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Dr. Reza Jarrahy, Associate Clinical Professor of Surgery and Pediatrics, is one of the most experienced and well-regarded craniofacial surgeons in Southern California. He is recognized regionally, nationally, and internationally as a leader in his field. His professional activities over the past decade have helped advance patient care, research, education, and global health initiatives in plastic surgery locally and around the world.
Dr. Jarrahy was born and raised in New York City and attended Hunter College High School, one of New York City's highly competitive city-wide specialized schools. He graduated from high school as valedictorian and went on to earn his Bachelor's degree from Stanford University, where he studied Biological Sciences and Italian Studies. After medical school at the State University of New York at Stony Brook, he completed his general surgery residency at New York University and the University of California at San Diego. Dr. Jarrahy went on to plastic surgery residency at UCLA and, upon graduating, was accepted into the UCLA Craniofacial Surgery Fellowship—one of the most highly regarded programs of its kind in the nation—under the direction of Dr. Henry Kawamoto, the founder of the Fellowship and one of the world's most eminent craniofacial surgeons. Since joining the UCLA full-time plastic surgery faculty in 2007, Dr. Jarrahy has continued to honor Dr. Kawamoto's legacy by providing leadership and continuity to the program. He has trained all of UCLA's craniofacial fellows since that time and continues to mentor fellows who come to train at UCLA from around the country and all over the world.
During his clinical residency and fellowship years, Dr. Jarrahy also completed three years of dedicated research training. This experience prepared him for his current career in academic medicine and research, resulting today in a robust and productive research program that is characterized by the publication of many peer-reviewed journal publications and book chapters, and the delivery of many scientific presentations and invited lectures around the world. Dr. Jarrahy's research has been recognized by leading scientists in the field of academic plastic surgery, who have bestowed upon him numerous prestigious research awards.
Since completing his training, Dr. Jarrahy has committed himself in an uninterrupted fashion to promoting the field of craniofacial surgery and to caring for craniofacial patients. He has extensive experience in the treatment of the most complex craniofacial anomalies, as well as complex reconstructive surgery of the head and neck, including cleft lip and palate, craniosynostosis repair, jaw surgery, ear reconstruction, soft tissue and bone tumor reconstruction, and many others. He has worked non-stop over the past decade to advance the interests of children born with facial birth defects in the operating room, the laboratory, and through his involvement in philanthropy and community service. As a result of his in-depth knowledge of the craniofacial skeleton and soft tissues, he has also earned a reputation as an excellent aesthetic surgeon of the face and neck, whose attention to detail consistently results in superb natural results and very satisfied patients. Dr. Jarrahy serves these patients and the community at large as Assistant Chief of Plastic Surgery at Olive View-UCLA Medical Center, Co-Director of the UCLA Craniofacial Clinic, and Co-Director of the UCLA Face Transplant Program.
Dr. Jarrahy's extensive experience has earned him numerous positions of leadership in various professional societies, including the American Society of Maxillofacial Surgeons, where he has served as a Board member for the past several years. He also serves as a faculty advisor to the UCLA Blum Center for Poverty and Health in Latin America, the UCLA Latin American Institute, and the UCLA School of Medicine Center for World Health, where he continues to support the development of global health programs for undergraduates, graduate students, and medical students.
Perhaps more than any other quality, Dr. Jarrahy is best known for his humanism and his humanitarianism. He continues to travel overseas multiple times per year to operate and engage in community service projects in developing nations, serving some of the most vulnerable children on the planet. He is the proud recipient of a 2016 UCLA Health Teaching Humanism Award, in recognition of his contributions as a role model and teacher of patient-centered care.
Balancing work, philanthropy, and family: Balancing Act
Operation Mend: Operation Mend Helps Wounded Warrior
UCLA Face Transplantation Program: UCLA launches first face transplantation program in western U.S. UCLA Debuts Face Transplantation Program UCLA seeking Wounded Warriors with severe facial injuries for clinical trial Face Transplant UCLA: New Program Replaces Devastated Faces
Global Health: Making a World of DifferenceUCLA professor, plastic surgeon Reza Jarrahy travels to Guatemala as part of Mayan Families organization to treat congenital deformities UCLA expands student opportunities with global health programs Surgeon, anthropologist lead effort to bridge Western health care, indigenous cultures Culture Matters, Especially in Medicine Surgeons and anthropologists collaborate to deliver health care in Central America "At The Crossroads" Symposia Series Continues to Inspire
Volunteerism and Community Service: Volunteer Day brings new students together 6,000 new UCLA students volunteer their time around Los Angeles
Phrenic Nerve Surgery: UCLA Is Only West Coast Medical Center to Offer Pioneering Surgery for Phrenic Nerve Damage
Social Media in Medicine: Half of plastic surgeons used social media in practice Many plastic surgeons view social media as important tool for promoting their practice
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