Dr. Lansman Appointed Chair of the Department of Surgery
Dr. Lansman Will Also Serve as Director Of Surgery at Westchester Medical Center
Steven Lansman, M.D., Ph.D., has been appointed chair of the School of Medicine (SOM) Department of Surgery at New York Medical College (NYMC) and director of the Department of Surgery at Westchester Medical Center (WMC), effective February 1. He served as interim surgery chair and director since November 2021. Dr. Lansman joined the faculty of NYMC as professor of surgery and the clinical staff of WMC as chief of the Section of Cardiothoracic Surgery in 2005.
“I have tremendously enjoyed working with the faculty, fellows, residents and students in the Department of Surgery as interim chair over the past year. It is an incredible honor and the highlight of my career to serve as chair for this distinguished group,” said Dr. Lansman.
Dr. Lansman was instrumental in building WMC’s cardiac transplant program and introducing the use of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), among other healthcare therapy advances at WMC. He also oversaw the addition of a hybrid operating room at WMC and the related expansion of minimally invasive and catheter-based approaches to aortic valve replacement and mitral valve repairs.
“The Cardiac Transplant Program at Westchester Medical Center is now one of the most active centers in the International Heart Transplant Registry, thanks in part to Dr. Lansman,” said Renee Garrick, M.D., chief medical officer, WMCHealth and NYMC vice dean for Westchester Medical Center. “He has a long and distinguished record of accomplishments at Westchester Medical Center, and we are fortunate to have him as our Director of the Department of Surgery.’’
With more than 150 peer-reviewed publications and authored 13 book chapters. Dr. Lansman is a valued mentor to junior faculty, residents and students at NYMC.
Previously, Dr. Lansman was on the medical staff of Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City, where he started the hospital’s heart transplant program and performed the first cardiac transplant at Mount Sinai in 1986. He also directed Mount Sinai’s Mechanical Assist and Heart and Lung Transplant Program. Before joining Mount Sinai Medical Center, Dr. Lansman served as interim chief of cardiothoracic surgery for SUNY Brooklyn, the Brooklyn VA Hospital and Kings County Hospital.
Since 1988, he has organized and directed the Aortic Symposium Series, an internationally recognized forum for aortic surgery that draws more than 1,000 participants. From 2001 to 2002, Dr. Lansman served as president of the New York Society of Thoracic Surgery.
“It is our pleasure and privilege to have Dr. Lansman serve in these roles and we are excited to work together with him as he advances the mission of the Departments of Surgery at both New York Medical College and Westchester Medical Center,’’ said Jerry L. Nadler, M.D., professor of medicine and pharmacology and former dean of NYMC SOM.
Dr. Lansman received his M.D. and Ph.D. in biophysics in 1977 from the State University of New York (SUNY) Downstate Health Science Center. He also completed a general surgery residency at Montefiore Medical Center and a fellowship in cardiothoracic surgery at SUNY Downstate.
