Nader Massarweh named new Chief of Surgery at the Atlanta VA
JUNE 2021
Nader Massarweh, MD, MPH, has been named the new Chief of Surgery at the Atlanta VA Healthcare System, Vice Chair of Veterans Affairs for the Emory Department of Surgery, and Associate Professor of Surgery for the Emory Division of Surgical Oncology. His clinical specialties are surgical treatment of primary and secondary liver tumors, cystic and solid pancreatic tumors, biliary tract cancer, and colorectal cancer, with a particular emphasis on minimally invasive techniques when appropriate.
Prior to joining the Atlanta VA and the faculty of the Emory School of Medicine, Dr. Massarweh held associate professor positions at the Michael E. DeBakey Department of Surgery and the Section of Health Services Research at Baylor College of Medicine, was an investigator for the Health Policy, Quality & Informatics Program at the Center for Innovations in Quality, Effectiveness and Safety, Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, and a practicing surgical oncologist at the DeBakey VA.
Dr. Massarweh has received funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH)/National Cancer Institute (NCI), the VA's Health Services Research and Development Service (HSR&D), and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) for studies that have assessed the impact and effectiveness of national health policy initiatives, evaluations of the reliability and value of national quality measures, and projects to improve the timely dissemination of surgical performance data for quality improvement.
Dr. Massarweh has been awarded a variety of honors, including the Cancer Foundation Merit Award from the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the Norton Rose Fulbright Faculty Excellence Award in Teaching and Evaluation and the Early Career Faculty Award for Excellence in Patient Care from Baylor, and the Lotzava Memorial Research Prize from MD Anderson Cancer Center.
He received his MD degree at Tulane University in 2005. He then attended the University of Washington, where he received his MPH and completed his post-graduate research fellowship and general surgery residency. From 2012-2014, he completed a complex general surgical oncology fellowship at MD Anderson Cancer Center.
As the Chief of Surgery at the VA, Dr. Massarweh will assist in leading all surgical areas in conjunction with their medical directors and other clinical leaders. This role will include the determination of each service's clinical, research, and training needs, and subsequent development and implementation of budgets and associated strategies for meeting these needs. He will also work to strengthen the collaborative bonds between the VA, Emory, and Morehouse School of Medicine through such means as team building, mentorship, and managing faculty affairs.