The University of Iowa Department of Surgery faculty and staff take pride in providing leading-edge patient care, advancing the field of surgery through first-rate research, and delivering superior education and training to the next generation of surgeons.

The department’s surgeons and medical professionals address a wide variety of complex medical issues, from matching donors with recipients in the Organ Transplant Center to providing continuous care for both adult and pediatric trauma victims in one of the state’s two designated Level I Trauma Centers and a certified regional Burn Treatment Center. Specialists provide critical surgical support among comprehensive, multidisciplinary teams for the treatment of cancer, gastrointestinal and colorectal diseases, and vascular ailments, as well as advanced surgical care for the smallest pediatric patients. Skilled plastic and reconstructive surgeons manage complex reconstructive issues resulting from deformities, traumatic injuries, or cancer excision in both adult and pediatric patients, in addition to surgical and non-surgical cosmetic services for adults.

Education

Research

About Us

The department provides critical and unique resources for Iowa. 

Years ago, surgery faculty at Iowa performed the world’s first gastric-bypass surgeries for morbidly obese patients. Today, the department continues its commitment to innovative surgical procedures and techniques in all areas, such as minimally invasive and robotic surgery, while offering advanced technologies like the positive pressure isolation room and state-of-the-art hydrotherapy facility for burn patients.

Patient care in the UI Department of Surgery is informed by basic science and clinical research—translating the latest discoveries from the laboratory bench to the patient’s bedside as well as into every aspect of education and training. Fellows, residents, and medical students are exposed to revolutionary medicine and surgical techniques that will enhance their skills, and the department’s faculty value the opportunity to shape today’s learners into tomorrow’s best and brightest surgeons.

>41K

Department of Surgery Visits

35

consecutive years ranked as one of the best academic hospitals in the U.S.

# 1

Iowa's #1 hospital as ranked by U.S. news & world report

News

Carver College of Medicine Events

Embracing Self-Compassion: The Power of Being Kinder to Yourself with Kari Vogelgesang, PhD promotional image

Embracing Self-Compassion: The Power of Being Kinder to Yourself with Kari Vogelgesang, PhD

Thursday, April 17, 2025 7:00am to 8:00am
Virtual
In this session, attendees will explore the transformative power of self-compassion and practical strategies for integrating it into daily life. Drawing on current research and real-life examples, this presentation will challenge the harmful perfectionism that often accompanies our work and personal lives, offering a refreshing perspective on how being kinder to ourselves can enhance our well-being and productivity. Participants will leave with actionable tools to practice self-compassion and...

REDCap Data Handling

Thursday, April 17, 2025 10:00am to 11:00am
Virtual
This is the sixth and final step in the REDCap training series. In this training we won't use REDCap at all. Instead, we will cover ways to view and manage your exported REDCap data in Microsoft Excel and Sublime Text such as: Populating data from one Excel sheet to another with vlookup() Seeing specific data with column sorting and filtering Ensuring data is cohesive by creating tables Looking at how data relates to other data by creating pivot tables Transforming unusable data to a...
Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Seminar: Dr. Sara Stahley promotional image

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Seminar: Dr. Sara Stahley

Thursday, April 17, 2025 10:30am to 11:20am
Medical Education Research Facility
This event is open to the public."Cadherin regulation of planar cell polarity in the mammalian epidermis"Sara Stahley, PhDAssistant Professor of Dermatology and of Cellular and Molecular PhysiologyPennsylvania State University Cancer InstituteFaculty Host: Kris DeMali, PhDStahley Lab | https://sites.psu.edu/stahleylab/

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