Matthew D. Neal, MD, FACS
Watson Family Professor and Interim Chair, Department of Surgery
Director of Emergency General Surgery
Co-director, Trauma and Transfusion Medicine Research Center
Professor of Critical Care Medicine and Clinical and Translational Science (secondary appointments)
University of Pittsburgh and UPMC
It is my pleasure to welcome you to the website of the Department of Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh. Our department has a proud tradition of excellence and leadership in surgery, built on an unwavering commitment to our patients and their families and a determination to advance the field through clinical care, discovery, education, and innovation.
Our foremost mission is to provide exceptional, high value surgical care. We strive not only to deliver the most advanced treatments available, but also to provide care with compassion, integrity, and a deep commitment to every patient and family we serve. Across our surgical specialties, our faculty are committed to advancing clinical practice, developing new approaches to complex surgical problems, and ensuring that innovation translates into better care for our patients.
That commitment to clinical excellence is inseparable from our mission of discovery. For nearly five decades, the Department of Surgery has been a leader in groundbreaking translational research, with a culture that brings together surgeons, scientists, trainees, and collaborators to address some of the most challenging problems in medicine. Research extends across all 13 of our divisions and our two affiliated research institutes, the Thomas E. Starzl Transplantation Institute and the McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine. Our goal is not simply to understand disease, but to translate discovery into new therapies, technologies, and approaches that improve the lives of our patients.
Education is equally central to who we are. We are committed to training the next generation of surgeons, scientists, and academic leaders through outstanding educational experiences for students, residents, fellows, researchers, and advanced practice providers. Our primary residency programs at UPMC include four programs in general surgery (UPMC Presbyterian, UPMC Mercy, UPMC Horizon, and UPMC Harrisburg), vascular surgery, and fellowships across numerous surgical subspecialties. Each provides rigorous clinical training within an environment that values curiosity, scholarship, mentorship, and innovation. We want our trainees not only to master the practice of surgery, but also to have the skills and opportunities to shape its future.
This culture of excellence has produced an extraordinary legacy of achievement. Our faculty have included two Lasker Award recipients, a recipient of the National Medal of Science, a member of the National Academy of Sciences, and four members of the National Academy of Medicine. Our department has also been home to six Presidents of the Society of University Surgeons and two Presidents of the American Surgical Association. Graduates of our residency programs have gone on to lead as department chairs and deans at top institutions. These accomplishments reflect a longstanding commitment to leadership, discovery, and advancing the field of surgery.
Yet as proud as we are of our history, our focus is firmly on what comes next. We believe the future of surgery will be defined by the integration of exceptional clinical care, transformative science, outstanding education, and a culture that encourages innovation and collaboration. The Department of Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh is committed to leading that future.
I invite you to explore our website and learn more about our faculty, trainees, programs, discoveries, and the people who make our department such an exceptional place to care for patients, learn, innovate, and advance the field of surgery.