The Department of Surgery at the University of Wisconsin is home to numerous research programs investigating the underlying mechanisms of disease, translating discoveries in the laboratory to clinical trials, and offering experimental options with the goal of improving patient care. Our portfolio of research funding exceeds $18 million annually with a large percentage from the National Institutes of Health.
Our researchers & labs >>
The Department of Surgery also manages five NIH-funded training programs offering formal research training for medical students, pre-doctoral students, and post-doctoral fellows.
Our solid basic science research is complimented by an evolving portfolio of clinical research with plans to continue to expand outcomes and education research.
Our Chair’s presentation at the Department of Surgery’s 2019 Research Summit covered the status of research in the department, along with current initiatives and future goals. View the 2019 Research Summit PowerPoint.
The Department of Surgery Research Committee reviews interdepartmental research proposals for department investigators.
Investigators at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health should carefully read federal and non-federal agency guidelines for proposal submission.
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Department Research Committee
Associate Vice Chairs of Research
Susan Thibeault, PhD, CCC–SLP
Professor
(608) 263-0121
thibeault@surgery.wisc.edu
Lee Wilke, MD
Professor
(608) 263-1164
wilke@surgery.wisc.edu
Division Members
David Foley, MD
Associate Professor
(608) 263-2527
foley@surgery.wisc.eduCaprice Greenberg, MD, MPH
Professor
(608) 262-0395
greenberg@surgery.wisc.eduThomas Pasic, MD
Associate Professor
(608) 262-8693
pasic@surgery.wisc.eduA Neil Salyapongse, MD
Professor
(608) 287-2100
a.salyapongse@uwmf.wisc.eduJohn Scarborough, MD
Associate Professor
(608) 265-3982
scarborough@surgery.wisc.eduDai Yamanouchi, MD, PhD
Associate Professor
(608) 265-4420
yamano@surgery.wisc.edu
Administration Members
Kaitlin Dorst
Junior Research AdministratorGlen Leverson, PhD
Associate Scientist, BiostatisticianLisa Werning
Assistant Administrator of Research
Latest Research News
The Arc of Discovery: How the transplant program uses collaborative research to improve outcomes for patients
The term “from bench to bedside” describes a common vision of medical research programs. The goal is to take research insights from laboratory settings to practical applications in patients as quickly as is practical, and …
Shapiro student honored for surgical research
This story was originally published at www.smph.wisc.edu. A third-year medical student at UW-Madison who is a research assistant with Department faculty recently received a prestigious national award for her work in surgical-education research. Kirsten Gunderson, …
Improving the Quality of Hernia Operations through Surgical Coaching
Musicians, athletes, and even business executives use coaching to improve performance. Why not surgeons? While we may not associate coaching with surgery, Caprice Greenberg, MD, MPH, and her team in the Wisconsin Surgical Outcomes Research …
Department ranks 8th in 2018 Blue Ridge Institute for Medical Research Rankings
Our Department ranked #8 of U.S. surgical departments in the 2018 Blue Ridge Institute for Medical Research Rankings, with funding of $12,338,374. We have increased over $4 million in funding and moved up one ranking place …
Plastic surgery resident co-authors paper with faculty published in Annals of Surgery
Plastic surgery resident Dr. Oksana Babchenko co-authored “Psychological Theory as It Applies to Surgical Training,” recently published in Annals of Surgery. The paper explores what constitutes an effective resident training environment through the lens of psychology, neuroscience, and education …
Study participation opportunity: Partner2Lose
Partner2Lose is a weight loss and management study at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, with Principal Investigator Corrine Voils, PhD. The study is now enrolling couples into this 2-year program that will compare two ways for …
Dr. Jack Jiang receives NIH R01 Grant
Jack Jiang, MD, PhD, received a $1.9 million NIH R01 grant for his project, “Chaos in human phonation and its measurement,” beginning this May. This five-year project will study how voice dysfunction is detected and …
Dr. Jon Odorico interviewed on stem cell research at UW
Jon Odorico, MD, was interviewed in the Wisconsin Medical Alumni Association’s magazine Quarterly as part of a feature story on stem cell research at UW. He discusses the role of stem cell therapies in diabetes …
Winners of the 2019 Department Science Image Contest
Check out the winners and all submissions for our Behind the Lens: Surgery Science Image Contest, held annually as part of our Research Summit. Winner: “When death overtakes us, all that we have is left to …
Department research highlighted at recent annual summit
Department research efforts shined last week at the annual Research Summit. The tenth annual event brought together over 300 research-minded colleagues to share ideas and encourage collaborations. Guest speaker Debra Houry, MD, Director of the …
WiSOR
The Wisconsin Surgical Outcomes Research Program (WiSOR) was formally established in 2011 to address the increasing priority of integrating health services research into the advancement of surgical care.
Humanized Mouse Core Service
The Humanized Mouse Core of the University of Wisconsin-Madison provides investigators with a variety of humanized mouse models for their individual research needs.
Histology Core Service
The UW Department of Surgery Histology Core facility, located at H4/337 in the Clinical Science Center, provides Histology services to clinical and basic science researchers associated with the Department of Surgery.
Surgical Education Research
The Surgical Education Research team works to improve the quality and effectiveness surgical education through research and innovation.
WiSOR Qualitative Core
The WiSOR Qualitative Core offers faculty and staff consultation, support, and expertise on study design, methodology, data collection and analysis, and interpretation of results. It also offers transcription services.