2012 Norman E. Shumway, MD,
Visiting Professorship Lecture Highlights

William A. Baumgartner, MD, the Vincent L. Gott Professor of Cardiac Surgery; vice dean for clinical affairs; president of the Clinical Practice Association; JHM Sr. VP, Office of Johns Hopkins Physicians; and director of the Surgical Research Laboratory at the Johns Hopkins Cardiac Surgery Division , spoke at the fifth annual 2012 Norman E. Shumway, MD, Visiting Professorship Lecture on April 27, 2012.

The day's events included meeting with alumni and current residents as well as Dr. Baumgartner's presentation at the Li Ka Shing Center for Learning & Knowledge, entitled "Neurocognitive Dysfunction in Cardiac Surgery: Bench to Bedside.”

Watch the video of Dr. Baumgartner's presentation »

About Dr. William A. Baumgartner

William A. Baumgartner, MD, joined Johns Hopkins’ Cardiac Surgery Division in 1982. The following year, he reinitiated the heart transplant program at the Johns Hopkins Hospital, which has grown into one of the leading centers in the surgical treatment of heart failure in the country. For seventeen years, he led the division as the cardiac surgeon-in-charge. Today, he serves on the cardiac surgery faculty as the Vincent L. Gott Professor and director of the Surgical Research Laboratory.

Past president of the Society of Thoracic Surgeons and the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation, Dr. Baumgartner has held top posts in several other national and international professional organizations. He is currently the executive director of the American Board of Thoracic Surgery.

His early work focused on organ preservation for transplantation and determination of methods for the non-invasive diagnosis of rejection. He has since been involved in the field of neurological protection in cardiac surgery for which he has had continuous NIH support for the past nineteen years. In 2002, he received the Javits Neuroscience Research Investigator Award from The National Institutes of Health. In 2003 and 2009, he received the Socrates Teacher of the Year Award from the Thoracic Surgery Residents Association. In 2007, he received the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the University of Kentucky Medical Alumni Association, and in 2008, the Society of Thoracic Surgeons presented him with the Earl Bakken Scientific Research Award.

Dr. Baumgartner is also the President of the Clinical Practice Association of the Johns Hopkins University, which is a group practice of over 1,700 full-time faculty members who provide medical care to patients. In this role, he is responsible for planning, managing, and coordinating the clinical and administrative activities of the Association. He recently was appointed JHM Senior Vice President for the Office of Johns Hopkins Physicians. This office broadens the scope of responsibilities to include all employed and affiliated physicians within Johns Hopkins Medicine.

A graduate of Xavier University and of the University of Kentucky Medical School, Dr. Baumgartner received his surgical training at Stanford University Medical Center. His bibliography includes more than 350 journal articles, book chapters, and books. He is married to Betsy Baumgartner and has three accomplished children, Bill Jr., Amy, and Mark.