pancreas transplants. Fellows have the opportunity to participate in living donor nephrectomies, kidney transplants, hepatectomies, liver transplants, as well as hepatopancreatobiliary and general surgery cases, offering a dynamic, hands-on learning environment.

What sets Montefiore Einstein apart

At Montefiore Einstein, we are guided by a mission to heal, to teach, to discover and to advance the health of the communities we serve. Comprising 11 member hospitals and more than 300 specialty care sites, Montefiore Health System provides highly specialized, coordinated care for diverse populations in the New York region, across the country and globally.

Albert Einstein College of Medicine, home to nearly 1,000 students in its MD, PhD and combined MD/PhD programs, is one of the nation’s preeminent centers for research, medical education and clinical investigation. Through the joint efforts of Montefiore Health System and Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Montefiore Einstein is able to advance research and accelerate discoveries, benefiting patients and ensuring access to state-of-the-art healthcare for all.  

  • Montefiore’s medical specialties ranked as top 1% in the nation by U.S. News & World Report
  • Children’s Hospital at Montefiore (CHAM) recognized as one of “America’s Best Children’s Hospitals” by U.S. News & World Report
  • Albert Einstein College of Medicine ranked a top 50 “Best Medical School for Research in the Country, 2023” by U.S. News & World Report 
  • The National Institutes of Health (NIH) awarded Einstein $201M+ in research funding in 2022, placing Einstein in the top 50 among 142 schools of medicine
  • 700+ clinical trials 
Catherine C. Skae, MD, Vice President and Associate Dean for Graduate Medical Education

Graduate Medical Education at Montefiore Einstein

Representing one of the top 10 largest medical and surgical training programs in the country, Montefiore Health System and our Albert Einstein College of Medicine provide postgraduate clinical training to more than 1,400 residents and fellows per year. Clinicians across Montefiore Einstein’s numerous educational programs actively mentor and cultivate a new generation of healthcare leaders. 

Our mission to improve access and quality of care for our diverse community draws residents and fellows from top medical, dental and PA schools from around the world. We develop and expand programs designed to advance teamwork, communication and decision-making, and our progressive focus on comprehensive care provides an ideal training ground for our residents and fellows.

To make the process of working and training at Montefiore Einstein more seamless, we offer a variety of services for our house staff, physician assistants and interns, including assistance with credentialing and orientation, institutional resources, visas, contracts, HR documents, payroll, notary services and specialty training and certifications. 

Montefiore Einstein by the numbers

7.7 million+

patient interactions annually  

1.1 million+

patients annually, representing the largest network in the Bronx, Westchester and the Hudson Valley

200+

specialty care locations, with more coming soon

40,000+

employees

111 East 210th Street, Bronx, NY

Moses Campus

An ambulatory surgery center and specialty care location

The entirety of the Montefiore Einstein Center for Transplantation is located at the Henry and Lucy Moses Division, including the pediatric transplant program at the Children’s Hospital at Montefiore (CHAM). The abdominal transplant fellows complete their training at the Moses Division, including their inpatient, outpatient, and operative experiences. The transplant patients are cared for on the Transplant Unit on Foreman 7A East and in the Surgical ICU (SICU) on the third floor of the Foreman Building, which is directly across from the OR suite. The Moses Division is the flagship hospital of the Montefiore Health System. It is a tertiary care hospital and is the primary teaching hospital for the Albert Einstein College of Medicine.

 

Kidney & Pancreas Transplant Program

Our transplant services are characterized by innovation and positive outcomes:

  • First to develop the concept of diversion of pancreatic enzymes into the urinary tract.
  • Since 1970, educated the public and professionals regarding ‘brain death," then a new concept; involved in the first recognition of brain death by the New York State courts and mounted a grass roots effort to obtain a legislative definition of it.
  • First to initiate a system for sharing kidneys in our region.
  • First to transplant machine-preserved kidneys in New York.
  • Participated in numerous single and multi-center studies of new immunosuppressive drugs.
  • Our tissue typing laboratory has evaluated new techniques in tissue typing.

One-year patient survival with a functioning graft at Montefiore Medical Center is excellent (96 percent, compared to all US one-year patient survival 94%). Adjusted 3-year survival with a functioning graft at our center is 89.9%.

In 2022, we performed a record number of renal transplants for our center, 219. Our pediatric renal replacement program is world-renowned, and we have done more pediatric transplants than many pediatric hospitals. The pediatric population's patient and graft survival rates are superior to the national average. In addition, transplantation of the elderly is among our special interests.

