Liver Transplant Anesthesia Fellowship

Overview

The Cleveland Clinic Department of Anesthesiology offers two positions for this one-year non-ACGME accredited fellowship in Liver Transplantation Anesthesiology. The primary goal of this program is to prepare fellows to become leaders in Liver Transplantation Anesthesiology and an academic career that focuses on the perioperative care of high-acuity abdominal organ transplants (liver, small bowel and multi-visceral) and non-transplant surgery for patients with hepatic/pancreatic/biliary disease. Cleveland Clinic is well-equipped to accomplish this with 19 transplant anesthesiologists at Main Campus performing over 240 liver, intestinal and multivisceral transplants per year.

Fellows will:

• Primarily participate in perioperative management of liver transplant patients, including invasive line placement, hemodynamic management, management of coagulopathy using thromboelastography, transesophageal echocardiography, and veno-venous bypass.
• Participate in intestinal, multivisceral (liver, intestine, pancreas) transplants and major hepatobiliary procedures as well as combined cardiac and liver transplant cases (concomitant CABG and OLT, valve surgery and OLT, combined lung, heart and liver transplants).
• Be involved in the multidisciplinary pre-operative evaluation of liver transplant candidates.
• Participate in the liver transplant selection committee meetings with staff.

Jacek Cywinski, MD
Program Director, Liver Transplantation Anesthesiology Fellowship
Phone: 216.444.2305
Email: cywinsj@ccf.org

John Seif, MD, MBA
Associate Program Director, Liver Transplantation Anesthesiology Fellowship
Phone: 216.444.5358
Email: SEIFJ@ccf.org

Alissa Alson
Program Coordinator, Liver Transplantation Anesthesiology Fellowship
Phone: 216.444.6953
Email: ALSONA2@ccf.org
9500 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44195

Highlights

• Wealth and complexity of cases.
• Dedicated and diverse faculty.
• Ample opportunities to develop a research portfolio including involvement in departmental research projects and protected research time- one day/week during Liver Transplantation Anesthesiology rotation.
• 2024-2025 salary: $74,890.
• Institutional Funding up to $2,500 to present at a conference and $1,000 for educational expenses.
• $60/month on-call meal allowance.
• 20 paid days off per year.
• Involvement in resident teaching.
• Opportunity for qualified candidates to work as an attending (Limited Clinical Practitioner) supervising residents and CRNAs one day per week.
• Elective rotations including Regional Anesthesia and Acute Pain Management, Pulmonary Hypertension, and MICU Liver Unit

Rotations and Structure

Fellowship Rotations

Elective options - We offer a range of options for the elective rotation depending on the fellow’s interest including Regional Anesthesia and Acute Pain Management, Pulmonary Hypertension, MICU Liver Unit, and Research.

*Fellows get one research day per week during the Liver Transplantation Anesthesiology rotation.

Call Responsibility

During the Liver Transplantation Anesthesiology rotation, fellows will alternate liver call days and each take two weekends of call per month.

Procedure Requirements

Education & Didactics

• Multidisciplinary lectures
• Weekly Wednesday morning Anesthesiology Grand Rounds
• Quarterly Journal Club
• Monthly M&M
• Adverse Event meetings

Application Process

Interested applicants should be motivated to pursue a career in this specialty and possess strong and professional verbal and written communication skills. Two fellows are selected for this program each academic year. International Medical Graduates are encouraged to apply. The Cleveland Clinic can sponsor the H1B visa for this program if requirements are met.

To apply, please send a completed application package to Alissa Alson (ALSONA2@ccf.org), program coordinator. An application package includes the following documents:

• Application form (Please download and complete).
• Personal Statement.
• Curriculum Vitae.
• USMLE and in-training scores.
• List of scholarly activity.
• ECFMG Certificate (if applicable).
• Three letters of recommendation (one must be from the residency Program Director).

Fellows

Fellows 2024-2025

Anna Maria Nuti (graduating January 2025)

Medical School: Università degli Studi di Roma “La Sapienza”, Sant’Andrea Hospital, Rome, Italy

Residency: Università degli Studi di Roma “La Sapienza”, Sant’Andrea Hospital, Rome, Italy

Why I chose Cleveland Clinic: Before joining the Cleveland Clinic Liver Transplantation Anesthesiology program, I did a Neuroanesthesiology fellowship here at Cleveland Clinic. I chose Cleveland Clinic because it’s one of the top hospitals in the world and is known to be IMG friendly. I loved the Neuroanesthesiology program, and I was already neurotrained in Italy, so I knew it was good. I then became interested in the Liver Transplantation Anesthesiology program as it has many cases and really good rotations.

Hobbies/Interests: I do a lot of sports; mainly CrossFit, tennis, and running. I hike a lot and have done several vacations on my own hiking for over 180 miles with a backpack. I also enjoy reading, traveling, watching crime shows, and going to concerts. I’m a season ticket holder of the Cleveland Orchestra, but I’ve been to so many kinds of concerts as I don’t have a favorite genre. I love wine. I don’t know if that’s a hobby, but it’s part of Italian culture to understand wine. I like to be in good company.

Marielle Sakr (graduating July 2025)

Medical School: University of Balamand, Faculty of Medicine, Beirut, Lebanon

Residency: Saint Georges University Hospital, Beirut, Lebanon

Why I chose Cleveland Clinic: I chose Cleveland clinic because it is a world-renowned healthcare organization that is dedicated to providing quality patient care. Specifically, I chose the Liver Transplant Anesthesiology program because I believe that working alongside leaders in this field will allow me to grow professionally.

Hobbies/Interests: Outside of the medical field, I enjoy traveling and exploring new cultures. I also love to spend time with friends and family.

Alumni: Where are they now?

2020-2024

Anthony Divito, MD

• Staff Anesthesiologist, and Liver Transplantation Anesthesiology Faculty, Division of Multi-Specialty Anesthesiology, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, USA

Ahmad Mousa, MD

• Clinical Fellow, Pediatric Anesthesiology, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, USA

Vanessa Bou Sleiman, MD

• Staff Anesthesiologist, and Liver Transplantation Anesthesiology Faculty, Division of Multi-Specialty Anesthesiology, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, USA

Snigdha Parikh, DO

• Staff Anesthesiologist, Legacy Good Samaritan Medical Center, Oregon Anesthesiology Group, Portland, OR, USA

Lusine Israelyan, MD

• Resident, Anesthesiology, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, USA

Faculty

• Program Director: Jacek Cywinski, MD, FASA
• Associate Program Director: John Seif, MD, MBA
• Santhalakshmi Angappan, MD
• Maged Argalious, MD, MSc, MBA, MEd, FASE, FASA
• Gausan Ratna Bajracharya, MD
• Jean Beresian, MD
• Vanessa Bou Sleiman, MD
• Praveen Chahar, MD, FCARCSI
• Anthony Divito, MD
• Sam Gumbert, MD
• Samuel Irefin, MD
• Joti Juneja Mucci, MD
• Allen Keebler, DO
• Sandeep Khanna, MD
• Trisha McGinnis, DO
• Omar Omar, MD
• Matthew Serna, MD
• Dmitry Sharakou, MD, PhD
• Claudene Vlah, MD

Resources

Training at Cleveland Clinic

We invite you to explore our Graduate Medical Education website to discover the reasons why Cleveland Clinic offers an ideal teaching and learning environment as well as to learn more about our rich tradition of excellence in the “education of those who serve.”

About Cleveland

From renowned cultural institutions to vibrant neighborhoods, inspired food and beverage offerings, action-packed sports and indie shops and art galleries, engaging experiences can be found around almost every corner in Cleveland. Learn more.