Kelvin Higa Bariatric Surgeon M.D.,F.A.C.S. F.A.S.M.B.S.

Dr. Kelvin Higa graduated from the prestigious Biomedical Sciences Program, a collaboration between the University of California Schools in Riverside and Los Angeles, in 1983. He completed his general surgical training in Fresno in 1988. He has served as Chief of Vascular Surgery the VA Medical Center, Chief of Surgery for Community Medical Centers and Saint Agnes Medical Center and is currently the CEO of ALSA Medical Group and Director of Minimally Invasive and Bariatric Surgery at Fresno Heart and Surgical Hospital. As Professor of Surgery in the UCSF-Fresno Medical Education Program, Dr. Higa is involved in the training of surgical residents and fellows. In addition to hosting visiting professors and other surgeons throughout the world, he is often asked to lecture of perform live surgeries in the US and abroad. He has published many peer reviewed papers book chapters and serves on the editorial board of several journals. He has served as President of the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS) and the International Federation for Surgical Obesity and Metabolic Disorders (IFSO). He is recipient of the ASMBS Lifetime Achievement Award.

• John Yadegar — Palmdale, CA