The UAB Department of Surgery is honored to welcome four new faculty in October 2026: Dr. Carlos Fairen Oro, Dr. Natalie O’Neill, Dr. Emily M. Smith, and Dr. Roh Yanagida.
About Dr. Carlos Fairen Oro
Carlos Fairen Oro, M.D., joined the faculty of the UAB Department of Surgery’s Division of Gastrointestinal Surgery as an assistant professor. He earned his medical degree from Universitat de Valencia, Facultat de Medicina in Spain and then trained at Johns Hopkins Hospital and Boston Medical Center (BU), where he completed his residency in general surgery. After residency, Dr. Fairen Oro completed a colon and rectal surgery fellowship at the UMass Chan Medical School.
In addition to his clinical work, Dr. Fairen Oro’s research focuses on colorectal surgery, ischemic colitis, anorectal disease and malignancies, social determinants of health in colorectal surgery, and perioperative care and outcomes in gastrointestinal surgery.
Dr. Fairen Oro is an active member of the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons (ASCRS) and the American College of Surgeons (ACS) and he is the co-founder of the Asociación de Médicos Españoles en United States of America (AMEUSA).
About Dr. Natalie O’Neill
Natalie O’Neill, M.D., joined the faculty of the UAB Department of Surgery’s Division of Pediatric Surgery as an assistant professor. She earned her medical degree from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health and completed her surgical residency at the University of Maryland Medical Center. Following residency, she completed the Pediatric Surgery Fellowship at UAB. She then practiced as a pediatric surgeon at the Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters in Norfolk, Virginia, and served as an assistant professor of surgery at the Macon & Joan Brock Virginia Health Sciences Eastern Virginia Medical School at Old Dominion University.
Dr. O’Neill’s research currently focuses on the role of skin substitute use in pediatric deep partial thickness and full thickness burn management. She is a member of the American Pediatric Surgical Association, the American Burn Association, the American College of Surgeons, and the Chest Wall International Group.
About Dr. Emily M. Smith
Emily M. Smith, M.D., joined the UAB Division of Breast and Endocrine Surgery as a clinical assistant professor, practicing primarily at Mobile Infirmary. She earned her medical degree from the University of South Alabama College of Medicine, where she was inducted into Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society. She completed her general surgery residency at the University of South Alabama and served as an Instructor in the Department of Surgery prior to pursuing fellowship training in breast surgical oncology at Baylor University Medical Center. Dr. Smith is board-certified by the American Board of Surgery.
A dedicated clinical educator and researcher, Dr. Smith has authored multiple peer-reviewed publications, educational surgical videos for the SCORE Portal, and case reports in breast surgical oncology. Her academic interests focus on advancing breast cancer surgery, improving perioperative care, and surgical education. In addition to her published work, she has delivered numerous oral presentations and grand rounds lectures at regional and national meetings on topics including breast cancer surgery, pain management, and complex breast disease.
Dr. Smith is an active member of the Society of Surgical Oncology (SSO), the American Society of Breast Surgeons (ASBrS), and the American College of Surgeons (ACS). Throughout her training, she has served in numerous leadership and educational roles, including the University of South Alabama Residency Selection Committee and Women in Surgery, while remaining committed to community outreach, mentorship, and surgical education.
About Dr. Roh Yanagida
Roh Yanagida, M.D., Ph.D., joined the faculty of the UAB Department of Surgery as a professor in the Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery.
Before arriving at UAB, Dr. Yanagida was an associate professor in the Division of Cardiovascular Surgery at Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia, where he served as surgical director of the Heart Transplant Program and director of the ECMO Program. He joined Temple in 2019 after four years as surgical director of lung transplantation at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center in New Jersey. He began his faculty career in 2012 as an assistant professor in the Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the University of Kentucky.
Dr. Yanagida earned his medical degree from Asahikawa Medical University and his Ph.D. in cardiovascular surgery from Tokyo Women's Medical University in Japan, where he also trained in cardiovascular surgery. He moved to the United States for a research fellowship in cardiothoracic surgery at Brown Medical School, where he studied bioengineered heart valves, and went on to complete general surgery residency at Brown Medical School and Drexel University College of Medicine. He then completed fellowships in cardiothoracic surgery and in heart and lung transplantation and mechanical circulatory support at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.
His research focuses on donor selection and donor-recipient size matching in heart transplantation, heart transplantation, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation as a bridge to lung transplantation, and outcomes of mechanical circulatory support. He has authored more than 40 peer-reviewed publications and has presented his work at the annual meetings of the American Association for Thoracic Surgery, the Society of Thoracic Surgeons, and the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation.
Dr. Yanagida is certified by the American Board of Surgery and the American Board of Thoracic Surgery. He is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons and a member of the Society of Thoracic Surgeons, the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation, the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization and The Transplantation Society. He serves as a reviewer for several journals, including ASAIO Journal, Transplant International, and Artificial Organs.
Surgery
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October 15, 2026