About the Program

The UAB Division of Vascular Surgery and Endovascular Therapy, a division of the UAB Department of Surgery, is seeking applicants for a new podiatry fellowship program.

The UAB Advanced Podiatric Limb Salvage and Reconstruction Fellowship will focus on limb salvage and the intersection of vascular surgery and podiatry. This is the first fellowship of its kind in the state of Alabama.

This training has not been available in Alabama because state law (which hadn’t been updated since 1973) limited the range of care a podiatrist could provide. That changed in 2023 when Senate Bill 28 was signed into law, increasing podiatrists’ scope to include the ankle.

Clinical Associate Professor Kyle Mauk, DPM, who will direct the new fellowship, says this update to the state law isn’t just good news for doctors who want to get this specialized training in Alabama. It’ll be tremendously beneficial to the large diabetic patient population in Alabama who are at risk of needing lower limb amputations.

“We now have an opportunity to get involved and show the full breadth of what our service line can do,” Dr. Mauk said.

Alabama has one of the highest rates of diabetes at 15 percent, with nearly every county in the state being in a CDC-identified “diabetes belt.”

Every year, an estimated 23,500 adults in Alabama are diagnosed with diabetes. Alabama is one of the seven statesin the nation with the highest prevalence of age-standardized diabetes.

Mauk’s UAB podiatry colleagues, Richard Harris, DPM, Brent Haverstock, DPM, and Kenneth Unger, DPM, will all be extensively involved in the fellowship program as well.

In addition to gaining robust clinical experience with podiatric surgeons, the fellow will also be able to learn and train with other experts throughout the UAB Hospital system, including the whole of the Division of Vascular Surgery and Endovascular Therapy and the Division of Infectious Diseases.

The fellowship is one year in duration and begins in August 2026.

How to Apply

The application is available on the American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons website. 

Program Leadership

Program Director

Kyle Mauk, DPM
Email: podiatricsurgery@uabmc.edu

Current Fellow

Associate Professor
Director, ECMO Program at Children's of Alabama
Program Director, UAB Pediatric Surgery Fellowship

Areas of Interest
congenital diaphragmatic hernia, ECMO, minimally invasive neonatal and pediatric surgery, surgical education

Professor
Vice Chair, Faculty Development
Surgical Director, Hepatobiliary Clinic, Children's of Alabama
Charles D. McCrary Endowed Chair in Pediatric Surgery

Areas of Interest
pediatric surgical oncology, pediatric solid tumors, neuroblastoma

Professor
Director, Division of Pediatric Surgery
Joseph M. Farley Endowed Chair in Pediatric Surgery
Surgeon-in-Chief, Children’s of Alabama

Areas of Interest
anorectal malformation, Hirschsprung’s disease, bowel management, congenital anomalies, thoracic defects and minimally invasive surgery

Associate Professor

Areas of Interest
congenital colorectal, neonatal defects, outcomes research, bioinformatics

Assistant Professor

Areas of Interest 
minimally invasive pediatric surgery, neonatal surgery, thoracic surgery, critical care, burn, trauma

Professor of Surgery, Medical Education and Pediatrics
Chief Wellness Officer, UAB Medicine
ProAssurance Endowed Chair for Physician Wellness

Areas of Interest
general pediatric surgery, medical education

Professor
Director, Trauma Program, Children's of Alabama

Areas of Interest
minimally invasive pediatric surgery, pediatric trauma, neonatal surgery, quality improvement and outcomes research

Assistant Professor

Areas of Interest 
critical care, ECMO, burns, intestinal failure, vascular access, machine learning

Assistant Professor

Areas of Interest
pediatric surgical oncology, pediatric solid tumors, minimally invasive neonatal and pediatric surgery

The Department of Surgery and the Division of Vascular Surgery and Endovascular Therapy are dedicated to advancing surgical science and to educating our trainees in both performing and understanding health services and outcomes research, so they are able to apply that knowledge to their future practices.

The Division offers one-month visiting sub-internships on the Vascular Service at UAB Hospital. Many of our current trainees have started their relationships with us through an elective away rotation. The Division is also involved in a scholarship program for visiting students. 

Vascular Fellowship and Integrated Residency