Vedra Augenstein, MD, FACS
Associate Professor of Surgery
Department of Surgery
Division of Gastrointestinal and Minimally Invasive Surgery
Atrium Health
Carolinas HealthCare System
Charlotte, North Carolina
Dr. Vedra A. Augenstein is a board certified, fellowship trained general surgery specialist who performs open, laparoscopic and robotic surgery. Her practice includes repair of various abdominal, flank, groin and hiatal hernias, esophageal disease including reflux and achalasia, abdominal wall reconstruction, component separation, panniculectomy, resection of stomach, small bowel, colon, appendix, spleen, gallbladder. She is a leader of committees on both Americas Hernia Society and the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons. She is devoted to participating in surgical research, publishes and lectures nationally and internationally on various surgical subjects. Dr. Augenstein is dedicated to excellence and individualized patient care which starts with preoperative preparation and is followed by the most current evidence based surgical procedures. Dr. Augenstein’s goal is to provide a customized care to each patient to achieve best outcomes.
H. John Cooper, MD
Associate Professor of Orthopedic Surgery
Division of Hip & Knee Reconstruction
Columbia University Irving Medical Center
New York, New York
Dr. John Cooper specializes in adult reconstructive orthopedic surgery, with a focus on primary and revision hip and knee arthroplasty, hip preservation surgery and hip and knee arthroscopy. He is skilled in minimally invasive total joint arthroplasty as well as advanced techniques in managing complications of failed or painful hip and knee replacements.
Dr. Cooper has published numerous articles and book chapters on clinical outcomes and complications of hip and knee replacements. Topics include: diagnosis and management of periprosthetic joint infection, implant loosening, bearing surface wear and osteolysis as well as periprosthetic fractures. He is considered an expert on corrosion at modular junctions in total hip arthroplasty and the body’s reaction to metal wear debris. He has been an invited speaker on these and other topics at national and international orthopedic meetings.
Originally from South Carolina, Dr. Cooper graduated summa cum laude from Duke University with a degree in mechanical engineering and materials science and a second major in biological anthropology and anatomy. He completed his medical education in New York at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons and his orthopedic residency at Lenox Hill Hospital.
Dr. Cooper completed his fellowship in adult reconstructive surgery at the renowned Rush University Medical Center / DuPage Hospital combined program in Chicago.
Elizabeth Faust, MSN, CRNP, CWS, CWOCN-AP, DAPWCA
Certified Wound, Ostomy, Continence Specialist
Tower Health
Reading, Pennsylvania
Liz Faust is a Nurse Practitioner in Wound, Ostomy, and Continence Care at the Reading Hospital in West Reading, PA. She graduated from Gwynedd Mercy University with her MSN in Adult Nurse Practitioner in 2009, became a Certified Wound Specialist (CWS) in 2010, and certified in Wound, Ostomy, and Continence (CWOCN) in 2012. She serves as an in-patient wound, ostomy, and continence specialist for a 700+-bed Level I Trauma Center. She focuses on care of the perioperative, post-operative, cardiac and critical care patients, with an interest in nursing and physician education, NPWT, and pressure injury prevention. She has written articles on NPWT. She has lectured nationally in addition to facilitating Bioskills labs across the country. She has two years’ experience in an outpatient wound care center prior to her acute care position. She is an active member of WOCN, AAWC, and a board member for APWCA.
Allen Gabriel, MD, FACS
Associate Professor of Surgery
Loma Linda University Medical Center
Loma Linda, California
Peacehealth Southwest Medical Center
Vancouver, Washington
As a board-certified plastic surgeon serving Vancouver, WA, Portland, OR and beyond, Dr. Gabriel provides natural, nuanced results that are fine-tuned to each client’s unique anatomy and aesthetic goals. He is adept at addressing a wide range of concerns, from breast reconstruction after mastectomy and the treatment of congenital anomalies, to complex facial and breast surgeries performed solely for cosmetic improvement. Dr. Gabriel is a member of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons and has honed his approach over the years to an internationally recognized level of artistry.
Selected in 2001 by the distinguished institution Loma Linda University, Dr. Gabriel was invited to join an elite team at the Integrated Plastic Surgery Residency Program. During his tenure there, he traveled to Ethiopia with Operation Good Samaritan, was elected to various leadership committees, and received the title of chief resident.
