Biography of Mehmet Oz

Mehmet C. Oz, M.D., M.B.A., is Professor and Vice Chairman of Surgery at Columbia University in New York City and Director of the Cardiovascular Institute and Complementary Medicine Program at New York Presbyterian Hospital. Dr. Oz received an undergraduate degree from Harvard University in Boston, Massachusetts, and earned a joint medical degree and master’s degree in business administration at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and Wharton Business School in Philadelphia. He completed an internship and residency in general surgery at Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center in New York City, where he served as Chief Resident in General Surgery. He also completed a research fellowship at the Blakemore Surgical Laboratory of Columbia University. Dr. Oz is board certified by the American Board of Surgery and the American Board of Thoracic Surgery.

An active researcher, Dr. Oz has authored more than 400 original publications, book chapters, and medical books, including the award-winning Healing from the Heart (Dutton Penguin Putnam, 1998) and You: An Owner’s Manual (Harper Collins, 2005). He has written numerous articles for medical and consumer publications, including Newsweek,Oprah Magazine, and The New England Journal of Medicine, and he has a bimonthly column in Esquire magazine. His research interests include heart replacement surgery, minimally invasive cardiac surgery, complementary medicine, and health care policy.

Dr. Oz is also an active and well-known speaker and media personality, having been featured on the “Oprah Winfrey Show,” as well as numerous other talk and news shows. He has guest-hosted “The Charlie Rose Show” on PBS and hosted several other television shows, including “Second Opinion with Dr. Oz” on the Discovery Channel. He has served as medical director of the feature film “John Q” and is a senior medical correspondent for Discovery Communications.

Dr. Oz is a member of almost every major professional society for heart surgeons, including the American Heart Association, for which he serves on the Cardiothoracic Executive Committee. He has received several awards, including election to the Global Leaders of Tomorrow by the World Economic Forum, the prestigious American Association for Thoracic Surgery Gross Research Scholarship, and an honorary doctorate from Istanbul University. In addition, he was voted “The Best and Brightest” by Esquire magazine. He was also elected one of the “Doctors of the Year” by Hippocrates magazine and a “Healer of the Millennium” by Healthy Living magazine. He has been ranked annually as one of the top American physicians by the Castle Connolly Guide and other major ranking groups.