Thomas K. Varghese Jr.,
MD, MS
Languages Spoken: English, Malayalam
Dr. Thomas Varghese Jr. is the Executive Medical Director (Interim) and Chief Value Officer at the Huntsman Cancer Institute, Head of the Section of General Thoracic Surgery, and Program Director of the Cardiothoracic Surgery Fellowship at the University of Utah. He is also an Associate Professor (Tenure Track) in the Department of Surgery, University of Utah School of Medicine.
Dr. Varghese's clinical interests are in Thoracic Surgical Oncology. He is a national leader in minimally invasive applications for general thoracic surgery, he is recogonized by Castle Connolly as one of America’s “Top Docs”, and is in the top 10% of the nation by Press Ganey for patient satisfaction scores.
His research interests bridge the world of Educational Research and Health Services Research, specifically in the arena of optimizing performance at the patient, surgeon and system levels. He created the Strong for Surgery program while he was at the University of Washington, which is now a formal Quality Improvement program of the American College of Surgeons, and active at 331 clinical sites across the nation ( https://www.facs.org/quality-programs/strong-for-surgery ). He has a track record of peer-reviewed publications and extramural funding, including current RO1 funding from the National Cancer Institute with Co-PIs Dr. Neli Ulrich (Dept. of Population Sciences) and Dr. Paul LaStayo (Dept. of Physical Therapy) for a pragmatic randomized clinical trial examining the effects of a unique Prescription Exercise Prescription (PEP) for lung cancer surgical patients utlizing an integrated Physical Therapy Clinic model (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30559162 )
Dr. Varghese holds national leadership positions in the Society of Thoracic Surgeons, Thoracic Surgery Directors Association, American College of Surgeons, National Cancer Care Network, and the Surgical Outcomes Club. He was elected to the inaugural class of the ACS Academy of Master Surgeon Educators in 2018, and was the first Chair of the Thoracic Surgery Outcomes Research Network (ThORN), a collaborative that spans 26 institutions across the nation [http://thoracicoutcomes.org/]. Dr. Varghese is active on social media (@tomvarghesejr ) and is the Deputy Editor of Digital Media and Digital Scholarship for the Annals of Thoracic Surgery.
At the University of Utah, Dr. Varghese is a member of an active collaborative of Chief Value Officers, Education Leaders and Health Services Researchers that embraces the Triple Aim (outstanding patient-centered care, improving the health of the population we serve, reducing the cost of care) with the goal of maintaining the University of Utah at the highest level of patient care in the country.
Clinical Locations
801-587-4470
Board Certification and Academic Information
| Academic Departments | Surgery
-
Associate Professor Physicians - Affiliated Physician |
| Academic Divisions | Cardiothoracic Surgery |
| Board Certification | American Board of Surgery American Board of Thoracic Surgery |
Patient Rating
The Patient Rating score is an average of all responses to care provider related questions on our nationally-recognized Press Ganey Patient Satisfaction Survey.
Responses are measured on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the best score.
Likelihood of recommending care provider
4.8/ 5
Care provider's explanation of condition/problem
4.8/ 5
My confidence in care provider
4.9/ 5
Care provider's effort to include me in decisions
4.9/ 5
Wait time at clinic
4.6/ 5
Care provider's concern for questions & worries
4.8/ 5
Patient Comments
Patient comments are gathered from our Press Ganey Patient Satisfaction Survery and displayed in their entirety. Patients are de-identified for confidentiality and patient privacy.
UofU Patient
June 26, 2018
I had the Doctor's attention and he did a great job explaining and being honest.
UofU Patient
June 01, 2018
Always a comforting environment even if one is afraid they will get unpleasant news.
UofU Patient
May 28, 2018
great medical team for me
UofU Patient
May 07, 2018
Great Doctor
UofU Patient
May 07, 2018
very good
UofU Patient
April 25, 2018
Dr. V is awesome.
UofU Patient
April 25, 2018
Very impressed with Dr Varghese and his staff. FeltI was in the best of care from the beginningof surgeryuntil this follow-up visit.
UofU Patient
April 23, 2018
Very pleased
UofU Patient
February 16, 2018
the staff of hci makes you want to come back and see them.
UofU Patient
February 14, 2018
I'm there to see the doctor, but he slips in at the end (when I've already told everyone else my symptoms). Does he really want me to ask him the same things again? I'm sure everyone else in the room doesn't want to hear it again, but he's the one whose opinion I really want. This happens with every appointment and I'm not sure what to do.
