News & Announcements

July 2023: New Fellow Welcome Dinner

The Division hosts a New Fellow Welcome Dinner this past July.

June 2023: Rohit Loomba, MD, Named Chief of the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology

Effective June 2023, Loomba will lead the division at University of California San Diego School of Medicine, building upon a transformational team that shines a light on UC San Diego Health’s tripartite mission. Read the Press Release

Dear Colleagues,

I am both humbled and honored to start this exciting opportunity to serve as the new Chief of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at University of California at San Diego. I am impressed by the passion and expertise you bring to your work and am excited to grow and thrive alongside you as we work to provide the highest quality of care to our patients. I am committed to creating an environment where integrity, collaboration and innovation are all priorities. As we adapt and improve our processes and care models, I am eager to hear from all of you ways to identify best practices and develop strategies to improve access and enhance patient experience. I welcome your input on all aspects of the division that can be shared through either one on one meetings or at group meetings. I look forward to meeting with each of you to advance all of our missions. As I transition into this role please be patient and allow me some time to fully understand the needs of the entire division and align our priorities with the institutional vision. All existing administrative roles served by various faculty will continue in the transition period to allow smooth functioning of the divisional activities.

Rohit Loomba, MD, MHSc
Chief, Division of GI & Hepatology

DDW® Awards 2016

Dr. John Chang Receives AGA-GRG Young Investigator Award in Basic Science | Read AGA Press Release
William Sandborn, MD , receives Mentor Award in Immunology, Microbiology and IBD
Kim E. Barrett, PhD receives Mentor Award in Intestinal Disorders
C. Richard Boland, MD, AGAF, Chief of Gastroenterology at UC San Diego from 1995 to 2003, receives Julius Friedenwald Award | Read AGA Press Release

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Drs. John Chang, Pradipta Ghosh, Bernd Schnabl Elected to American Society for Clinical Investigation

All three are Associate Professors of Medicine in the Division of Gastroenterology. Visit their laboratories:

U.S. News & World Report ranks UC San Diego Medical Center's Gastroenterology & GI Surgery services in the top 25 in the nation for 2015-2016.

Gastroenterologists at UC San Diego Health are nationally recognized for their innovative care of people with gastrointestinal and liver diseases.

We recognize how life-altering living with digestive disease can be. The Division of Gastroenterology works in multidisciplinary teams of specialists including endoscopists, oncologists, surgeons and radiologists.

Dr. Thomas Savides a 2015 Top Doctor

Congratulations to Dr. Thomas Savides, Professor of Clinical Medicine, Clinical Service Chief and Chief Experience Officer for UC San Diego Health, who was named one of San Diego's 2015 Top Doctors in the annual survey by the San Diego County Medical Society and San Diego Magazine.

Dr. Irine Vodkin Wins Top Honors at SDGI Fellows' Research Forum

Gastroenterology transplant hepatology fellow Irine Vodkin, MD, received the top rating for her presentation at the 2015 San Diego Gastroenterology Society Annual Fellows' Research Forum on March 18.

In the photo at left, Dr. Vodkin is pictured on the right with (from left) Drs. Wilson Kwong and Parambir Dulai.

Above: Sheila Crowe, MD (left), director of research, with UC San Diego's GI Fellows group at the research forum.

First Chief Experience Officer for UC San Diego Health: Dr. Thomas Savides

Congratulations to Dr. Thomas Savides, who has been appointed the first Chief Experience Officer for UC San Diego Health.

"We are excited to have Dr. Savides champion employee engagement and patient experience so that we can exceed our patients' expectation in everything we do," said Paul Viviano, former CEO of UC San Diego Health and Associate Vice Chancellor for UC San Diego Health Sciences.
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In Memoriam: Martin F. Kagnoff, MD, 1914 - 2014

Beloved faculty member Martin Kagnoff, MD, Emeritus Professor of Medicine and Pediatrics and Director of the Laboratory of Mucosal Immunology, passed away November 14, 2014.

Drs. Sandborn, Savides Selected for San Diego Top Doctors List 2014

Congratulations to Dr. William Sandborn and Dr. Thomas Savides , who are named once again on the San Diego Top Doctors list .

Gastroenterologists at UC San Diego Health are nationally recognized for their innovative care of people with gastrointestinal and liver diseases. We recognize how life-altering living with digestive disease can be. The Division of Gastroenterology works in multidisciplinary teams of specialists including endoscopists, oncologists, surgeons and radiologists.

U.S. News & World Report ranks our gastroenterology and gastrointestinal surgery services in the top 50 in the nation.

Dr. John Chang Receives 2011 NIH Director's New Innovator Award

John Chang, MD, has received a 2011 NIH Director's New Innovator Award for his project, "Understanding the Basis for Cellular Diversity During Adaptive Immunity."

Dr. Chang's proposal will study fundamental mechanisms by which cell fate is determined during immune responses against microbes. Dr. Chang's research group will receive $2.3 million over the next five years for the study.

Dr. Chang was among 49 scientists nationwide to receive the prestigious award this year, which funds research projects "that challenge the status quo with innovative ideas that have the potential to propel fields forward and speed the translation of research into improved health for the American public." The study could have implications for improved vaccine strategies and suggest new treatments for inflammatory bowel disease.

The NIH Director's New Innovator Award addresses two important goals: stimulating highly innovative research and supporting promising new investigators. As part of NIH's commitment to increasing opportunities for new scientists, it created the NIH Director's New Innovator Award to support exceptionally creative new investigators who propose highly innovative projects that have the potential for unusually high impact. This award complements ongoing efforts by NIH and its institutes and centers to fund new investigators through R01 grants and other mechanisms.

The NIH Director's New Innovator Award program is different from traditional NIH grants in that it is designed specifically to support unusually creative new investigators with highly innovative research ideas at an early stage of an investigator's career when they may lack the preliminary data required for an R01 grant.

The UCSD TV Production " Colon Cancer Screening - Health Matters" with Thomas J. Savides, MD, aired October 18, 2012.