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we provide in terms of the timely ma nagement of pa ncreatic a nd bilia r y ma lig na ncies." The sense of urgency Dr. Hussa in describes is complemented by a well-established routine a nd close tea mwork a mong the physicia ns. "Drs. Kim and Hussain perform the initia l diag- nostics a nd tempora r y therapeutic inter ventions, such as stent placement," Dr. Sa ldinger says. "Our radiolog y depa r tment deploys the highest qua lity imaging to assess whether tumors a re resectable. A nd then we perform surger y. We have excellent outcomes in resection of bile duct tumors, liver tumors a nd pa ncreatic tumors. Suppor ted by a strong a nesthesia tea m, excellent nursing sta f f a nd full-ser vice hospita l, we ca n persona lize ca re for ever y patient. It ta kes the suppor t of the whole hospita l to treat these complex diseases." BUILDING A PROGRAM OF TRUST The prog ra m a rose to meet distinct needs in Queens for pa ncreatic a nd bi lia r y ca re, says Dr. Hussa in, who joined the tea m in 2010. " There wa s a need for a place where patients with these ca ncers — living between Long Isla nd a nd New York Cit y — could obtain treatment," he says. "NYP Queens is conveniently located, so more people are coming to our hospita l. We provide ever y thing in terms of ser vice. That 's what attracted me — the abilit y to f ill a niche in that a rea ." Dr. Kim, too, ca me to the prog ra m out of a motive of ser- vice — or more accurately, he returned to N Y P Queens, since he formerly completed a fel lowship there before entering private practice. "I graduated from here in 2004," Dr. Kim reca lls. "I kept my privileges at the hospita l and maintained a close relationship w ith the facult y a nd sta f f. In 2008, the hospita l recr uited me to return." Dr. Kim is pa r ticula rly involved in teaching, he says, a nd during his tenure at N Y P Queens, the fellowship prog ra m has become robust. "In the 10 yea rs I've been here, our fellowship has g rown from three to six fellows," he says. Growing the prog ra m to a high level, Dr. Sa ldinger says, involves creating synerg y between the other gastroenterolo- g ists, himself a nd other hospita l ser v ices. Things happen so rapidly that ever y member of the tea m ha s to be able to rely implicitly upon ever y other member. The a r t of creating a strong medica l prog ra m encompa sses recr uitment a nd facult y development a like. "At this point, the program is staffed with people at the top of their game, professiona ls whom I can trust with my patients," Meet the Surgeon: Pierre Saldinger, MD PIERRE SALDINGER, MD, Chair of the Department of Surgery and Surgeon in Chief at NewYork-Presbyterian Queens and Professor of Clinical Surgery at Weill Cornell Medicine, obtained his medical degree at the University of Bern School of Medicine in Switzerland. He served residencies at Beth Israel Hospital in Boston and the Hôpital de Zone in Switzerland. At both hospitals, he was appointed chief resident. He completed a research fellowship at the University Hospital in Lausanne, Switzerland, followed by a fellowship in hepatobiliary surgery at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and a clinical fellowship in surgery at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Saldinger has held numerous prestigious academic appointments and has published widely in gastroenterology and hepatology. He also has research interests in quality improvement and performance outcomes. Dr. Saldinger is board-certified by the American Board of Surgery. Dr. Saldinger and Syed Hussain, MD, Director of Endoscopic Ultrasound at NYP Queens, review information. Dr. Kim performs an endoscopic procedure. M D N E W S . C O M /// M D N E W S L O N G I S L A N D ■ 2 018 0 7