Dr. Salim Surani has many titles, ranging from distinguished researcher and renowned pulmonologist to esteemed associate professor and valued mentor.
However, his most fitting designation dovetails perfectly into the valuable mission of CHRISTUS Spohn Health System: health care champion of the Coastal Bend.
Surani has spent more than two decades with CHRISTUS Spohn, serving thousands of patients from across South Texas, but his first thoughts of the area were that it would be a nice place to spend a little bit of time.
“I originally thought I’d only be in Beeville and Corpus Christi for a year, but my wife and I fell in love with South Texas. We love the community and it has embraced us,” says Surani, Medical Director of Critical Care Medicine at CHRISTUS Spohn Health System.
That sense of community is what Surani says made his family want to make Corpus Christi its home, which is a great thing when talking about the most prevalent medical conditions in the area. Surani’s focus remains on critical care, but he also has a passion for helping the community he serves, specifically children and the issues they face, including tobacco use, diabetes and obesity, and sleep deprivation.
Surani who mentors and trains faculty at the Mayo Clinic, Scott & White and the University of North Texas, in addition to his numerous other callings, recognizes more than most just how quickly health care has changed and continues to change. That’s precisely why he is such a strong advocate for CHRISTUS Spohn’s comprehensive plan, Our PATH Forward — People & Actions Transforming Healthcare.
Surani was the first physician to make a financial contribution toward Our PATH.
“Our PATH Forward will allow CHRISTUS Spohn to invest in technology and infrastructure, which in turn will help improve education and help improve patient care,” says Surani. “All of our services also are optimum for patient care, especially with the number of specialists who will be on site at the new Shoreline campus.”
Surani, who still remembers the blueprints from the original pavilion expansion at Shoreline, has been vital in planning for the future needs of health care in our region. The need is now greater than ever to recruit, train and invite the best and brightest to CHRISTUS Spohn.
“If you have a vision and structure for your educational programs, it helps to attract the best physicians,” says Surani.
Click here to view in 2015 Annual Report.
Posted on April 4, 2016