Susheel Kumar Kodali, MD

Dr. Ratner is Professor of Surgery and Director of Renal and Pancreatic Transplantation at Columbia University. Prior to joining the faculty at Columbia, Dr. Ratner was on the faculty of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, and served as the Chief of Solid Organ Transplantation at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. Dr. Ratner was responsible for dramatic growth of the kidney transplant program at CUIMC. He also established the pancreas transplant program, and the Kidney Autotransplant Program. He introduced robotic surgery to our kidney transplant program. Access to organ transplantation has been Dr. Ratner's major academic interest. Dr. Ratner has been a leading innovator in transplantation for over two decades. In 1993, he performed the world's first dual renal transplant. In 1995 (with Dr. Louis Kavoussi) he performed the first laparoscopic donor nephrectomy, and set the stage for its widespread adoption, which resulted in a profound increase in living donor kidney transplantation. Dr. Ratner has made significant contributions in overcoming immunologic incompatibilities that prohibited transplantation. He devised the plasmapheresis/IVIg protocol for alloantibody desensitization in 1998. In 2001, Dr. Ratner orchestrated the second paired-kidney exchange in the U.S. Subsequently, he arranged the first paired kidney exchanges in both Pennsylvania and New York. More recently Dr. Ratner has been a leading proponent of including compatible donor/recipient pairs in kidney exchanges. And, his more contemporary work has looked at the organizational and regulatory barriers to access to care. All of these strategies have increased organ availability and access to transplantation. Additionally, he has made important contributions to improve living donor safety. For his work, Dr. Ratner has received numerous awards and honors. And, he has been invited to speak and operate at various venues around the world. Dr. Ratner has authored or co-authored over 240 peer-reviewed publications, and has been a federally funded investigator. His publications have been cited over 20,000 times. He served as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the LiveOnNY (formerly the New York Organ Donor Network), and has served on numerous national committees including the Board of the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN). He recently completed a term as the President of the American Society of Transplant Surgeons, and previously served as that Society's Treasurer.Dr. Ratner originally hails from Brooklyn, NY. He received his undergraduate education at the State University of New York at Buffalo. He received his M.D. from Hahnemann University. His general surgery training was obtained at Long Island Jewish Medical Center. He completed a Fellowship in Transplantation Surgery and Immunology at Washington University. In 2011 Dr. Ratner completed a Master of Public Health with a focus on health care policy, administration and management.

Dr. Laura Dhariwal is a Urogynecologist and clinical assistant professor practicing at Columbia University Irving Medical Center. She received her medical degree from SUNY Downstate Medical Center. She completed her residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell and her fellowship in Urogynecology and Reconstructive Pelvic Surgery with Morristown Medical Center. Dr. Dhariwal is active in / member of American Urogynecologic Society (AUGS), American Association of Gynecologic Laparoscopists AAGL and American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology ACOG. Her professional interests focus on robotic and vaginal reconstruction, expedited recovery after surgery, and surgical outcomes research. She has an interest in urinary incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse, minimally invasive gynecologic surgery, vaginal and robotic surgery, interstitial cystitis, recurrent urinary tract infections and pelvic pain. She is double board-certified in Urogynecology and Reconstructive Pelvic Surgery and Obstetrics and Gynecology. In addition, she serves as a peer reviewer on the editorial team for The Urogynecology scientific journal. She was recently honored with the Fellow Achievement Award for Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and The Golden Speculum Award for her contributions to teaching OBGYN students and residents.

Dr. Gomes is a board-certified neuroradiologist with specific clinical and research interests in head and neck imaging and pediatric neuroimaging. He is an associate professor of radiology at Columbia University Irving Medical Center. Dr. Gomes received his MD, as well as a PhD in neuroscience, through the Medical Scientist Training Program at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. He completed a medical internship at Long Island Jewish Medical Center, followed by diagnostic radiology residency and neuroradiology fellowship training at Montefiore Medical Center. He has previously served as assistant professor of radiology at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine/Montefiore Medical Center and associate professor of radiology at New York Medical College/Westchester Medical Center.