Andrew G. Shuman, M.D., FACS, and Gifty Kwakye, M.D., M.P.H., appointed assistant deans
Shuman is an associate professor in the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery; Kwakye is the Arthur W. Fleming, M.D. Research Professor and clinical associate professor of surgery in the Division of Colorectal Surgery
The Medical School has appointed a pair of assistant deans in the education mission: Andrew G. Shuman, M.D., FACS, is assistant dean for veterans affairs, effective Aug. 14, 2023; and Gifty Kwakye, M.D., M.P.H., is assistant dean for clinical medical education, effective Sept. 1, 2023.
Andrew G. Shuman, M.D., FACS
Shuman, left, is an associate professor in the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, associate chief of staff for education at the VA Ann Arbor Health System (VAAAHS), and co-chief of the clinical ethics service in the Center for Bioethics and Social Sciences in Medicine.
The role of assistant dean for veteran affairs has been realigned with a focus on education, and now reports to the senior associate dean for medical education. In his new role, Shuman will collaborate with the U-M Medical School for continued partnership with VAAAHS to help oversee integrated academic programs for multidisciplinary pre-and post-graduate trainees including residents and medical students. He will also be responsible for review and oversight of academic programs in the spirit of continuous improvement to strengthen educational opportunities between Michigan Medicine and VAAAHS.
Shuman has been on the Michigan Medicine faculty for nine years. He is internationally recognized as a thought leader in ethical issues arising within the field of otolaryngology and surgical oncology. Applying his perspective as a practicing surgeon and clinical ethicist, his work explores conceptual dimensions of surgical ethics, as well as responses to drug shortages and scarce resource allocation. He has received extramural research funding from National Institutes of Health, the VA and societal grants, and he has a portfolio of publications in leading journals including The New England Journal of Medicine and Journal of the American Medical Association. He was closely involved in Michigan Medicine and VAAAHS’ pandemic response, as well as at the state and national level on the ethics of scarce resource allocation including testifying in front of the United States Senate.
A graduate of the University of Michigan Medical School, he also completed his residency in the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery here. He then completed fellowships in head and neck surgical oncology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, and in medical ethics at Weill Medical College of Cornell University.
Gifty Kwakye, M.D., M.P.H.
Kwakye, right, is the Arthur W. Fleming, M.D. Research Professor and clinical associate professor of surgery in the Division of Colorectal Surgery. In her new role, she will provide leadership to ensure the effective implementation of the Clinical Trunk and Branches curriculum, clinical assessments, learning resources, and professional identity formation for the education of medical students.
Kwakye earned undergraduate degrees in both biology and psychology from Yale University, an M.D. from Yale Medical School, and a M.P.H. from Johns Hopkins University. She completed her general surgery residency at the Brigham & Women’s Hospital/Harvard Medical School followed by a colorectal surgery fellowship at University of Minnesota before joining the University of Michigan Medical School faculty in 2018.
Her contributions to medical student education at Michigan include serving as member of the Admissions Executive Committee, the Branches Competency Committee, and the LCME Clinical Assessment Taskforce. She has engaged with students as a Branch advisor, Global Health Disparities Pathway advisor, and Doctoring faculty. She also has held education leadership positions including as co-director of the Comprehensive Competency Assessment Committee, director for medical student programs for the Office for Health Equity and Inclusion, and clerkship director for the Department of Surgery.
Kwakye has received multiple awards in recognition of her excellence in patient care and teaching, including the Kaiser Permanente Award for Excellence in Clinical Teaching (the most prestigious teaching award in the Medical School), the Arnold G. Coran Faculty Teaching Award for the Department of Surgery, Galen's Society Silver Shovel Faculty Teaching Award, the Senior Award from the 2021 graduating medical school class, and she was elected UMMS Class Marshall in 2021 and 2022. She is also a member of the Gold Humanism and Alpha Omega Alpha honor societies.
Her clinical practice focuses on the treatment of colon and rectal oncology, inflammatory bowel disease, surgical management of pelvic floor disorders, anorectal disorders and utilizing minimally invasive approaches to colorectal disease. She also has a passion for global health, recently helping the Ghana College of Physicians and Surgeons to develop the first colorectal surgery fellowship program in Sub-Sahara Africa outside of South Africa.