Message from the Directors

Welcome to the Surgical Innovations website! This is an unbelievably exciting time to be on the leading edge of medicine. The UCSF Department of Surgery has long been at the forefront of discovery, pioneering seminal innovations from the world’s first fetal surgery to new stent-grafts for aortic aneurysms.

We are thrilled to bring this tradition to the next level of excellence with Surgical Innovations, a faculty-led initiative bringing together surgeons, bioengineers, trainees and device industry professionals to build tools that will improve the health of patients worldwide. A “smart bandage” that helps prevent bedsores, an artificial kidney that offers an alternative to dialysis for people with end-stage kidney disease, and a magnetic treatment for sleep apnea that provides an alternative to CPAP are just a few of the exciting projects incubating here. Our program brings together exceptionally talented people who embrace an unparalleled level of collaboration.

Surgical Innovations sponsors weekly open meetings, lectures, and brainstorming sessions at which faculty, trainees and collaborators from neighboring universities gain firsthand exposure to all aspects of the device development process. We have developed a rich network of experienced advisors and consultants from across the medical device industry that provides practical expertise on key issues such as navigating the Food and Drug Administration’s approval process, intellectual property protection, reimbursement strategy, and raising funds. And our Innovation Pathway is guiding a new cadre of surgeon-innovators in developing the skills they need to become lifelong leaders in translating new medical technology into the clinic. 

Our Surgical Innovations Accelerator seed grant program provides technical and strategic guidance and funding to help promising ideas advance to the next stage. In all aspects of our program, we cultivate early engagement and assessment, with the goal of bringing promising ideas to market – and the patients who need them.

Thank you for visiting our website. We invite you to learn more about our program and to join us in this exciting endeavor!

Hanmin Lee, MD

Professor & Chief, Division of Pediatric Surgery
Michael R. Harrison, MD, Endowed Chair in Fetal Surgery
Surgeon in Chief, UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital, San Francisco Director, Fetal Treatment Center Clinical Lead, Surgical Innovations UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital, San Francisco

Shuvo Roy, PhD

Professor, Departments of Bioengineering & Therapeutic Sciences and Surgery
UCSF Schools of Pharmacy and Medicine
Engineering Lead, Surgical Innovations Program
Director, Biodesign Laboratory
UCSF Faculty Director, UC Berkeley-UCSF Master of Translational Medicine (MTM) Program
Technical Director, The Kidney Project

Usha Thekkedath, MD

Administrative Lead
Innovation Program Manager
Department of Surgery