 

Liver Transplant Program

By combining a world-class team of specialists with a full range of standard and innovative therapies, Montefiore can offer liver transplant patients a survival rate of more than 90 percent. Our center's 1-year survival with a functioning graft is 93%, comparable to the national rate of 91%.

Additionally, we have performed multiple combined organ transplantations, such as liver-kidney and lung-liver.

In 2022, our center performed 66 liver transplants. Our team aims to provide access to transplant for our community, with an increased focus on optimizing safe transplants for patients with alcoholic hepatitis, MASH, and complex redo liver transplants.

Some points of historic interest:

  • The first liver transplant at Montefiore was successfully performed in a critically ill woman with fulminant hepatic failure in 2008.

  • Within the first year of the Liver Disease and Transplantation Program, 50 patients were on the waiting list.

  • In 2010, Montefiore performed its first split liver graft, in which an adult donor liver was split in the donor and offered to two recipients.

  • Montefiore was approved to initiate its live donor liver program in 2010.

A world-renowned faculty

Milan M. Kinkhabwala, MD

Chief, Transplant Surgery
Director, Abdominal Organ Transplantation
Professor, Department of Surgery
Professor, Department of Medicine (Hepatology)

Sarah Bellemare, MD

Associate Professor, Department of Surgery

Jay Graham, MD, MBA

Associate Professor, Department of Surgery
Surgical Director, Pancreas Transplantation
ASTS Fellowship Program Director

Hillary Yaffe, MD

Program Director, Transplant Surgery Fellowship
Assistant Professor, Department of Surgery

Nidal Muhdi, MD

Assistant Professor, Department of Surgery

Dagny von Ahrens, MD

Assistant Professor, Department of Surgery

Marie Le, MD

Assistant Professor, Department of Surgery

Raga Dilip, MD

Fellow, Transplant Surgery

Juan Malo, MD

Past Fellow, Transplant Surgery

Daniel Barbash, MD

Fellow, Transplant Surgery

Ahmet Korkut Belli, MD

Past Fellow, Transplant Surgery

A challenging and innovative curriculum

Didactic Curriculum

The fellows participate in the weekly academic meetings of the Division, as well as specialized lectures geared toward their advancement and their preparation for the Annual Knowledge Assessment. The specialized lectures bring the fellows together with one of our multidisciplinary team members for a detailed, small group discussion about topics critical to our practice as transplant surgeons.

The weekly academic meetings schedule, as well as an example of topics from the Transplant Surgical Fellows Lecture Series, appears below.

  • Transplant Surgical Fellows Lecture Series, Mondays, 11:00 am – 12:00 pm, various in-person locations
  • Transplant Nephrology Journal Club/Core Curriculum Lecture, Mondays, 12:30 – 1:30 pm, Zoom
  • Kidney Transplant M&M, Mondays, 2:00 – 3:00 pm, Teams
  • Liver Transplant Selection, Mondays, 3:00 – 5:00 pm, TLC5
  • CT scan review meeting, Tuesdays, 1:30 – 2:00 pm, TLC5
  • Kidney and Kidney-Pancreas Graft Loss/Mortality Review, Tuesdays, 2:00 – 3:00 pm, TLC5
  • Kidney Transplant Selection, Tuesdays, 3:00 – 4:00 pm, TLC5
  • Hepatopancreatobiliary Tumor Board, Thursdays, 8:15 – 9:30 am, New Transplant Conference Room
  • Department of Surgery M&M, Fridays, 7:00 – 8:00 am, Cherkasky Auditorium
  • Department of Surgery Grand Rounds, Fridays, 8:00 – 9:00 am, Cherkasky Auditorium
  • Transplant Nephrology Lunch and Learn, Fridays, 12:00 – 1:00 pm, TLC5

Fellowship Application Information

We’re seeking fellows who will shape the future of healthcare.

If you would like to apply to become a Fellow at Montefiore Einstein, here’s some information to keep in mind.

  • January 10, 2024 – Applicant registration begins. You can submit your application starting on this date
  • April 1, 2024 – Application deadline to be considered for an interview at Montefiore Medical Center
  • Mid-April through end of May 2024 – Montefiore Medical Center Transplant Surgery Fellowship Interviews
  • June 5, 2024 – Program and applicant rank list submission deadline
  • June 12, 2024 – Match results are available
  • June 13, 2024 – Post-match vacancies are posted
  • July 1, 2025 – Training position starts

    Montefiore Einstein recognizes that having a diverse and inclusive institution is critical to success, and we reaffirm our fervent commitment to fostering a culture in which diversity is a central tenet.

Have questions? Get in touch.


Diane McClary-Nichols
Residency Program Coordinator
dmcclary@montefiore.org

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