West Penn Allegheny Health System Names New Director of Colorectal Surgery Division

West Penn Allegheny Health System (WPAHS) officials announced today that Sherif L. Rizk, MD, FACS, FASCRS, has been named Clinical Director of the WPAHS Division of Colorectal Surgery, effective immediately.  Dr. Rizk will see patients in his new office in the Mellon Pavilion at The Western Pennsylvania Hospital, Bloomfield.

Dr. Rizk joins WPAHS from his private practice, which was based at UPMC Shadyside.  He also served in a number of key leadership roles at UPMC Shadyside over the past 20 years, including Chief of the Division of Colon & Rectal Surgery and Chief of General Surgery.   He is now employed by Highmark.

“We are very pleased to welcome Dr. Rizk to the physician leadership team at West Penn Allegheny.  Sherif is a dedicated and patient-focused surgeon.  His leadership experience and commitment to quality will be vital to the growth of our system’s Division of Colorectal Surgery,” said Howard Edington, MD, Chair of the WPAHS Department of Surgery.

Continuing, Dr. Edington said that Dr. Rizk’s stellar reputation will also be critical to West Penn Allegheny’s future as it works to expand its base and position itself strongly as the center piece of an innovative integrated healthcare delivery system for the region through its planned affiliation with Highmark.

“Attracting talented, highly respected physician leaders like Dr. Rizk to our organization is absolutely essential as we move forward in strengthening our capabilities and increasing our capacity to meet the current and future needs of the community we serve,” Dr. Edington said.

Certified by the American Board of Surgery and the American Board of Colon and Rectal Surgery, Dr. Rizk’s clinical areas of expertise include colon cancer surgery, bowel resection, the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease and minimally invasive laparoscopy.   He is a Fellow of both the American College of Surgeons and the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgery.

Dr. Rizk said that he is excited to transition his practice to West Penn Allegheny and to help advance the System’s colon and rectal disease program.

“West Penn Allegheny’s tradition as a patient-centric and truly physician-led healthcare provider is well-known, and I look forward to becoming part of that culture.  I believe that the System and Highmark together are envisioning a paradigm-shifting model for healthcare in western Pennsylvania that will assure patients have an outstanding choice for high quality, affordable care,” Dr. Rizk said.

The author of numerous publications on bowel resection and oncology, Dr. Rizk completed his surgical training with a residency in general surgery at Rush-Presbyterian St. Luke’s Medical Center and a colorectal surgery residency at Cook County Hospital, University of Illinois, both in Chicago..

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