Dr. Ruth L. Bush is a professor of vascular surgery and the Associate Dean for Educational Affairs at the John Sealy School of Medicine-UTMB. She is board certified in both general and vascular surgery. She has over two decades of experience in vascular surgery and undergraduate (UME) and graduate medical education (GME). Prior to joining the faculty at UTMB, she was the founding Associate Dean for Medical Education and Professor at the University of Houston College of Medicine. She has also held leadership roles at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas A&M College of Medicine where she was the former Vice Dean for Academic Affairs, holding tenured professor rank at both institutions.

A native North Carolinian, Dr. Bush graduated from R.J. Reynolds High School in Winston-Salem. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Cornell University, medical degree from University of North Carolina (UNC) School of Medicine, juris doctorate from William Taft Law School, and masters in public health from UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health. Dr. Bush completed residency at the UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento, CA where she also spent an additional two years doing vascular surgery research. Following completion of general surgery residency, she completed a vascular surgery fellowship at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta, GA. She practiced in the VA healthcare system for 18 years and recently retired from federal service. She also has practiced in private and academic settings. Over the past decade, her clinical practice has focused primarily on venous disorders including chronic venous insufficiency, venous ulcerations, and post-thrombotic syndrome.

She is a member of several prestigious professional organizations and was elected in 2018 to the American College of Surgeons Academy of Master Surgeon Educators. Additionally, the Society for Vascular Surgery and the American Venous Forum have awarded her Distinguished Fellow status. Dr. Bush is past president of the Vascular and Endovascular Surgery Society (formerly known as the PVSS) and is president-elect (2023) of the American Venous Forum. She is editor-in-chief of the Journal of Vascular Surgery – Venous and Lymphatic Disorders.

She has authored over 150 peer-reviewed articles, >35 book chapters, and is on the editorial board of several medical journals. Dr. Bush has been an invited speaker and led workshops/courses at more than 200 national and international programs. She also is involved with her community as a volunteer at Dress for Success Houston, as a member of the American Heart Association’s Circle of Red which promotes cardiovascular health in women, and as a global volunteer to Haiti providing much needed primary care and general surgical procedures. She is passionate about medical education at all levels, patient care and barriers to care, and studying and improving health disparities in venous care.

Dr. Truong Nguyen is an Assistant Professor in the department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and specializes in Gynecologic Ultrasound, Gynecology, Obstetrics and Women's Health Care.    Dr. Truong received his medical degree from the University of Texas Medical School at Houston and completed his residency at St. Joseph Hospital in 2003.   Dr. Truong is certified by the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

Dr. Ludwik K. Branski was born in Kraków, Poland. He obtained his medical degree from the University of Bonn (Germany) and Masters of Medical Sciences degree from University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, TX. In addition to completing a residency in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, integrated program, in Munich and Hannover, Dr. Branski completed a clinical fellowship in Acute Burn and Burn Reconstruction at the University of Texas Medical Branch and Shriners Hospitals for Children-Galveston. He also completed a postdoctoral training in translational burns research at Shriners Hospitals for Children-Galveston. In 2013, Dr. Branski returned to the University of Texas Medical Branch and currently serves as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Surgery, Plastic Surgery Division, and as a staff surgeon at Shriners Hospitals for Children. He also serves as the Medical Director of the Tissue Bank at Shriners Hospital.

Dr. Branski is an expert in surgical reconstruction of severe burns. He is currently funded by the Department of Defense to study the benefits of growth factor on muscle regeneration in severely burned patients and by the National Institute of Health on the effects of chronic Catecholamine exposure on post-burn scarring. His other research activities center on the use of fat grafting for alleviating hypertrophic scars after severe burns. He has authored over 40 peer-reviewed publications and presented his work at numerous national and international meetings.

He is a member of the American Burn Association, International Society for Burn Injuries, Wound Healing Society, Shock Society, Society of Critical Care Medicine, and the German Association of Surgery and the German Association of Plastic Surgery to name a few. He is the recipient of several awards, including a young investigator award from the Society of Critical Care Medicine. Dr. Branski's research interests are in burn metabolism, hypertrophic scarring and burn reconstruction, CO2 Laser treatment for the treatment of hypertrophic scarring, wound healing and burn wound infections.

Dr. Frank T. Winsett is dermatologist who focuses on general adult and pediatric dermatology with a particular interest in dermatologic surgery. Dr. Winsett both his medical degree and internal medicine internship from the University of Texas Health Science Center Houston and completed his residency at the University of Texas Medical Branch-Galveston. His current research interests are in dermatologic surgery and cutaneous mycology. Dr. Winsett is a member of numerous scientific organizations, including the American Academy of Dermatology and the Texas Dermatology Society.

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. Jeffrey Garcia was born in Morgantown, West Virginia. He attended Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania studying biology. After three years of undergraduate studies, he was accepted into the West Virginia University School of Dentistry and he earned his Doctorate of Dental Surgery in 2012. Dr. Garcia would then complete his residency in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) in 2016.

After completing his residency, Dr. Garcia entered private practice in Greensburg, Pennsylvania. He founded and operated Keystone Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, P.C.. Dr. Garcia decided to return to Galveston in early 2020 to join UTMB as an Assistant Professor within the Division of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery.

Dr. Garcia is a Diplomate of the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and Fellow of the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons. Dr. Garcia's clinical interest includes dentoalveolar surgery, odontogenic infections, maxillofacial trauma, and dental implants. In his free time, Dr. Garcia enjoys fitness training, hunting, and spending time with his wife Ashley and their three children Jake, Luke, and Lily.

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. Camilo Mosquera was born in Cali, Colombia. He obtained his Doctorate of Dental Surgery from Universidad del Valle in 2013 and completed his residency in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at Universidad Nacional de Colombia at Bogota in 2019.

After completing his residency, Dr. Mosquera joined as a Faculty at the Universidad Nacional de Colombia - Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery program and also worked as Chief of the Maxillofacial Surgery Department at Clinica Santa Maria del Lago-Colsanitas in Bogota. To further enrich his knowledge and expertise, Dr. Mosquera pursued a Fellowship in Head and Neck Oncologic Surgery and Microvascular Reconstruction at the University of Florida – Jacksonville in 2021. Followed by a second fellowship at Ascension Macomb Oakland Hospital in Detroit in 2022. This opportunity allowed him to refine his techniques and broaden his experience in complex surgical cases.

After completing his fellowships, Dr. Mosquera joined UTMB in 2023 as an Assistant Professor within the Division of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery.

Dr. Mosquera’s clinical interest includes Head and Neck Oncologic Surgery and Microvascular Reconstruction. In his free time, Dr. Mosquera enjoys wildlife and nature photography, hiking, and spending time with his wife.

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.

Tamika Scott MSN, APRN, FNP-C with UTMB Health Department of Surgery.

Tamika Scott, FNP-C grew up in Galveston, Texas and graduated from the University of Arlington with his undergraduate receiving Master's from South University in Savannah, Georgia. She worked with post op surgical patients as a Registered Nurse. Once becoming a Family Nurse Practitioner in 2016 she started working with The Center for Weight Management at UTMB, she continues to work with weight management with The Department of Surgery.

Tamika Scott is Board Certified by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC).

In her free time, Tamika enjoys spending time and traveling with her family and friends.