UofU Patient
February 10, 2018
Dr. Varghese lived up to his reputation for excellence, empathy, experience and friendliness! The truly expert doctors exhibit true concern for their patients, humility and a calm demeanor when confronting complex situations - all qualities that Dr. Varghese exhibits in spades.
UofU Patient
December 23, 2017
Amazing experience! Fully understood condition and what is needed to further receive treatment. Was blunt and forth coming which was needed in this case.
UofU Patient
December 20, 2017
I have uncharacteristic pain following my surgery. This does not follow the expectation of the care provider so he just shrugs. No real effort to find the source of my pain is forth coming from the surgeon. He is moving on thinking he has done his part because the tumor is remove.
UofU Patient
December 20, 2017
I was happy with the experience with Dr. Varghese, the only change I would make is pre and post surgery emails providing tips on what to expect, how to prepare, additional information, links to patient forums, etc.
UofU Patient
December 17, 2017
Dr. Varghese and his entire team were exceedingly kind and compassionate and I felt I had all the time I needed for getting my questions answered.
UofU Patient
December 02, 2017
Very friendly, personable man. presents himself confidently and approachable
UofU Patient
November 25, 2017
I LOVED Dr. Varghese. my husband and I were honestly scared to death and very upset about the surgery that I have to have to have but the moment we met with dr. varghese he totally eased all of my worries and I have complete confidence that the surgery is going to turn out great. he sat down and spent so much time with us explaining everything from start to finish and drew pictures.
UofU Patient
November 18, 2017
professional and pleasant staff members
UofU Patient
October 23, 2017
Dr. Varghese put my mind at ease even in my situation.
UofU Patient
October 11, 2017
Excellent office visit. Very informative.
UofU Patient
September 17, 2017
I had questions to ask before the appointment but did not have to ask them because he answered them before they were asked
UofU Patient
September 15, 2017
Dr. Varghese was friendly and kind. He talked 100 miles per hour, but we realize that he was behind schedule and probably needed to get on to something else. We felt rushed, but we have another appointment with him next week where we can continue to ask questions.
UofU Patient
September 13, 2017
Addressed all my concerns and answered all my questions. So glad I choose to go to Huntsman to have my tumor removed. Everyone was very focus on how I was doing and took great care of me.
UofU Patient
September 04, 2017
we'll see if I survive my surgery! if I do then I'll recommend Dr Varghese highly!!
UofU Patient
May 26, 2017
great doctor!
UofU Patient
May 19, 2017
Best diagnostic discussion I have every had. Usally surgeons have the bed side manner of a brick. This was informative and reassuring.
UofU Patient
May 19, 2017
I kinda felt like I was being rushed and because they had seen and been thru my condition before that I just felt like they expected me to know how it was going to be and all the pain I was dealing with was ok and I should just wait it out.
UofU Patient
May 15, 2017
Dr Varghese and Dr Siler are two of the best Doctors that I have ever been treated by. Great "bedside" manner, very personable and great physicians!
UofU Patient
April 29, 2017
Everything very good!! Each and every care provider we have seen up to date has been more than exceptional!!
UofU Patient
March 25, 2017
Dr Varghese and team are exceptional!
UofU Patient
February 17, 2017
Dr. Varghese is the BEST provider I have ever been to! He is kind, compassionate and knowledgeable! I could not ask for a better physician!
UofU Patient
February 03, 2017
I really liked that everything they told me was plain English so I could understand everthing.
UofU Patient
December 18, 2016
Every aspect of visit was excellent.
UofU Patient
December 17, 2016
Have already recommended Dr Varghese
UofU Patient
December 04, 2016
I was able to focus on what Dr. Varghese was explaining because he wrote and provided drawings for all the items we discussed and then provided written material to take home with me. The meeting was not rushed and all care providers included in the process were in attendance.
UofU Patient
December 03, 2016
It was wonderful
UofU Patient
October 18, 2016
Dr Varghese was very thorough with explanation. He spent a lot of time and I did not feel that he needed to hurry out to the next patient. I felt I was in great hands and I sure about his ability to complete the procedure I need to have done.
UofU Patient
October 13, 2016
Everyone in the room was respectful, was quiet during the explanation of the surgery, showed a placid professional face.
