Meet the Chief: Tom C. Nguyen, M.D., Leads Miami Cardiac & Vascular Institute

Описание: Internationally renowned minimally invasive heart surgeon Tom C. Nguyen, M.D., credits his father and a cartoon character for qualities that led him to become chief medical executive at Miami Cardiac & Vascular Institute.

{TRANSCRIPT}: - My name is Tom Nguyen. I'm the Chief Medical Executive of the Miami Cardiac and Vascular Institute. I'm also the director of minimally invasive valve surgery and the Barry Katzen Endowed Chair. I am a minimally invasive valve surgeon, and I've spent the past 10, 20 years of my life trying to be the best surgeon that I can be. And I really do believe that small incisions make a big difference. For me, I've always approached life and my career like a chess match, and try to figure out what their future is and try to anticipate it. And for me, it was pretty clear that patients don't want to have their chest cracked open unless they really need to. Only about 25, 30% of cardiothoracic surgeons out there do minimally invasive heart surgery. And when I talk about minimally invasive, I also talk about a lot of transcatheter techniques as well. Going through a small incision in your groin that's less than a centimeter, to again, potentially replace your aortic valve, repair your mitral valve, which is unheard of. I'm an immigrant. I was born at the very end of the Vietnam War, and we came here as refugees. I really learned how to speak English by watching cartoons. And one of the cartoons I watched was "Wile E. Coyote." And he's this crazy coyote that chases this roadrunner and he has these ridiculous failures. His face might be blown up and he might have every bone crushed, but he gets back up and chases after his dream, that roadrunner. So I know it's a little bit comical, but I really value that perseverance, that determination, that tenacity. We were very poor growing up, and we struggled, but that experience has taught me a lot about perseverance and it's taught me a lot about, you know, this concept of the American dream. Who would've thought that a Vietnamese immigrant like myself who barely spoke any English as a younger child, would have the fortune of being the chief medical executive at the Miami Cardiac and Vascular Institute in this phenomenal city? My biggest role model is my dad. We wouldn't be here unless he really kind of forged a path for us to come here. And he's the one that taught me hard work, determination, perseverance, the importance of education. I'm a family person. I have a wife who's very strong. She's an interventional radiologist here. I have a five-year-old daughter and a 1-year-old daughter. And what rejuvenates me is just time spent with my family. And I think that ultimately, although I love my patients and I love what I do, I think I want to be defined as a family man and someone who's a great father and a great husband first and second would be someone who really loves cardiothoracic surgery, loves building programs, loves mentoring others, and taking care of patients.