Dr. Gabriel began a Breast and Aesthetic Surgery Fellowship at Baptist Hospital in Nashville, Tennessee in 2007 after being chosen by the internationally respected surgeon Dr. Patrick Maxwell. Upon completion of this program, Dr. Gabriel had in his possession among the most advanced skills and techniques in breast and aesthetic surgery, as well as an unparalleled level of artistry that would serve him throughout his career.
Dr. Gabriel is the recipient of a rare award known as the Humanism in Medicine Award. He is one of the very few physicians in the United States to receive this honor. To date, Dr. Gabriel has received multiple awards and honors for his clinical research and contributions to medical literature, and he travels frequently to lecture on the topics of plastic surgery both domestically and internationally.
In 2016, Vancouver, WA plastic surgeon Dr. Allen Gabriel was awarded the distinction of being in the top 100 doctors in the nation by RealSelf. He was selected for this honor out of nearly 13,000 board certified plastic surgeons on RealSelf.
Dr. Gabriel is the author of over 36 chapters and abstracts in peer-reviewed literature. He is happy to share some of his articles online with patients so that they might have a better understanding of Dr. Gabriel’s approach towards medicine. He has penned publications on the topics of liposuction, breast surgery, breast embryology and abdominoplasty.
Paul J. Kim, DPM, MS, FACFAS
Professor, Department of Plastic Surgery and Orthopedic Surgery
University of Texas Southwestern
Medical Director
University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
Dallas, Texas
Paul J. Kim is the Medical Director of the Wound Program at University of Texas Southwestern Clements University Hospital, Dallas, Texas. He has the rank of Professor in the Department of Plastic Surgery and Orthopedic Surgery. He is also a Fellow of the American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons.
Dr. Kim received his Bachelor of Arts degree, Magna Cum Laude, in Psychology and Biology from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 1995 and his Doctor of Podiatric Medicine degree from the Ohio College of Podiatric Medicine in 2002 with multiple honors. Dr. Kim completed a surgical foot and ankle residency program in 2005 from Inova Fairfax Hospital in Falls Church, Virginia. He also received a Master of Science Degree in Clinical Research Management from Arizona State University in 2012.
Dr. Kim has received both intramural and extramural research grants in the areas of wound care, Diabetic limb salvage, and tendon pathology. He has chaired multiple committees related to research and Evidence Based Medicine and the Diabetic limb for various national and international organizations.
Dr. Kim is also a national and international speaker and has authored over 150 basic science, clinical manuscripts, and book chapters on various topics in foot and ankle medicine and surgery with a specific interest in the Diabetic Limb.
Marc Matthews, MD, FASC, FASGS
The Arizona Burn Center
Associate Professor of Surgery
Creighton University, University of Arizona, Midwestern University, AT Still University School of Medicine
Phoenix, Arizona
Dr. Matthews is a Director of the Arizona Burn Center and former Trauma Director at Maricopa Medical Center, where he has been practicing since 2003. He finished his general surgery residency in Phoenix. He then went on to complete a trauma, critical care and burn fellowship at University of California, Davis Medical Center. During that time he was also a trauma/critical care attending at Mercy San Juan Medical Center in Sacramento.
Since his arrival at the Arizona Burn Center, he has concentrated on the development of telemedicine for the delivery of burn care throughout the entire state of Arizona and the Southwest as well as the development of disaster preparedness. In addition to extensive outreach, he has also concentrated on resident education at the Maricopa Integrated Health System’s surgical residency program.
David M. Shapiro, MD, CHC, CHCQM, CHPRM, LHRM, CASC
Anesthesiologist
Red Hills Surgical Center
Tallahassee, Florida
Dr. Shapiro is an anesthesiologist with extensive experience in ambulatory surgery center (ASC) management. Among his many credentials, he is a Certified Administrator Surgery Center (CASC), Certified Professional in Healthcare Risk Management (CPHRM), and certified in Health Care Quality Management. He joined FGI’s Health Guidelines Revision Committee (HGRC) during the 2018 Guidelines for Design and Construction revision cycle to represent the ambulatory surgery industry on the HGRC’s Outpatient Document Group.