UofU Patient
September 28, 2016
dr Vargees is fantastic. very professional, we trust him completely. he answered every question, even our silly questions were treated respectfully. he was extremely helpful and easy to talk to. he addressed our concerns and helped us to be at peace with our situation and plan for follow up
UofU Patient
September 24, 2016
Dr. Varghese is a truly amazing doctor and person. I have total confidence in his technical skill and knowledge. What really impresses me is how kind and compassionate he is. I always feel better after my appointment because I understand my situation better and have all of my questions answered. He uses vocabulary that I can understand, and is very clear and direct, while also being supportive and positive.
UofU Patient
September 03, 2016
The best medical experience I have ever had. I love the team approach. Dr Varghese and his team are phenomenal.
UofU Patient
August 22, 2016
Dr Varghese is the epitome of what I would call a perfect Doctor and I feel is a great Surgeon. He saved my life.
UofU Patient
August 19, 2016
Excellence in procedure and follow up care.
UofU Patient
August 18, 2016
dr varghese is an excellent and knowledgeable physician as well as very kind and caring. I'm so glad we found him and I would highly recommend him!
UofU Patient
August 13, 2016
excellent doctor explained thoroughly what my options and what the procedures would be outstanding doctor
UofU Patient
August 09, 2016
Very professional and made sure every step of care and procedure was explained and covered for complete understanding.
UofU Patient
August 08, 2016
Dr. Varghese is the do nice to me and my husband. We have complete confidence in him and are so grateful he was my Dr. and surgeon. He made me cancer free .. he is brilliant.
UofU Patient
July 18, 2016
Dr Varghese has made this difficult surgery and recovery much more pleasant because of his kind care for me and all my questions and concerns. All doctors should learn how to care for their patients from Dr Varghese! I knew I had the best surgeons before my first visit to him. It was so nice to also discover what a great person he is!
UofU Patient
July 11, 2016
Dr Varghese is amazing! he takes all the time I need to answer my questions and explain everything completely. no matter how busy he may be outside my room, I never feel rushed or that he's in a hurry to get to the next patient. and he is so kind and caring with me as a person - not just another one of his hundreds of patients. He's the BEST!
UofU Patient
July 11, 2016
He was very patient.
UofU Patient
July 08, 2016
I already have recommended HCI
UofU Patient
May 30, 2016
The doctor, nurse & assistant were exceptional.
UofU Patient
May 22, 2016
Good
UofU Patient
May 18, 2016
Great "bedside" manner. Confident and reassuring.
UofU Patient
May 10, 2016
LOVE Dr Varghese! he took his time with me. made sure I understood my condition and treatment with risks and outcome explained. I feel very confident about him doing my surgery and along with his obvious knowledge and expertise ... he was very kind and carrying. he took all the time we needed to answer or questions and explain everything in detail. he's great! so thankful he's my surgeon!
UofU Patient
May 02, 2016
i trust Dr V completely
UofU Patient
April 30, 2016
Dr. Varghese radiates confidence and assurance. I felt very comfortable with him and his "chairside" manner.
UofU Patient
April 17, 2016
Dr.Varghese was very professional. he brought in several people to help in his assessments and treatment strategies and explained everything to me several times so I knew exactly what I was up against and gave me total confidence in his ability to treat me and get me back to health
UofU Patient
February 13, 2016
Dr. Varghese made me feel much more comfortable with upcoming procedures.
UofU Patient
February 12, 2016
All positive.
UofU Patient
January 22, 2016
Dr. Varghese has been fantastic from the beginning. I feel very blessed and lucky that Dr. Varghese is at Huntsman.
UofU Patient
January 16, 2016
Everyone I spoke to answered any and all questions or concerns.
UofU Patient
October 31, 2015
Dr. Varghese and his team are amazing. They have my health at the top of their concerns. They have a great bedside manner and have great personalities to match the phenomenal medical abilities that they have.
Dr. Thomas Varghese Jr. is the Executive Medical Director (Interim) and Chief Value Officer at the Huntsman Cancer Institute, Head of the Section of General Thoracic Surgery, and Program Director of the Cardiothoracic Surgery Fellowship at the University of Utah. He is also an Associate Professor (Tenure Track) in the Department of Surgery, University of Utah School of Medicine.
Dr. Varghese's clinical interests are in Thoracic Surgical Oncology. He is a national leader in minimally invasive applications for general thoracic surgery, he is recogonized by Castle Connolly as one of America’s “Top Docs”, and is in the top 10% of the nation by Press Ganey for patient satisfaction scores.
