Dr. Abe DeAnda was born and raised in El Paso, Texas and completed his undergraduate degree in Biomedical Engineering at Stanford University. He stayed on at Stanford for his medical degree as well as postgraduate training in General Surgery, post-doctoral training in cardiovascular physiology, and a fellowship in Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery. After completion of his training at Stanford, he was recruited to help rebuild the cardiothoracic surgery program at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, VA. Within 3 years, he had advanced to a position of tenured Associate Professor and led research initiatives in bloodless cardiac surgery and coagulopathies as well as developing a robust aortic surgery practice. He was then recruited to Albert Einstein School of Medicine in New York City as the Director of Aortic Surgery, and subsequently recruited to NYU as the Director of Aortic Surgery and Chief of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the NYU affiliate Bellevue Hospital Center. During his time in New York, he was routinely recognized as a “Top Doctor” in NYC as well as being honored by the Marfan Foundation with their annual “Hero with a Heart” award for his work with the Marfan community.

He returned to Texas after accepting the position of Professor and Chief of the Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery. Sharing the vision of the Department of Surgery and the Academic Enterprise, and with collaboration with colleagues within the division, Department of Surgery, as well as throughout the hospital system, his goal is to create a Division that is clinically active, actively engaged in teaching, and performing innovative research. His own NIH funded research involves studies in the initiation, development, and progression of aortic dissections.

Dr. DeAnda is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons and a Fellow of the American Heart Association. He is actively involved in a number of national societies, including the American Heart Association, where he serves on the Surgical Council Leadership committee; the American Association for Thoracic Surgery, and the Society of Thoracic Surgeons. He also has committee responsibilities with the American Board of Thoracic Surgery and serves as Chairman of a Drug Safety Monitoring Board for a current FDA trial. He also currently sits on the editorial board of the Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery.

Dr. DeAnda has welcomed the opportunity to return to his home state, and enjoys living on the island of Galveston.

Dr. Lick is currently a Professor in the Division of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery in the Department of Surgery. He received his medical degree at the University of Minnesota School of Medicine, Minneapolis, Minnesota. He completed his residency programs in General Surgery and Cardiothoracic Surgery at the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona. Dr. Lick has memberships in several scientific societies and professional organizations that include the American College of Surgeons, American College of Chest Physicians, Society of Thoracic Surgeons, and the Southern Thoracic Surgical Association. He has held honors in Best Doctors in America and Texas Super Doctors. Dr. Lick is on the editorial board and is a journal reviewer of the American Society for Artificial Internal Organs (ASAIO), is a journal reviewer as well for other journals such as Chest, JAMA, and Clinical Science. He also received a patent at the University of Arizona entitled “Expansible Cardiovascular Graft System”.

Dr. Petrov, section Chief of Thoracic and Esophageal Surgery, is a cardiothoracic surgeon with special expertise in Thoracic Oncology. His practice is focused on treating patients with lung and esophageal cancer as well as all aspects of benign pathology in the chest and foregut. Dr. Petrov’s clinical interests lie in the field of minimally invasive and robotic surgery and advanced surgical endoscopy. He performs complex oncologic resection with the application of VATS (video-assisted thorascopic surgery) or DaVinci robots. Also, Dr Petrov focuses on benign foregut conditions such as GERD, diverticula, and achalasia. He widely applies new and emerging technologies, particularly in the case of POEM (Peroral endoscopic myotomy) procedures.

Dr. Petrov’s special interests include chest wall resection and reconstruction, thoracic outlet syndrome and gastroparesis.

Eloise Catrett, MSN, RN, NP-C, is a certified Nurse Practitioner (NP) in the Division of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery, Department of Surgery, at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB). She has over two decades of experience in nursing.

Ms. Catrett earned her Associate Degree in Nursing in 1996 at San Jacinto College in Pasadena, Texas, and went on to earn her Bachelor of Science in Nursing at UTMB in 2000 and her Master of Science in Nursing from the University of Phoenix in 2006. In 2009, Ms. Catrett went on to obtain her Master of Science in Nursing-Acute Care Nurse Practitioner at the University of Texas Health Science Center of Houston.

In her career, Ms. Catrett has served in a variety of nursing positions, including staff nurse, assistant nurse manager, clinical nursing instructor, and advanced clinical nurse. Prior to joining UTMB, she worked as an Acute Care Nurse Practitioner in the Cardiovascular Recovery Unit at CHI Baylor St. Luke's Hospital-Medical Center in Houston, Texas, for 13 years.

Barbara L. Parish, MSN, RN, CCRN, NP-C, is a certified Nurse Practitioner (NP) in the Division of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery, Department of Surgery, at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB). She earned her Associates Degree in Nursing in 2001 at Galveston Community College and went on to earn both her Bachelor of Science in Nursing with honors (2011) and her Master of Science in Nursing-Nurse Practitioner with honors (2013) at UTMB.

Prior to her current position, Ms. Parish worked as a Nurse Clinician, Charge Nurse, Mentor, and Preceptor in the Surgical Intensive Care Unit as well as a Clinical Educator and Residency Facilitator in Surgical and Neuroscience Critical Care. She has remained active in UTMB committee responsibilities and is a member of several national professional medical societies, including the American Association of Critical Care Nurses and the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners.

Ms. Parish has been honored with numerous awards for her excellence in nursing and has both attended and presented at several professional development workshops and programs throughout her career.

Kathleen is a Physician Assistant in the UTMB Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery.

Kathleen is BOI (born on the island), born and raised in Galveston, Texas. She received her bachelor’s degree from UTMB in Health Care Administration. Realizing her true calling was inpatient care, she returned to school. After graduating from UTMB’s PA program in 2000, she joined UTMB’s Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery. Kathleen has over 20 years of experience caring for patients in the inpatient and outpatient settings. She spends much of her time in the operating room, where she specializes in endoscopic vein harvest and first assists for complex cardiac cases.