Robert Shahverdyan

Dr. Robert Shahverdyan is a board-certified vascular surgeon, trained at the University Hospital of
Cologne, Germany, and a globally recognized expert in hemodialysis vascular access surgery with nearly 20 years
of experience in complex vascular and endovascular procedures. He has held key leadership
positions, including Head of the Hemodialysis Vascular Access Center and Co-Founder and Head of
Vascular Access Medicine in Hamburg, Germany. He is currently appointed Director of the Dialysis Vascular
Access Program and Associate Professor of Vascular Surgery at Vanderbilt University Medical
Center in Nashville, Tennessee, where he is establishing a dedicated, multidisciplinary vascular
access program serving patients across Tennessee and the Southeast.
Dr. Shahverdyan is widely known for developing and implementing innovative vascular access
strategies aimed at improving maturation, durability, and patient outcomes. His work is supported
by a strong academic track record, with multiple peer-reviewed publications and reviews focusing
on hemodialysis vascular access. He is an active member of the Vascular Access Society of the
Americas (VASA) and the European Society for Vascular Surgery (ESVS), including his role as a
member of the Hemodialysis Vascular Access Guidelines Committee 2027. He also serves on the
board of the Vascular Access Society (VAS), VASA and is a member of the editorial board of the Journal of
Vascular Access.

Dr. Robert Shahverdyan is a board-certified vascular surgeon, trained at the University Hospital of
Cologne, Germany, and a globally recognized expert in hemodialysis vascular access surgery with nearly 20 years
of experience in complex vascular and endovascular procedures. He has held key leadership
positions, including Head of the Hemodialysis Vascular Access Center and Co-Founder and Head of
Vascular Access Medicine in Hamburg, Germany. He is currently appointed Director of the Dialysis Vascular
Access Program and Associate Professor of Vascular Surgery at Vanderbilt University Medical
Center in Nashville, Tennessee, where he is establishing a dedicated, multidisciplinary vascular
access program serving patients across Tennessee and the Southeast.
Dr. Shahverdyan is widely known for developing and implementing innovative vascular access
strategies aimed at improving maturation, durability, and patient outcomes. His work is supported
by a strong academic track record, with multiple peer-reviewed publications and reviews focusing
on hemodialysis vascular access. He is an active member of the Vascular Access Society of the
Americas (VASA) and the European Society for Vascular Surgery (ESVS), including his role as a
member of the Hemodialysis Vascular Access Guidelines Committee 2027. He also serves on the
board of the Vascular Access Society (VAS), VASA and is a member of the editorial board of the Journal of
Vascular Access.

Alex Powell, M.D., is an Interventional Radiologist and Medical Director of Interventional Radiology at the Miami Cardiac & Vascular Institute. Dr. Powell received his medical degree from the University of Michigan School of Medicine and completed his residency in diagnostic radiology at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, Michigan, where he was also Chief Resident. He completed a fellowship in interventional radiology at the University of California. Dr. Powell has numerous publications in scientific journals including book chapters and he has lectured in national and international conferences.

Dr. Powell holds academic positions including Affiliate Assistant Professor in the Department of Radiology at the University of South Florida and Assistant Professor in the Department of Radiology at Florida International University Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine

Dr. Dheeraj Rajan graduated from the University of Toronto Medical School in 1994. He began his surgical residency at SUNY Syracuse and completed his Diagnostic Radiology residency at Wayne State University in 1999 and Fellowship in Vascular and Interventional Radiology (VIR) at the University of Pennsylvania in 2000. He is a Professor of Medical Imaging and the Division Chief of VIR at the University of Toronto. Dr. Rajan also sits on various committees for the Society of Interventional Radiology, the KDOQI rewrite and Implementations committees and formerly the CoreHealth Vascular Network of Ontario.

Over his career, he has published 130 manuscripts primarily focused on arterial and dialysis interventions, multiple book chapters and one textbook titled “Essentials of Percutaneous Dialysis Interventions”. Dr. Rajan formerly was an Associate Editor for the Journal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology and reviews for multiple medical journals. Dr. Rajan’s prior focus was on the percutaneous creation of dialysis fistulas where he was one of the pioneers for the procedure itself which has subsequently been commercially adopted. He also serves as an advisor to multiple start-up and established companies with devices focused on arterial and dialysis interventions.

Brian Schiro, MD, RPVI, FSIR is a Vascular and Interventional Radiologist with Baptist Heart and Vascular Care at the Miami Cardiac & Vascular Institute in Miami, FL. Dr. Schiro completed his fellowship training with Miami Cardiac & Vascular Institute in 2010 following his diagnostic radiology residency training at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. He received his medical degree from the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in 2004. Dr. Schiro now serves as the Program Director for the Independent Interventional Radiology Residency with Miami Vascular and is also the medical director for the medical sonography program at Nova Southeastern University. He is the medical director of the System-Wide Quality Assurance Committee for the Noninvasive Vascular Lab at Baptist Hospital Health South Florida. He also serves on the IAC Vascular Testing Board of Directors as a representative of the Society of Interventional Radiology (SIR). He has authored numerous articles in peer reviewed journals and his research interests include noninvasive imaging and diagnosis as well as aortic and peripheral vascular interventions.

Dr. Robert Shahverdyan is a board-certified vascular surgeon, trained at the University Hospital of
Cologne, Germany, and a globally recognized expert in hemodialysis vascular access surgery with nearly 20 years
of experience in complex vascular and endovascular procedures. He has held key leadership
positions, including Head of the Hemodialysis Vascular Access Center and Co-Founder and Head of
Vascular Access Medicine in Hamburg, Germany. He is currently appointed Director of the Dialysis Vascular
Access Program and Associate Professor of Vascular Surgery at Vanderbilt University Medical
Center in Nashville, Tennessee, where he is establishing a dedicated, multidisciplinary vascular
access program serving patients across Tennessee and the Southeast.
Dr. Shahverdyan is widely known for developing and implementing innovative vascular access
strategies aimed at improving maturation, durability, and patient outcomes. His work is supported
by a strong academic track record, with multiple peer-reviewed publications and reviews focusing
on hemodialysis vascular access. He is an active member of the Vascular Access Society of the
Americas (VASA) and the European Society for Vascular Surgery (ESVS), including his role as a
member of the Hemodialysis Vascular Access Guidelines Committee 2027. He also serves on the
board of the Vascular Access Society (VAS), VASA and is a member of the editorial board of the Journal of
Vascular Access.

Daniel Clair, M.D., received his medical degree from the University of Virginia School of Medicine. He then completed his internship and surgical residency, as well as a fellowship in vascular surgery, at Brigham & Women’s Hospital. He also completed a fellowship in clinical oncology with the American Cancer Society. He served in the U.S. Air Force as chief of the Division of Vascular Surgery at Andrews Air Force Base before beginning his civilian practice at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation. He was named the division chief of Vascular Surgery at New York Presbyterian Hospital/Presbyterian Campus, and then later returned to the Cleveland Clinic as the department chair of Vascular Surgery, a position he held for 10 years. He was then named professor and chair of the Department of Surgery at the University of South Carolina, where he completed a five-year term. He was recently named as the inaugural chair and professor of the Department of Vascular Surgery at Vanderbilt, specializing in innovative vascular disease care.