Hazim Safi, MD, will serve as medical director of aortic surgery at HCA Houston Medical Center, part of HCA Houston Healthcare, the health system said Oct. 1.
In his new role, Dr. Safi will oversee the development of a national thoracoabdominal program.
A specialist in cardiothoracic and vascular surgery, Dr. Safi joins HCA Houston Healthcare from UTHealth, also based in Houston. There, he was a professor and founding chair of cardiothoracic and vascular surgery at the McGovern Medical School. Dr. Safi was also the chief of the cardiothoracic and vascular surgery department and Memorial Hermann Heart & Vascular Institute.
"As a pioneer in the field of aortic emergencies and cardiovascular medicine, Dr. Safi’s experience and clinical acumen will expand our growing program exponentially at HCA Houston Healthcare Medical Center and across our division of 16 hospitals in the greater Houston area and beyond," Chris Osentowski, CEO at HCA Houston Healthcare Medical Center, said in a news release sent to Becker's.
Dr. Safi earned his medical degree at the University of Baghdad College of Medicine in Iraq. He joined Houston-based Baylor College of Medicine in the 1980s as a chief resident of thoracic and cardiovascular surgery.