Two UTHealth Houston heart surgeons affiliated with Memorial Hermann Health System are serving in leadership positions for the Southern Thoracic Surgery Association (STSA), which has supported southern and southern-trained cardiothoracic surgeons as they pursue top-quality patient care, education and scientific achievement since 1954. Damien J. LaPar, MD, MSc, professor and chief of pediatric and congenital heart surgery and executive co-director of the Children’s Heart Institute at Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital, and Dawn Hui, MD, professor in the Department of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery and cardiac surgeon affiliated with Memorial Hermann Memorial City Medical Center, serve as Program Committee co-chairs.
LaPar joined STSA as a resident and has been an active participant and regular presenter of research at the association’s conferences since 2009. He became a full member in 2017 after completing his postgraduate training. He has served in several leadership roles within the association, and in 2023 he was appointed to the Program Committee. This year he serves as one of three co-chairs, working with STSA president Scott A. LeMaire, MD.
“In developing the full congenital heart surgery program for the November meeting, we’re looking to highlight the best basic science and clinical research conducted across the spectrum of cardiothoracic surgery within the southern region of the United States,” says LaPar. “We champion the work of STSA members, and we are thrilled to have some of our own center’s research on endocardial fibroelastosis, as well as clinical research projects conducted by investigators at the Children’s Heart Institute at Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital, selected for plenary presentations.”
Hui also became a full member in 2017 and has served on the Program Committee since 2023. Her service to STSA is broad ranging, including participation as a discussant for scientific papers, annual meeting session moderator, abstract reviewer, and mentor for medical student and resident scholarship winners. She also works with LeMaire and other Program Committee members to develop the best program possible to strengthen the southern region’s cardiothoracic surgical community.
“Our discipline is evolving even more rapidly today with advances in technology and the use of AI,” Hui says. “STSA provides value by fostering spirited discussion among experienced surgeons. We discuss complex cases and evolving discoveries, providing real value to other members, particularly to younger physicians as they navigate this complex field. No other platform can replicate the live experience of sharing.”
STSA represents more than 1,100 surgeons throughout the country. The November 2026 conference will focus on critical skills for today’s world and solidifying a vision for the future.