December 10, 2009 - For Immediate Release

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NEW TRAUMA SURGEON JOINS LOYOLA

Dr. Casey J. Thomas is board certified in general surgery and surgical critical care

MAYWOOD, Ill. -- Dr. Casey J. Thomas has been appointed as an assistant professor of surgery to the Division of Trauma, Surgical Critical Care and Burns, at Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine.

"Loyola has an excellent reputation for cutting-edge, academic medicine. It is the only Level I Trauma Center in Illinois verified by the American College of Surgeons, and I wanted to be part of that system," Thomas said.

Thomas' professional interests include abdominal wall reconstruction and complex hernias, repair of fistulas (abnormal tunnels connecting two body cavities) and advanced ventilator management and ICU care. He is a member of the Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma, the American College of Osteopathic Surgeons, the Society of Critical Care Medicine and the American Osteopathic Association.

"This is a unique field where I'm able to take care of patients from the trauma bay to the operating room through their ICU stay and discharge. I am able to take care of every aspect of their care,” said Thomas, who is certified in general surgery and surgical critical care by the American Osteopathic Board of Surgery.

A resident of Chicago, Thomas began his affiliation with Loyola in September 2009. He received his medical degree in 2000 from Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine in East Lansing, Mich. He then completed a residency in general surgery in 2005 at Mount Clemens General Hospital in Mount Clemens, Mich. Afterwards, he did a fellowship in surgical critical care/trauma surgery at the R. Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center at the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore, Md.

Thomas comes to Loyola from Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit where he served as a senior staff surgeon in the division of acute care surgery.

Thomas has delivered many presentations at number of medical conferences and has published several research articles, abstracts, studies and reviews.

Thomas cares for patients at Loyola Outpatient Center and Loyola University Hospital, both at 2160 S. First Ave., Maywood.

To schedule an appointment with Thomas or any other Loyola physician, call toll-free (888) LUHS-888 and ask for extension 7100.

Based in the western suburbs of Chicago, Loyola University Health System is a quaternary care system with a 61-acre main medical center campus, the 36-acre Gottlieb Memorial Hospital campus and 28 primary and specialty care facilities in Cook, Will and DuPage counties. The medical center campus is conveniently located in Maywood, 13 miles west of the Chicago Loop and 8 miles east of Oak Brook, Ill. The heart of the medical center campus, Loyola University Hospital, is a 561-licensed-bed facility. It houses a Level 1 Trauma Center, a Burn Center and the Ronald McDonald® Children's Hospital of Loyola University Medical Center. Also on campus are the Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center, Loyola Outpatient Center, Center for Heart & Vascular Medicine and Loyola Oral Health Center as well as the LUC Stritch School of Medicine, the LUC Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing and the Loyola Center for Fitness. Loyola's Gottlieb Memorial Hospital campus in Melrose Park includes the 264-bed community hospital, the Gottlieb Center for Fitness and the Marjorie G. Weinberg Cancer Care Center.