David, thank you for being the inaugural “Alum in the Spotlight” of The Caruso Society!

Please catch us up on where your educational and career path has taken you since your 2005 graduation from the General Surgery Residency program at MIHS?

After graduating from the Copa in 2005, I attended the Mayo Clinic plastic surgery residency in Rochester, MN.  As part of this program, I was lucky enough to return to Maricopa Medical Center for 3 months with Dr. Lettieri.  I then moved to New York City for a fellowship in aesthetic surgery at Manhattan Eye, Ear & Throat Hospital (MEETH) and opened my private plastic surgery office in Midtown Manhattan the next year.  I continue to work with the MEETH fellows, staffing cases, supervising clinic and hosting teaching sessions in my office.  Over the last 10 years I have built a full service plastic surgery and laser center serving which attracts patients from the USA and internationally.  My focus is purely aesthetic surgery - primarily facelift, blepharoplasty, body contouring, breast rejuvenation and abdominoplasty.  I have also integrated non-invasive treatments and procedures and work closely with industry in research and teaching Botox Cosmetic and dermal fillers nationally and internationally.

Thinking back to medical school and the days of interviewing with different residency programs, what drew you to MIHS?  Now, 13 years later, why can you say it was a good decision for you?

Just answering these questions brings back fond memories of Maricopa.  I remember interviewing at Maricopa and feeling like I fit in.  I was excited about the busy burn and trauma programs as well as the “hands-on” learning available.  I remember interviewing with Dr. Caruso, Dr. Foster and Dr. Canulla.  I could feel their enthusiasm for surgery and dedication to the residency program.  Other programs seemed too stuffy or in remote locations. Also, after growing up in Michigan, which is very cloudy, I was excited about the sun in Arizona.  It seems corny, but I remember opening up my envelope on match day.  I was standing in the entryway to a building at my medical school. When I opened the envelope, a ray of sunshine came through the window and shined on the paper when I read “Maricopa Medical Center.”  It seemed meant to be. I did have a little hesitation when I showed up on the first day two of my co-interns and the chairman Dr. Bunt were all wearing cowboy boots.  I decided to keep wearing my Dansko clogs. 

You have to give us a good Dr. David Shafer intern story.  Everyone has one.

There were so many good times at Maricopa.  I remember people asking about Hanukkah my first year and I made up a story about the tradition of the “Hanukkah Box.”  I told people it was for them to leave me gifts for Hanukkah.  I took a shoe box, decorated it, cut out a rectangle hole for placing money and put it in the OR Office by the case board.  While some people deposited money, others deposited new tampons, a foley catheter, diapers and many other strange items from the OR.  I never had the heart to tell anyone that I made up the whole concept of the “Hanukkah Box,” but it certainly was fun.

It is an enormous amount of work and dedication to become a surgeon, and I am sure you have many patient experiences that have reaffirmed your decision.   Tell us one that makes you proud.

One patient that comes to mind is a trauma victim that arrived to the trauma bay with a stab wound to the heart.  I was a Chief Resident at Maricopa and had recently returned from the cardiothoracic rotation in Tuscon.  Dr. Caruso was on call with me that night and I was the chief of the trauma service.  I remember being in the operating room, cracking the patient’s chest open and quickly performing a pericardial patch to seal the hole in the patient’s heart.  That night, I became a surgeon.  I had the fundamental skills from years on the trauma service, the specific skills I learned on the cardiothoracic service and the confidence to take a patient’s life into my hands, assess the situation take definitive action and save their life.  At the end of the case, I looked up at Dr. Caruso and he gave me a smile and I could tell he was proud.

I think about Dr. Caruso often in the OR.  I remember as an intern he told me when there is bleeding to never take my finger off of the Bovie cautery.  Whenever I am dissecting with the Bovie I remember that advice.

Any interesting research you are participating in right now?

I am a long way from basic science or general surgery research.  As a private practice plastic surgeon, my focus has been on thinking outside of the box - finding unique treatments and procedures that meet a need, are safe, benefit the patient and also generate revenue.  My current study involves using the dermal filler Voluma to perform penis enhancement.  Voluma is an FDA approved injectable for mid face lifting and facial volume augmentation.  I developed a procedure using the same product, same injection techniques, but on a different part of the body.  In this study, I incorporate 3D imaging and analysis tools that I usually use for breast augmentation and use it for volumetric analysis of the study patients.  My experience designing and participating in burn research with Dr. Foster and Dr. Caruso helped pave the way for partnering with industry and planning research projects like this in my office.  I also have smaller projects partnering with laser and skincare companies to test out new products, develop protocols and follow patient outcomes.

You have been blessed with a beautiful family.  Will you share a bit with us?

I met Celia Tombalakian during a business meeting when I was just starting my office after fellowship.  Celia had recently moved to NYC from Canada and was an executive at Johnson & Johnson for a product that I used in the office.  My local rep for the product coordinated a “business lunch” with us, but secretly she was setting us up with each other.  Celia is now Vice President of Marketing for Sally Hansen at Coty, a major beauty company headquartered in NYC.  Our first child, Leo, is 3.5 years old.  He is an amazing boy who loves going to the planetarium, parks with waterslides, riding trains and watching airplanes.  Our most recent addition, Maya, is 5 months old and loves to watch Leo sing and dance and has the most beautiful smile.  We live in New York City, but we love weekends in the Hamptons, barbecuing in our garden and walking along the Highline in our neighborhood.

Between work and family, do you have time for any hobbies?    Is there anything special you do to keep you energized?

As a sole practitioner, private practice office, my life is centered around work.  I often say I have two full times jobs - being a surgeon and a business manager.  And, now also a father.  One of my proudest moments is leaving the office early on a Friday to attend Leo’s gymnastic graduation performance.  The smile on his face when he unexpectedly saw me in the audience melted my heart.  I love to explore new areas of town, museums and water parks on the weekends.  We recently went camping (not glamping) which brought me back to my childhood. 

Finally, I am sure your heart has many great memories of your residency at MIHS.  And I am also certain there are some that are hilarious.   What can you tell us?

Well there was that time I was almost shot walking in from the parking lot at Maricopa.  It was Saturday morning and I was casually walking in to round on my patients while sipping on my Slurpee.  All of a sudden I hear what sounded like bottle rockets flying past my head.  I looked up and saw two pickup trucks stopped in the middle of the street and the drivers were shooting at each other.  I saw one driver get out and then was shot in the chest, so I started running toward the door.  The guy who was shot got back in his truck and drove it onto the sidewalk to the front entrance of the hospital.  Since I couldn’t go to the entrance, I climbed over a brick wall, Slurpee in hand, and ran to the security office who at first didn’t believe me.  The trauma team was then called to the entrance to the get the guy who was bleeding out.  Amazingly I still had my Slurpee in hand.  I look back at that brick wall and can’t believe I was able to get over it.  It’s not much of a funny story, but sure is surreal.

What I remember most about Maricopa is the people.  From our fellow residents, the attendings, the nurses and the OR staff - all have had a lasting impact on my life and many have become lifelong friends.