Dr Vinod Thomas
Job Title:
Surgeon
Specialisations:
Cardiothoracic Surgery, Cardiology, Cardiac Surgery , Vascular Surgery Biography:
He completed his BSc(anatomy) in Archaeology under the tutelage of the late Professor Philip Tobias at the University of Witwatersrand. He then went on to obtain his Medical Degree (MBCHB, WITS) at the same institute. He completed his internship at the Pietersburg Tertiary Hospital and community service at Elim District Hospital. During his internship and community service he trained in multiple disciplines including internal medicine, surgery, emergency medicine, anaesthesia, obstetrics and gynaecology, paediatric medicine and psychiatry. He then worked as a medical officer in the UK (Portsmouth, Exeter and Brighton NHS Hospitals) covering specialities including emergency medicine, acute medicine, internal medicine and geriatric medicine. He returned to South Africa, completing his specialisation in Internal Medicine (FCP SA) at the University of Cape Town (UCT) in 2007. Subsequently he completed Cardiology specialist training at Groote Schuur Hospital (UCT), attaining his Certificate of Cardiology for the Colleges of Medicine of South Africa in 2010. He accepted a year long fellowship position in Cardiac Electrophysiology at the Royal Bournemouth Hospital, UK in 2012. He then furthered his sub-specialist electrophysiology training by completing a 2 year fellowship at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute, Canada. Here he further honed his skills in diagnosis and catheter ablation of supra-ventricular and ventricular arrhythmias, including complex arrhythmias (atrial fibrillation, ventricular tachycardia ablation in structurally abnormal hearts (ischaemic and non ischaemic) . Further he obtained invaluable experience in the conservative and interventional management of patients with adult congenital heart disease (GUCH). He also obtained invaluable experience in device implantation and follow up of pacemakers, defibrillators (ICD’s), cardiac resynchronization devices. He won first prize for his presentation at the North American Medtronic Fellow Arrythmia Symposium, as judged by Dr Mark Josephson the "father of clinical cardiac electrophysiology" from Harvard Medical School. The Ottawa Heart Institute also awarded him "The Heart of Gold" for exemplary care toward his patients. He has now returned to South Africa where he would like to blend the knowledge he acquired in South Africa, Europe and North America for the betterment of his patients.
