Faculty & Staff

Our Team

Yuri Novitsky, M.D.

Director, Connecticut Comprehensive Center for Hernia Repair
Chief, Division of Laparoscopic Surgery
Assistant Professor, Department of Surgery, UConn Health Center

Dr. Novitsky has extensive expertise in the repair of groin, ventral, and hiatal hernias. His laboratory work is focused on testing and improving prosthetic and biologic materials used in hernia repair procedures. Dr. Novitsky has authored and co-authored more than 25 scientific papers and book chapters on the topic of prosthetic materials and hernia repair. He was trained in general surgery at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center and then completed his research and clinical fellowships in minimally invasive surgery at the prestigious Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Rajiv Y. Chandawarkar, M.D.

Associate Director, Connecticut Comprehensive Center for Hernia Repair
Chief, Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
Assistant Professor, Department of Surgery, UConnHealth Center

Dr. Chandawarkar plays an integral role in complex abdominal wall reconstruction surgeries. As a researcher at the UConn Center for Immunotherapy, he is actively pursuing research to improve wound healing. Dr. Chandawarkar trained at the renowned M.D. Anderson Cancer Center at the University of Texas in Houston, where he completed his fellowship in reconstructive and microvascular surgery. In addition, he completed research fellowships at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and Fordham University in New York City. Dr. Chandawarkar completed a general surgery residency at Akron General Medical Center in Ohio and a fellowship in plastic and reconstructive surgery at Summa Health System and Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine, also in Akron.

Robert Kozol, M.D.

Professor and Chairman, Department of Surgery, UConn Health Center

Dr. Kozol has been performing hernia repairs for several decades. He has extensive experience in both open and laparoscopic groin hernia repairs and recently participated in a nationwide hernia study. Dr. Kozol is a graduate of the State University of New York Upstate Medical Center, where he did his internship and residency in general surgery. He has a master’s degree in health administration from Central Michigan University and completed a fellowship in gastrointestinal physiology at SUNY Upstate Medical Center.

Cheryl Oncken, M.D.

Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine, UConn School of Medicine

Dr. Oncken is a nationally recognized expert in smoking cessation. She counsels patients who need to quit smoking before undergoing hernia repair surgery. Since smoking is a known risk factor for wound and mesh complications after hernia repair, smoking cessation may dramatically improve surgical outcomes and, thus, is an important aspect of our Comprehensive program. Dr. Oncken is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin Madison Medical School. She completed her residency in internal medicine at Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis and a fellowship in ambulatory care at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Minneapolis.

Adam Simmons, M.D.

Assistant Professor, Department of Neurology, UConn Health Center

Dr. Simmons is a neurologist who completed a training program in Kiiko Matsumoto’s Japanese-style acupuncture at Harvard Medical School. He has experience with using acupuncture for the treatment of chronic musculoskeletal pain. Acupuncture can help provide pain relief for patients recovering from hernia repair surgery, especially in the long term. Dr. Simmons is a graduate of Brown University and the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. He completed his residency and fellowship at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston.

Linda York, M.S., R.D.

Registered Dietitian

Linda helps patients manage weight loss and nutrition issues before and after hernia repair surgery. Reducing and maintaining weight loss has been shown to improve the success rates of hernia repair. Linda earned a bachelor’s degree from Simmons College in Boston and a master’s degree from New York University, both in nutrition.

Donald Kreutzer, Ph.D.

Professor of Molecular Biology

Ulrike Klueh, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor, Center for Biomaterial Research, Department of Surgery, UConn Health Center

Drs. Kreutzer and Klueh are nationally recognized experts in inflammation research. Their laboratory, supported by the National Institute of Health, is investigating new ways of minimizing body reaction to implanted biomaterials. In collaboration with Dr. Novitsky, they are testing and developing new mesh materials to be used in hernia patients.