His research interests bridge the world of Educational Research and Health Services Research, specifically in the arena of optimizing performance at the patient, surgeon and system levels. He created the Strong for Surgery program while he was at the University of Washington, which is now a formal Quality Improvement program of the American College of Surgeons, and active at 331 clinical sites across the nation ( https://www.facs.org/quality-programs/strong-for-surgery ). He has a track record of peer-reviewed publications and extramural funding, including current RO1 funding from the National Cancer Institute with Co-PIs Dr. Neli Ulrich (Dept. of Population Sciences) and Dr. Paul LaStayo (Dept. of Physical Therapy) for a pragmatic randomized clinical trial examining the effects of a unique Prescription Exercise Prescription (PEP) for lung cancer surgical patients utlizing an integrated Physical Therapy Clinic model (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30559162 )
Dr. Varghese holds national leadership positions in the Society of Thoracic Surgeons, Thoracic Surgery Directors Association, American College of Surgeons, National Cancer Care Network, and the Surgical Outcomes Club. He was elected to the inaugural class of the ACS Academy of Master Surgeon Educators in 2018, and was the first Chair of the Thoracic Surgery Outcomes Research Network (ThORN), a collaborative that spans 26 institutions across the nation [http://thoracicoutcomes.org/]. Dr. Varghese is active on social media (@tomvarghesejr ) and is the Deputy Editor of Digital Media and Digital Scholarship for the Annals of Thoracic Surgery.
At the University of Utah, Dr. Varghese is a member of an active collaborative of Chief Value Officers, Education Leaders and Health Services Researchers that embraces the Triple Aim (outstanding patient-centered care, improving the health of the population we serve, reducing the cost of care) with the goal of maintaining the University of Utah at the highest level of patient care in the country.
Academic Locations
School of Medicine
801-581-5311
Board Certification and Academic Information
| Academic Departments | Surgery
-
Associate Professor Physicians - Affiliated Physician |
| Academic Divisions | Cardiothoracic Surgery |
| Board Certification | American Board of Surgery American Board of Thoracic Surgery |
Research Interests
- Methods to Promote the Uptake of Research Findings into Healthcare (Implementation Science)
- Interprofessional Education
- Health Services Research Including Use of Population-Based Data, Cost & Utility Analyses, and Patient-Derived Outcomes
Education History
| Chief Resident | University of Michigan Cardiothoracic Surgery Administrative Chief Resident |
| Fellowship | University of Michigan Cardiothoracic Surgery Fellow |
| Chief Resident | Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine General Surgery Chief Resident |
| Residency | Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine General Surgery Resident |
| Graduate Training | Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine Clinical Investigation M.S. |
| Research Fellow | Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine Organ Transplantation Research Fellow |
| Residency | Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine General Surgery Residency Resident |
| Internship/Residency | Government Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram Rotating Resident Internship Intern/Resident |
| Professional Medical | Government Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram/University of Kerala Medicine M.D. |
Selected Publications - Journal Articles
Journal Article
- Barnes CA, Stout NL, Varghese TK Jr, Ulrich CM, Couriel DR, Lee CJ, Noren CS, LaStayo PC (2019). Clinically Integrated Physical Therapist Practice in Cancer Care: A New Comprehensive Approach. Phys Ther, 100(3), 543-553.
- Pannucci CJ, Fleming KI, Bertolaccini C, Moulton L, Stringham J, Barnett S, Lin J, Varghese TK Jr (2020). Fixed or weight-tiered enoxaparin after thoracic surgery for venous thromboembolism prevention. (Epub ahead of print) Ann Thorac Surg.
- Luc JGY, Archer MA, Arora RC, Bender EM, Blitz A, Cooke DT, Hlci TN, Kidane B, Ouzounian M, Varghese TK Jr, Antonoff MB (2019). Social Media Improves Cardiothoracic Surgery Literature Dissemination: Results of a Randomized Trial. Ann Thorac Surg, 109(2), 589-595.
- Cook GW, Benton MG, Akerley W, Mayhew GF, Moehlenkamp C, Raterman D, Burgess DL, Rowell WJ, Lambert C, Eng K, Gu J, Baybayan P, Fussell JT, Herbold HD, OShea JM, Varghese TK, Emerson LL (2020). Structural variation and its potential impact on genome instability: Novel discoveries in the EGFR landscape by long-read sequencing. PLoS ONE, 15(1), e0226340.