Past president of the Ambulatory Surgery Center Association (ASCA) and the Ambulatory Surgery Foundation, Dr. Shapiro is a current board member of the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC) and the Florida Society of Ambulatory Surgery Centers (FSASC). In addition, he is a board member of the Ambulatory Surgery Center Quality Collaboration (ASC QC), an organization dedicated to developing, measuring, and reporting ASC quality data. In that capacity, Dr. Shapiro has worked with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the National Quality Forum (NQF) to promote ASC quality measure reporting.
Devinder Singh, MD
Chief & Program Director, Division of Plastic Surgery
University of Miami and Jackson Health Systems
Clinical Professor of Surgery (interim)
University of Miami School of Medicine
Miami, Florida
Devinder Singh, M.D., is Chief of Plastic Surgery at the University of Miami Health System and interim professor of surgery in the Division of Plastic Surgery at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.
Dr. Singh earned his baccalaureate at Brown University and his medical degree at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. He completed his combined residency in general and plastic surgery at Yale New Haven Hospital in Connecticut. In 2011, Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley appointed Dr. Singh to be the only plastic surgeon on the Board of Physicians. The medical board is responsible for protecting public health through efficient licensure, effective discipline, and regulatory promulgation. Dr. Singh was very active in reforming the board’s operations, and in 2014, the Governor promoted him to Chair of the medical board for an additional two-year term.
Most recently, Dr. Singh worked as Chief and Medical Director of Plastic Surgery at Anne Arundel Medical Center in Annapolis. Previously, he held faculty appointments at both the University of Maryland School of Medicine and Johns Hopkins Medicine.
Dr. Singh specializes in advanced reconstruction after cancer surgery, including microvascular flap breast reconstruction and Mohs reconstruction of the face. He also performs body-contouring procedures after massive weight loss and aesthetic surgery of the face, breast and body. His areas of research include wound healing, negative pressure therapy, and vascularized composite allotransplantation.
With dozens of peer-reviewed articles, book chapters and other publications to his name, Dr. Singh is an expert and national leader in his specialty. His recent publications in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery and International Wound Journal cover topics such as the latest techniques for breast reconstruction as well as the benefits of closed incision negative pressure dressings. His research helps improve outcomes for patients, both functionally and aesthetically. He has also served as a peer reviewer for numerous journals, including the Journal of the American College of Surgery and Nature – Scientific Reports.
Dr. Singh has given hundreds of lectures and presentations locally, across the country, and internationally, furthering the knowledge and skills of plastic surgeons world-wide. He is a member of the American Association of Plastic Surgeons and American Society of Plastic Surgeons, where he leads multiple committees.
Dr. Singh has also used his surgical skills to give back through numerous humanitarian mission trips to Thailand, Uganda, Vietnam, and many other countries. During these trips, he has performed cleft lip and palate corrections on hundreds of children.
Dot Weir, RN, CWON, CWS
Wound/Education Consultant
Clinician; Saratoga Hospital Center for Wound Healing and Hyperbaric Medicine
Saratoga Springs, New York
Dot has been a registered nurse since 1976 and began her practice of ostomy and wound management in 1980. She has practiced in acute care, home care, and long-term care, spent 7 years in industry, and has practiced in outpatient care since 2001. She has been Board Certified by the Wound, Ostomy and Continence Nurses Certification Board since 1985 (CWON) and The American Board of Wound Management since 2004 (CWS). After a long career in the Orlando, Florida area, she relocated to the New York area in 2017 and is in practice at the Saratoga Hospital Center for Wound Healing and Hyperbaric Medicine.
Current Activities
Co-Chair of the Symposium on Advanced Wound Care
Co-Director of the Wound Track for the Amputation Prevention Symposium
Faculty of the Wound Certification Prep Course (since 2004)
Member and Secretary of the Board of the International Wound Infection Institute
Chair of the Practicing Clinician Panel for Why Wound Care
Member of the International Planning Committee for the 2020 World Union of Wound Healing
Societies conference
Member the Wound, Ostomy and Continence Nurses Society
Member of the World Council of Enterostomal Therapy
Member Wound Healing Society
Member of the CLI Global Society for whom she sits on the Wound Committee
On speaker's bureau and Medical Advisory Boards for several wound manufacturers
National and International lecturer on all aspects of wound management
Past Activities
Was on the founding Board of the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care and held the positions of the first Treasurer and the third President and is now an honorary lifetime member
Founding Editor of Today's Wound Clinic journal
Board of Directors Wound Reach Foundation
Has authored 13 book chapters and numerous journal articles