Dr. Bagdonas Inducted into Prestigious Trauma Care Association

Nov. 5, 2009 - PRLog -- South Nassau Communities Hospital’s director of trauma and surgical critical care, Richard A. Bagdonas, M.D., has been inducted into the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma.

The American Association for the Surgery of Trauma (AAST), headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, is the premier academic trauma surgery organization in the United States and has approximately 1,000 members from 30 countries.  The AAST was established in 1937 to further the study and practice of traumatic surgery.

“This accomplishment is a recognition of Dr. Bagdonas’ leadership and contribution to the field of trauma surgery,” said Linda Efferen, MD, chief medical officer.

As director of trauma and surgical critical care, Dr. Bagdonas oversees trauma care provided by the hospital’s emergency department, develops policies and procedures for the management of critically ill or injured patients, and educates physicians in training for the delivery of various emergent surgical services.

Dr. Bagdonas is board-certified in surgical critical care and surgery and a fellow of the American College of Surgeons.  He earned a bachelor’s degree from Fordham University and medical degree from SUNY Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn.  He completed a residency in general surgery at Nassau University Medical Center in 1990.  From 2006 to 2007 he was fellowship-trained in surgical critical care at the renowned R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center of the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore, Md.  Prior to his fellowship training, he worked at Nassau University Medical Center for more than 15 years in a variety of roles, including vice chairman of emergency medicine and program director of surgery.

Dr. Bagdonas is a senior member of the Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma (EAST).  He is a past recipient of the University of Maryland Medical Center’s Hero Award and the Nassau Regional Emergency Medical Services Council’s Physician of Excellence Award.

Dr. Bagdonas is a resident of Amityville, NY.

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South Nassau Communities Hospital is one of the region’s largest hospitals, with 435 beds, more than 875 physicians and 2,600 employees. Located in Oceanside, NY, the hospital is an acute-care, not-for-profit teaching hospital that provides state-of-the-art care in cardiac, oncologic, orthopedic, bariatric, pain management, mental health and emergency services. In addition to its extensive outpatient specialty centers, South Nassau is a designated Stroke Center, boasts Long Island’s first and only Gamma Knifeâ and provides emergency and elective angioplasty. South Nassau is designated as a Comprehensive Community Cancer Center by the American College of Surgeons and is recognized as a Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence by the American Society of Bariatric Surgery. For more information, visit www.southnassau.org.