- Stokes SM, Kim RY, Jacobs A, Esplin J, Kwok AC, Varghese TK Jr, Glasgow RE, Brooke BS, Finlayson SRG, Huang LC (2019). Home Disposal Kits for Leftover Opioid Medications After Surgery: Do They Work? J Surg Res, 245, 396-402.
- Luc JGY, Ouzounian M, Bender EM, Blitz A, Stamp NL, Varghese TK Jr, Cooke DT, Antonoff MB (2019). The Thoracic Surgery Social Media Network: Early Experience and Lessons Learned. Ann Thorac Surg, 108(4), 1248-1255.
- Luc JGY, Ouzounian M, Bender EM, Blitz A, Stamp NL, Varghese TK Jr, Cooke DT, Antonoff MB (2019). The Thoracic Surgery Social Media Network: Early experience and lessons learned. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg, 158(4), 1127-1136.
- Wakeam E, Adibfar A, Stokes S, Leighl NB, Giuliani ME, Varghese TK Jr, Darling GE (2019). Defining the role of adjuvant therapy for early-stage large cell neuroendocrine carcinoma. (Epub ahead of print) J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg.
- Stokes SM, Massarweh NN, Stringham JR, Varghese TK Jr (2019). Clinical-Pathologic Correlation and Guideline Concordance in Resectable Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer. Ann Thorac Surg, 108(3), 837-844.
- DeBoard ZM, Varghese TK Jr, Doty JR, Selzman CH (2019). Cardiothoracic Surgery Residency Training in Surgical Ablation for Atrial Fibrillation. J Atr Fibrillation, 12(1), 2195.
- Stokes SM, Wakeam E, Antonoff MB, Backhus LM, Meguid RA, Odell D, Varghese TK Jr (2019). Optimizing health before elective thoracic surgery: systematic review of modifiable risk factors and opportunities for health services research. J Thorac Dis, 11(Suppl 4), S537-S554.
- Handy JR, Bremner RM, Crocenzi TS, Detterbeck FC, Fernando HC, Fidias PM, Firestone S, Johnstone CA, Lanuti M, Litle VR, Kesler KA, Mitchell JD, Pass HI, Ross HJ, Varghese TK (2018). Expert Consensus Document on Pulmonary Metastasectomy. Ann Thorac Surg, 107(2), 631-649.
- Ulrich CM, Himbert C, Boucher K, Wetter DW, Hess R, Kim J, Lundberg K, Ligibel JA, Barnes CA, Rushton B, Marcus R, Finlayson SRG, LaStayo PC, Varghese TK (2018). Precision-Exercise-Prescription in patients with lung cancer undergoing surgery: rationale and design of the PEP study trial. BMJ Open, 8(12), e024672.
- Stokes SM, Wakeam E, Swords DS, Stringham JR, Varghese TK Jr (2018). Impact of insurance status on receipt of definitive surgical therapy and posttreatment outcomes in early stage lung cancer. Surgery, 164(6), 1287-1293.
- Glotzbach JP, Sharma V, Tonna JE, Pettit JC, McKellar SH, Eckhauser AW, Varghese TK Jr, Selzman CH (2018). Value-driven cardiac surgery: Achieving "perfect care" after coronary artery bypass grafting. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg, 156(4), 1436-1448.e2.
- Varghese TK Jr, Ghaferi AA (2017). Cutting-edge Efforts in Surgical Patient Safety. JAMA Surg, 152(8), 719-720.
Editorial
- Varghese TK Jr, Entwistle JW 3rd, Mayer JE, Moffatt-Bruce SD, Sade RM, Cardiothoracic Ethics Forum (2019). Ethical standards for cardiothoracic surgeons' participation in social media. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg, 158(4), 1139-1143.
- Varghese TK Jr, Entwistle JW 3rd, Mayer JE, Moffatt-Bruce SD, Sade RM, Cardiothoracic Ethics Forum (2019). Ethical Standards for Cardiothoracic Surgeons' Participation in Social Media. Ann Thorac Surg, 108(3), 666-670.
Global Impact
Education History
| Internship/Residency | Government Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram Rotating Resident Internship Intern/Resident |
| Professional Medical | Government Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram/University of Kerala Medicine M.D. |