UH Alumnus returning home to head Surgery Department at Medical School

Dr. Kenric Murayama is an expert in gastrointestinal surgery

University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
Contact:
Tina M Shelton, (808) 692-0897
Director of Communications, Office of Dean of Medicine
Posted: Feb 25, 2015

Kenric Murayama, MD
Kenric Murayama, MD

Dr. Kenric Murayama, an alumnus of the John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM), will be joining the school’s Department of Surgery and will be appointed as Chair upon his arrival in mid-year.

“On behalf of JABSOM, I wish to thank all who assisted in this selection, especially the Search Committee,” said Jerris Hedges, MD, JABSOM Dean. “This Committee spent untold hours and effort in recruiting, searching, and deliberating on the best candidate for the position.”

The Dean extended a special mahalo to Dr. Sue Steinemann, who served as Interim Chair during the period of the search. “We are grateful for the dedication of the surgery faculty and staff for all their assistance,” said Dr. Hedges. 

Dr. Murayama, a native of Hawai`i, did his undergraduate studies at the University of Washington and obtained his medical degree at JABSOM. He completed his surgery training at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine during which time he did a two-year research fellowship in pancreatic physiology.

Dr. Murayama began his academic surgery career at the University of Nebraska and has subsequently been on the surgical faculty at Saint Louis University, Northwestern University, the University of Hawai`i, and the University of Pennsylvania. He is past Chair and Program Director at Abington Memorial Hospital in Pennsylvania and Adjunct Professor of Surgery at Temple University School of Medicine.

Dr. Murayama’s clinical interest is minimally invasive gastrointestinal surgery with a focus on laparoscopic treatment for benign esophageal disorders, abdominal wall hernias, and morbid obesity and its metabolic consequences.

Dr. Murayama has a longstanding commitment to surgical education and leadership development in surgery. He has served as Residency Director at Abington Memorial Hospital and developed the Quality, Outcomes, and Performance Improvement Committee to engage residents and emphasize the importance of patient safety and quality improvement in their journey of lifelong learning. As Medical Director of the operating rooms, he led the initiative to create a corporate model for the department of surgery across two institutions. In that capacity he was actively involved in operational and strategic planning and implementation with specific goals of improving efficiencies, cost containment, and program development.

Dr. Murayama has been an active participant in surgical societies nationally. He is currently on the Board of Governors for the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons, Chair of the Resident Education Committee for the Society for Surgery of the Alimentary Tract, and Chair of the Program Committee for the Central Surgical Association.  Dr. Murayama is also on the Executive Council for the Philadelphia Academy of Surgery, the oldest surgical society in America. Finally, Dr. Murayama just completed his year as President of the Southwestern Surgical Congress and remains an active member of the Executive Committee for the organization.  He is active in several other organizations and has been an invited speaker nationally and internationally for his expertise in minimally invasive surgery. He is the founding editor of the textbook, “An Evidence Based Approach to Minimally Invasive Surgery,” currently in preparation of its second edition.

About JABSOM Surgery                                                                                                                                   
The Surgery Department at JABSOM is headquartered on-site at The Queen’s Medical Center, one of JABSOM’s community-based academic health centers. The surgery faculty includes 50 academic faculty and over 250 appointed private surgical attending physicians. In addition to the Directors of Surgical Education, there are division chiefs for anesthesiology, ENT, emergency medicine, hyperbaric medicine, neurosurgery, ophthalmology, orthopaedics, pediatric surgery, plastic surgery, radiology, SICU education, surgical research, thoracic, transplant, trauma, urology, ultrasound and vascular surgery. Other academic training partners include Hawai`i Pacific Health, Kuakini Medical Center, Kaiser Permanente, Wahiawā General Hospital, and the Tripler and VA Health Systems.

For more information, visit: http://jabsom.hawaii.edu