Edward Felix Lin, MD

Dr. Geirsson is a renowned cardiac surgeon and the Director of the Cardiovascular Institute and Director of the Surgical Heart Valve Program at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center. With an upbringing and medical education in Iceland, he honed his skills in General Surgery at Yale University and Cardiothoracic Surgery at the University of Pennsylvania between 1998 and 2007. During his tenure at Yale as the Director of Minimally Invasive Cardiac Surgery from 2007 to 2013, he made significant contributions to the field. Dr. Geirsson then returned to Iceland from 2013 to 2016, serving as a Cardiothoracic Surgeon at Landspitali University Hospital in Reykjavik. Driven by his passion for innovative approaches, he returned to Yale in 2016 and was appointed as the Chief of the Division of Cardiac Surgery in 2017. Dr. Geirsson's clinical practice focuses on minimally invasive cardiac surgery and valve surgery, specializing in robotic mitral valve repair and aortic valve repair. He achieved notable milestones by performing the first minimally right thoracotomy mitral valve surgery at YNHH in 2009 and the first robotic mitral valve surgery at YNHH in 2018. Moreover, his research endeavors encompass both basic and clinical science, concentrating on mitral valve prolapse and aortic aneurysm disease. With his expertise, dedication, and commitment to advancing cardiac surgery, Dr. Geirsson continues to make significant contributions to the field and improve patient outcomes.

Luigi Pirelli, MD, earned his medical degree and completed his cardiac surgery training at the University of Milan in Italy, followed by additional surgical training at New York University. He is a cardiac surgeon specializing in transcatheter valve therapies and surgical valve repair. Dr. Pirelli has particular expertise in minimally invasive approaches to complex valvular disease and is committed to collaborative, patient-centered care.

Dr. Benjamin Ranard is a pulmonary and critical care medicine physician, Deputy Director of the Center for Patient Safety Science, and Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine at Columbia University Irving Medical Center. Clinically, he cares for critically ill patients at Columbia University Irving Medical Center / NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital. With a goal of improving patient outcomes, Dr. Ranard’s research focuses on helping clinicians and health systems provide high quality medical care. He is working to build infrastructure and tools to support Learning Health Systems, health systems that create knowledge from local data and experience and integrate that knowledge with external evidence to continuously improve patient care. This results in higher quality, safer patient care. Dr. Ranard earned his undergraduate degree from Cornell University and both his MD and a Master of Science in Health Policy Research from the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine. He then completed his Internal Medicine residency at Duke University and his Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine fellowship at Columbia University where he served as Chief Fellow.