Joseph C. Cleveland, Jr., MD
Associate Professor
Chief, Cardiac Surgery
Denver Veteran's Administration Hospital
Clinical Interests Adult cardiac surgery, off-pump coronary artery surgery, adult heart and lung transplantation, mechanical assist devices/artificial heart (heart mate), heart valve reconstruction/replacement.
Medical School University of Washington, Seattle
Residency University of Colorado
Fellowships
Board Certification American Board of Surgery, American Board of Thoracic Surgery
Phone 303-724-2799
Fax 303-724-2806
E-mail Joseph.Cleveland@ucdenver.edu
Bio Joseph C. Cleveland, Jr., M.D., joined the Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery faculty in July 2001, and is currently an Associate Professor of Surgery. He attended medical school at the University of Washington where he was elected to Alpha Omega Alpha and graduated with High Honors in 1991. He completed an internship, surgery residency and thoracic surgery residency at the University of Colorado from 1991-2001.
Dr. Cleveland's clinical interests include adult cardiac surgery, adult heart and lung transplantation, mechanical assist devices/artificial heart, and heart valve reconstruction/replacement. He is the Surgical Director for Adult Cardiac Transplantation/Mechanical Assist Devices at the University of Colorado Hospital and Chief, Cardiothoracic Surgical Services, at the Denver VA Medical Center. Dr. Cleveland is a nationally recognized expert of ventricular assist devices (VAD) and is a member of the end-stage cardiopulmonary disease workforce of the STS. He also is a member of the Adverse Effects Committee for Intermacs, an NIH sponsored VAD database.
Dr. Cleveland’s research interests concern myocardial responses to cardiopulmonary bypass and obligatory ischemia associated with heart surgery. He completed a two-year trauma surgical research fellowship under the mentorship of Alden H. Harken, M.D. from 1994 to 1996. During that time he worked on cellular signaling during myocardial preconditioning. Dr. Cleveland was also the recipient of the Jahnigen Career Development Award from the American Geriatric Society in 2004. He is the Principal Investigator/Co-Prinicipal Investigator on numerous clinical research studies and has authored or co-authored over 100 publications and 15 book chapters.
Dr. Cleveland is the Assistant Program Director of the Thoracic Surgery Residency Program and is a Preceptor in the Foundations of Doctoring Program. He received the Outstanding Clinical Teacher Award for 2002-2003, the first annual School of Medicine Professionalism Award in 2007, in 2009 was a co-recipient of the 5th Annual Dwight McGoon National Teaching Award presented at the AATS, and in 2010 was recognized in 5280: Denver's Mile High Magazine as one of Denver's Top Doctors.
Dr. Cleveland is a member of the Society of Thoracic Surgeons, the American Association for Thoracic Surgery, the American College of Surgeons and numerous other societies. He is on workforces for the STS, has chaired the Program Committee of the Western Thoracic Surgical Association and serves on numerous other society and local committees.