Faculty for Surgical Critical Care
Amirreza Motameni, MD
Program Director
Dr. Motameni is board-certified in general surgery and surgical critical care with clinical interests in general and trauma surgery. He joins WakeMed after finishing his surgical critical care fellowship at University of Louisville and working at the Robley Rex VA Medical Center in Louisville, KY. Dr. Motameni earned his medical degree from the East Carolina University Brody School of Medicine in Greenville, NC and completed his residency and internship programs at Vidant Medical Center in Greenville, NC.
Dr. Motameni is a member of the Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA) and The Arnold P. Gold Foundation honor medical societies. His research work has been published in journals such as Annals of Surgery, Journal of American College of Surgeons and Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery. He has contributed to multiple surgical text books.
In his free time, Dr. Motameni enjoys traveling and reading.
Edmund Rutherford, MD
Assistant Program Director
Dr. Rutherford is an associate professor of surgery at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-CH), an attending physician at WakeMed and a colonel in the United States Air Force Reserve. He earned his medical degree from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, completed his internship and junior residency at UNC-CH and completed his senior residency at New Hanover Memorial Hospital in Wilmington, N.C. A diplomate of the American Board of Surgery and also board certified in critical care, Dr. Rutherford is especially interested in surgical critical care.
Jeffrey Abrams, MD
Faculty
Dr. Jeff Abrams is board certified in general surgery and surgical critical care, and his clinical interests are re-operative, breast, laparoscopic and hernia surgery.
He received his medical degree from the University of North Carolina School of Medicine, where he also completed his residency and fellowship in surgical critical care. Dr. Abrams also holds a Bachelor of Art degree in American Studies from Stanford University in Stanford, CA.
He is an assistant professor in the Department of Surgery at the UNC School of Medicine. He is a candidate fellow of the American College of Surgeons and a fellow of the North Carolina Chapter of American College of Surgeons. Dr. Abrams is also a member of the American Trauma Society and the Nathan Womack Surgical Society.
His research has been published in journals such as American Surgeon and The Journal of Trauma, and he has also contributed to the textbook Unbound Surgery.
He enjoys running marathons and watching the Carolina Hurricanes.
Sukanto Biswas, MD
Faculty
Dr. Biswas is a clinical associate professor at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-CH) and an attending general, trauma and critical care surgeon at WakeMed. He earned his medical degree and master's degree in surgery from Maulana Azad Medical College - University of New Delhi in India and completed his residency in general surgery at the New York Medical College Program at Lincoln Medical & Mental Health Center and Saint Vincent's Hospital & Medical Center, both in New York City.
He also completed two fellowships, one in surgical critical care at New York Medical College and the other in trauma at Saint Vincent's. Dr. Biswas is board certified by the American Board of Surgery. His clinical interests include pancreato-biliary surgery and trauma/critical care.
Alexis Hess, MD
Faculty
Dr. Alexis Hess is a board-certified, fellowship-trained surgeon with clinical interests in trauma, surgical critical care and emergency general surgery. She completed medical school at Wake Forest University School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, NC. She then went on to complete a residency at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, NC and a fellowship at University of Tennessee Health Science Center in Memphis, TN.
Dr. Hess believes the most important aspects of patient care are excellence in medical decision-making and operative technique as well as treating patients and their families with the same attentive care she would provide for her own family. Acknowledging that in the field of emergency surgery and critical care, she understands that there are numerous complex situations, and she wants each patient to have the best care for their unique situation. Dr. Hess strives to communicate as much as I can with patients and their families to ensure collaboration and best outcomes.
When not at work, Dr. Hess enjoys running, hiking, paddle boarding and kayaking.
Scott Moore, MD
Faculty
Dr. Scott Moore is a general surgeon with clinical interests hernias, colon cancer and other GI tract disorders, chest wall injuries, and dialysis access. He is also a trauma surgeon and is a key member of WakeMed's Level One Trauma Center in Raleigh.
Dr. Moore began his medical career in 2007 and completed his general surgery residency and a research fellowship at UNC Chapel Hill. He then went on to complete specialized training in Acute Care Surgery at the University of Colorado.
Dr. Moore has published numerous original research papers and book chapters in the surgical literature, and has won awards at major research conferences. He is very involved with WakeMed's long history of medical student and resident education.
In his free time, Dr. Moore enjoys spending time with family, SCUBA diving, hiking, and camping.
Crystal Pressley, MD, MPH
Faculty
Dr. Crystal Pressley is a board-certified surgeon with clinical interests in general surgery, trauma, and critical care. She completed a fellowship in surgical trauma critical care at the University of Louisville in Louisville, KY, and a residency in general surgery at the Carilion Clinic in Roanoke, Va. Dr. Pressley earned her medical degree and a master’s degree in public health from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill after receiving a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Duke University. She is a member of the American College of Surgeons and is published in the American Journal of Surgery.
Stephanie Riggins, MD
Faculty
Dr. Stephanie Riggins is board certified in general surgery and surgical critical care. She joins WakeMed after finishing her surgical critical care fellowship at Duke University in Durham, NC. Dr. Riggins earned her medical degree from University of South Carolina School of Medicine and completed her residency at the University of Pittsburgh.
Dr. Riggins works closely with medical students and residents both in the ICU and the operating room. Her clinical interests include taking care of complex, critically-ill patients and educating residents/fellows.
In her free time, she enjoys traveling and spending time with her family.
Osi Udekwu, MD
Faculty
Dr. Pascal Udekwu is board-certified in General Surgery, Pediatrics, and Surgical Critical Care. His clinical interests are complex general surgery, including pancreas, esophagus and re-operative surgery as well as surgical critical care with additional training in Trauma Surgery. Dr. Udekwu is trained to address most injuries to the neck, chest, abdomen and extremities and guide the complex care of injured patients through their hospital stay.
Dr. Udekwu received his medical training at the University of Ibadan in Nigeria. He holds a master's of Health Administration/Master of Business Administration from Pfeiffer University in Misenheimer, N.C. Dr. Udekwu completed his residency in the pediatrics and general surgery at the University of Chicago in Chicago, I.L., and his fellowship in trauma and surgical critical care at the University of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, PA.
He is a professor in the Department of Surgery at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine. He is also the Director of Trauma, the Surgical Intensive Care Unit and the Surgical Stepdown Unit. He served in the military from 1988 to 2017 and is retired after serving as a Colonel in the United States Air Force Reserve.
Dr. Udekwu is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons and a member of the Society for Critical Care Medicine, The Association for Academic Surgery, The Nathan A. Womack Surgical Society, and The American Association for the Surgery of Trauma as well as many other professional organizations.
Dr. Udekwu has received grants from Governor’s Highway Safety and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and his research has been published in journals such as The Journal of the American College of Surgeons, The Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery and The American Surgeon. He has presented his research at many national conventions, including The American College of Surgeons Clinical Congress, The Society of Critical Care Medicine Annual Meeting, and The American Association for the Surgery of Trauma Annual Meeting.
LaDeVoyia Rogers
Program Coordinator
