Two urology programs elevated to department status

The urology programs at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill and the University of California, San Diego have recently been designated as departments of urology.

After 60 years as a division of urology within the UNC department of surgery, the UNC department of urology has been established, with Raj S. Pruthi, MD, serving as its inaugural chair. In 2011, Dr. Pruthi became the fourth division chief of urology, succeeding Culley Carson, MD. The new department has a clinical program of over 20 providers and specialized programs in urologic oncology, robotics, stone disease, and men’s health.

“The newly established department of urology at the University of North Carolina is committed to providing outstanding and innovative clinical care to the people of North Carolina, the Southeast, and throughout the United States,” according to a UNC statement. “We have assembled a team of talented and caring clinicians, scientists, educators, and health care professionals dedicated to innovation, education, quality, and cutting-edge clinical care.”

At the UC San Diego Health System, the newly designated department of urology is headed by Christopher Kane, MD, the inaugural chair. Dr. Kane has also been named interim chair of the UC San Diego School of Medicine’s department of surgery.

Under Dr. Kane’s leadership, the newly formed department of urology offers an array of medical and surgical treatments with an emphasis on urologic cancers, kidney stones, male fertility and sexual health, urinary disorders, and complex reconstruction, a UC San Diego statement said. Patient volumes across urology have grown by more than 100% in the last 5 years.

The UC San Diego urology faculty has expanded its industry and federal grant support, served on leadership committees for the AUA, and has been recognized for high research productivity with more than 70 peer-reviewed publications in the last year, according to the statement. Five years ago, the urology division was composed of six adult and four pediatric urology faculty members. It has grown to 17 faculty members.

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