[Skip to Content]

Two pediatric surgeons join children's hospital

PedsSurg2010_detail

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Two pediatric surgeons with specialization in numerous areas, including oncology, neonatal, trauma and intestinal disorders have joined Upstate Golisano Children's Hospital.

Tamer A. Ahmed, M.D., and Kim Mendelson, M.D., Ph.D., will also join the faculty at Upstate Medical University.

Michael Ratner, M.D., Upstate's pediatric surgery division chief, said Upstate's ability to attract two physicians from this year's graduating class of pediatric surgery residents, about 30 individuals nationwide, speaks volumes. "Everyone at Upstate, from our new surgery chair, to the outstanding pediatrics faculty and healthcare team, in addition to this outstanding facility, played a key role in landing these talented pediatric surgeons."

Ahmed and Mendelson said their decisions to join Upstate were in part influenced by the presence of the Upstate Golisano Children's Hospital. Both surgeons have worked at children's hospitals previously.

"The presence of a children's hospital underscores a community's commitment to providing extraordinary care for children and their families," Mendelson said. "I'm delighted to have the opportunity to care for children and their families in such a first-rate facility."

Ahmed said he was impressed by the facility, but also the medical staff. "Upstate Golisano Children's Hospital is a remarkable facility in its design, but more impressive is the dedication of the medical team that cares for kids in this fine facility," he said. "I look forward to caring for children from all across this region."

Ahmed, a native of Texas, is a pediatric surgeon specializing in neonatal surgery, general pediatric surgery, minimally invasive surgery, pediatric trauma and surgery for intestinal disorders.

He most recently served as a fellow in pediatric surgery at Arkansas Children's Hospital (ACH), part of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock. With 316 beds, ACH is the sixth largest children's hospital in the country.

Prior to 2008, Ahmed was administrative chief resident in general surgery (2007-2008) at Milton S. Hershey Medical Center in Hershey, Pa., where he completed his surgical residency (2001-2008). Ahmed earned his medical degree at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston.

Additionally, Ahmed served as a research fellow at the Penn State Hershey Medical Center, investigating growth hormone resistance in sepsis, a severe illness in which the body is overwhelmed by infection. He also served as co-principal investigator on several studies assessing the effects of gastric bypass surgery on gastrointestinal physiology, taste sensitivity and food preference.

Ahmed is a member of the American College of Surgeons, the Association for Academic Surgery and the Association for Surgical Education.

Mendelson, who was raised in the Boston area, specializes in pediatric surgical oncology as well as prenatal surgery, neonatal surgery, minimally invasive pediatric surgery and surgery for intestinal disorders.

She most recently completed her pediatric surgical residency at St. Christopher's Hospital for Children in Philadelphia, a 189-bed hospital affiliated with Drexel University College of Medicine and Temple University School of Medicine. Mendelson also completed a pediatric surgery research fellowship (2007-2008) at St. Christopher's Hospital for Children.

She completed her pediatric surgery fellowship (2005-2007) at the University of Louisville, a fetal surgery fellowship (2004-2005) at the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center and a general surgery residency (1998-2004) at University Health Systems of Eastern Carolina Pitt County Memorial Hospital/Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University. Mendelson earned her medical degree and Ph.D., at Tufts University School of Medicine.

She holds board certification from the American Board of Surgery.

Mendelson's research interests are varied. She has published and presented her research on inflammatory bowel disease, liver disease and minimally invasive pediatric surgery.

Ahmed and Mendelson will be part of the surgical team at the Olivia Louise Pietrafesa Center for Children's Surgery at Upstate Golisano Children's Hospital, which opened in 2003 and performs about 2,300 pediatric surgical cases annually.

Upstate Golisano Children's Hospital opened in 2009 and is a two-story, 71-bed facility, part of Upstate University Hospital, located in Syracuse, N.Y.

Top