Meet the Faculty

Loay S. Kabbani, M.D.

Welcome to the Vascular Surgery Fellowship Program at Henry Ford Hospital. As Program Director, I am committed to training the best vascular surgeons of the future. Our program strives to provide the highest quality of care to our patients while providing the highest caliber of vascular surgery training and education in a clinical and academic environment.

Fully accredited by the ACGME, we graduate one vascular surgery fellow per year. Our program provides experiences in all the essential components of vascular surgery, as specified by the ACGME and Residency Review Committee for vascular surgery. Our fellows are exposed to the full spectrum of vascular surgery at one location, Henry Ford Hospital, Detroit. We cover an 842 bed designated Level 1 Trauma Center and have a busy elective service that is a referral center for all of Michigan. There is a dedicated vascular access unit that performs more than 400 dialysis access cases a year, and a busy venous service that performs more than 400 venous procedures a year.

The educational component of our program is robust and offers each fellow an immersive learning experience in didactic learning, surgical skills development, and simulation training. We host one or two Visiting Professors each year, in addition to lectures by the faculty. The program also utilizes weekly conferences, small group sessions, and one-on-one mentoring. A key attribute of our program is the faculty who are recognized nationally and internationally for their achievements. They are all accessible, approachable, and outstanding teachers. Our program also has a simulation center with an endovascular simulator. The Sim Center is a Level 1 American College of Surgeons (ACS) Accredited Education Institute. We also have one to two dedicated research fellows who help advance projects for our clinical fellows.

In summary, we work to enhance the experience and resources available to our fellows to create what we believe is a premier fellowship training program. The excellent staff and other multiple resources available to our fellows is what sets us apart from the rest.

Timothy J. Nypaver, M.D.

The vascular surgery fellowship here at Henry Ford Hospital is one of the original fellowships that involved training in the specialty of vascular surgery. While we frequently pay respect to our great tradition and history, it is our goal to offer the most current up-to-to date training in a tertiary care environment such that the trainee is able to confidently move into the next phase of his career, no matter what that phase may be.

The variety of vascular disease and the spectrum of levels of complexity of the patients that are treated at Henry Ford Hospital can be both exhilarating and humbling, and I believe is the primary reason that many of our staff, myself included, have chosen Henry Ford to practice and devote ourselves to the care of vascular surgical patients. We are expanding our care in the treatment of patients with aortic disease and serve as the major referral center for all levels of complexity and acuity; in additions we have an active program with management of lower extremity occlusive disease and limb salvage, a specialized venous disease clinic and care center, and a comprehensive care center involved in the management of patients with end stage renal disease.

We have embraced all aspects of endovascular care allowing us access to all available armamentarium for treatment options for our patients; while at the same time, we are recognized as experts in the open and more traditional vascular surgical operations. In summary, this is an exciting and transitional period in vascular surgery ----our fellowship provides an opportunity to be at the edge and forefront of these exciting developments and novel treatment methods employed in the care of vascular surgical patient and prepares the trainee as a unique and highly-qualified vascular disease specialist.

Alex Shepard, M.D.

Henry Ford Hospital has been in the forefront of Vascular Surgery since the beginning of the specialty in the 1950s. Our predecessors here at Ford were pioneers in the specialty. In the early 1950’s Henry Ford surgeons were among the first in the world to repair an abdominal aortic aneurysm. The first aortic replacement grafts, whether cadaveric homografts or prosthetic grafts, were developed here. The first computerized vascular registry was started here in the mid-1960s and helped Ford surgeons write a series of landmark papers which are still considered seminal contributions to the vascular literature. The medial approach to the popliteal artery was popularized here. In the 1970’s the Department of Surgery initiated one of the first vascular surgery fellowships in the country and Ford vascular surgeons were instrumental in the development of vascular surgery board certification. The first editor-in-chief of the Journal of Vascular Surgery was a Henry Ford surgeon and for the first decade of its existence, the Journal’s offices were housed in our Clara Ford Pavilion. In the late 1990s HFH was one of the first five centers in the country to perform an EVAR and one of the first to start a same day Dialysis Access Center.

The division continues to be a leader in the field. We have a large tertiary referral practice and maintain an active Aortic Center. Graduates of our program are exposed to the full range of vascular surgery during their fellowship – case mix continues to be 50:50 between endoluminal and open procedures. The fellowship is supported by a strong Department of Surgery and excellent General Surgery residency. Henry Ford Hospital won the prestigious Malcolm Baldridge Award for quality in 2011 and just celebrated its 100th birthday. Senior staff surgeons are part of the 1300 physician Henry Ford Medical Group, one of the oldest and most successful group practices in the country.

Regardless of ultimate career path our graduates are considered leaders in their local vascular surgery communities because of the breadth and depth of their exposure to the field. Our fellows are trained “Ford tough” and it shows in the success they achieve after graduation.

Kevin T. Onofrey, M.D.

As a product of the Henry Ford Fellowship and now, a staff vascular surgeon at Henry Ford Hospital, I have a unique perspective regarding the program. As a trainee, I was immediately impressed with the wide breadth of pathology seen and surgical procedures performed. The staff are active educators who provide graduated autonomy and prepare trainees for success in private or academic practice. I truly couldn’t have been happier with my experience and training, which is why I was so adamant and honored to stay on to carry on the traditions bestowed. Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit is a true territory referral center. We pride ourselves in offering comprehensive care with advanced open and endovascular solutions that are guided by ongoing evaluation and review of the latest literature. The department is composed of a passionate complement of surgeons, advanced practice providers, nurses, techs, fellows and residents that provide complicated patients with the necessary attention to maximize care and improve outcomes. It’s a collaborative environment with the patient taking priority.

Yasaman Kavousi, M.D.

The Division of Vascular Surgery at Henry Ford Hospital has a long history of excellence. Following in the footsteps of giants in the field of Vascular Surgery, such as Dr. Emerick Szilagyi, our Vascular Surgery Division has continuously distinguished itself by providing the state-of-the-art medical and surgical care to the patients in our community.

Henry Ford Hospital is a level 1 trauma center and a tertiary referral center. Owing to its unique geographical location, our trainees are afforded the opportunity to see, manage and operate on both rare and advanced vascular pathology. In addition to a robust open experience, our fellows will learn how to plan and execute complex endovascular operations. Our curriculum provides a structured didactic teaching sessions that follows the Score Curriculum. In addition, our fellows are expected to participate in scholarly research activities, as well as divisional and interdepartmental conferences. Our fellows also attend and participate in various national conferences.

We strive to train vascular surgeons who will become leaders in their field. The vascular surgery fellowship at Henry Ford Hospital is structured to train a highly competent open and endovascular surgeon. We believe that this goal is best achieved in a highly collaborative academic environment that offers breadth and depth in all aspects of vascular surgical care.