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Dr. Nestor de la Cruz-Muñoz Named to Key Positions at the University of Miami Health System and Miller School of Medicine

10/12/2009

Nestor de la Cruz-Muñoz, M.D., has been named chief of the Division of Laparoendoscopic and Minimally Invasive Surgery and co-director of the Center of Excellence for Laparoscopic and Minimally Invasive Surgery and assistant professor in the DeWitt Daughtry Family Department of Surgery at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. Dr. de la Cruz-Muñoz will also retain his current position as medical director for bariatric surgery at University of Miami Hospital, part of UHealth – University of Miami Health System. Previously, he was head surgeon of Miami’s Surgical Weight Loss Institute specializing in general, bariatric, and advanced laparoscopic surgery.
 
“It is an honor to join the Miller School and UHealth which provides leading-edge patient care based on clinical research,” said Dr. Nestor de la Cruz-Muñoz. “The benefits of laparoscopic surgery for patients are tremendous, and with the health system’s commitment to groundbreaking research and education, the opportunities for innovations are endless.”

Dr. de la Cruz-Muñoz received his medical degree from the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. He completed his residency in general surgery at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Medical Center, serving as chief resident in 1993. A fellow of the American College of Surgeons, Dr. de la Cruz-Muñoz is also a diplomate of the American Board of Surgery in general surgery and a member of both the American Society for Bariatric Surgery and the Society of Laparoendoscopic Surgeons. He was recently appointed to the Bariatric Surgical Review Committee, where he will work with other practicing bariatric surgeons to identify hospitals that meet the requirements to become Centers of Excellence.

“I have had the pleasure of knowing Dr. de la Cruz for over a decade, and I am proud that he has come full circle and rejoined the University of Miami family,” said Alan S. Livingstone, M.D., professor and chairman of the DeWitt Daughtry Family Department of Surgery. “Nestor honed his laparoscopic surgery skills in our general surgery residency training program and has gone on to earn both a national and international reputation for being one of the busiest and best bariatric surgeons in Florida. We are delighted that we have been able to recruit him back to the University of Miami as the leader of bariatric and minimally invasive surgery.”