Surgeons

Russell P. Seneca, M.D. is VSA's founder. He is a 1967 graduate of Georgetown University School of Medicine. He completed his surgical residency at Georgetown University Hospital in 1973. Dr. Seneca is board-certified by the American Board of Surgery and the American Board of Surgery, Surgical Critical Care. He is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons. He earned E.M.B.A. from George Mason University in 1996. He is Associate Dean for Medical Education VCU School of Medicine/Inova Campus, Professor of Surgery, VCU/Medical College of Virginia, and Chairman, Department of Surgery IFH/IFHC.

John J. Moynihan, M.D. is a 1980 graduate of Georgetown University School of Medicine. He completed his surgical residency at Georgetown University Hospital and its affiliate hospitals. Dr. Moynihan pursued additional fellowship training at the University of Tennessee in Memphis. He is Board Certified in General Surgery and has fulfilled all the requirements for recertification by the American College of Surgeons.

Dr. Moynihan is experienced in all aspects of the care of surgical patients. He performs all general surgical procedures including breast, gastrointestinal, endocrine (thyroid, parathyroid, and adrenal), and hernia surgeries. Dr. Moynihan and his partner Dr. Seneca were the first to perform a laparoscopic cholecystectomy at INOVA Fairfax Hospital in 1990, paving the way to improved patient recovery and reduced postoperative pain.

Dr. Moynihan has been honored by being named as one of the Washington Area's "Top 100 Doctors" in Washingtonian Magazine. In addition, his peers named him to be included in the elite as one of the Best Doctors in 2005-2006. He is involved in surgical education in his role as a Clinical Assistant Professor at Georgetown University for which he received the Vicennial Medal and at INOVA Fairfax Hospital where he was honored for "excellence in teaching" by the surgical residency program. He serves as a member of the Executive Committee at INOVA Fairfax Hospital and is on the Board of Directors of LIFE WITH CANCER, an organization whose role is to enhance the quality of life for those affected by cancer through education, information, and support.

Robert F. Ahmed, M.D. is a 1987 graduate of Georgetown University School of Medicine. He completed his surgical residency at Georgetown University Medical Center and its affiliate hospitals in 1992. He is from the Washington D.C. area, having grown up in Montgomery County Maryland. He attended Georgetown Preparatory School in Bethesda, MD and then Hamilton College in Clinton, NY before returning to Washington for his medical training. Dr. Ahmed is Board Certified in General Surgery and is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons. He joined Virginia Surgical Associates in 1992 and continued to develop advanced surgical skills for the care of his patients.

Dr. Ahmed enjoys all aspects of care for surgical patients. His areas of interest are advanced laparoscopic procedures, colon, stomach, and gallbladder surgeries, all types of hernia repairs and breast treatments. He was the first to perform a Laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication procedure at INOVA Fairfax Hospital in 1995 and continues to develop and encourage surgical techniques which are less invasive to his patients.

Dr. Ahmed is an active member of the medical staff at both INOVA Fairfax and Fair Oaks Hospitals. He is a member of the Medical Executive Committee at Fair Oaks Hospital after serving as the Chairman of the Department of Surgery. He has been named as one of the Washington Area's "Top Doctors" in Washingtonian Magazine as well as in Checkbook Magazine. He continues to train surgical residents and medical students at INOVA Fairfax Hospital.

Barry F. Walter, M.D. graduated from the Medical College of Georgia in 1991. He completed his General Surgery Residency at Eastern Virginia Medical School in 1996. He is a Clinical Assistant Professor of Surgery at Georgetown University and is active in resident training, receiving the Outstanding Faculty Teaching Award in 2001, 2002, 2004, and 2005. Dr. Walter is chairman of the Surgical Quality Improvement and Case Review Committee at INOVA Fair Oaks Hospital. He is one of the trauma surgeons and is also the director of laparoscopic training at that institution.

Dr. Walter is one of the most experienced laparoscopic surgeons in Northern Virginia. He has trained many local surgeons in various laparoscopic procedures, and his frequent public speaking engagements to physicians, nurses, and the community covers a broad range of advanced surgical topics. He was one of the first in the area to utilize surgical robotics, and in conjunction with an orthopedic surgeon performed the first laparoscopic spinal fusion in Northern Virginia. Additional areas of expertise in laparoscopy include cholecystectomy, anti-reflux surgery, splenectomy, adrenalectomy, colon surgery, inguinal and incisional hernia repair, transplant donor nephrectomy, and weight loss surgery. Dr. Walter has broad experience in general surgery, including breast surgery and sentinel node procedure, surgical oncology, thyroid and parathyroid surgery, abdominal procedures, and hernia surgery.

Kirsten H. Edmiston, MD is a 1988 graduate of the Temple University School of Medicine. She completed her surgical residency at the University of Maryland Hospital and its affiliate hospitals in June 1993. Following the completion of her general surgery residency, Dr. Edmiston attended the City of Hope National Medical Center for a clinical fellowship in surgical oncology and did two years of colorectal cancer metastasis research at the Harvard Medical School/ Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. She has published several articles on mechanisms of hepatic metastasis in Cancer Research.

Dr. Edmiston joined Virginia Surgery Associates in 1997. She is on the medical staff at INOVA Fairfax Hospital, Fair Oaks Hospital and Loudoun Hospital. Dr. Edmiston is board certified by the American Board of Surgery and is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons. She is currently appointed as Clinical Assistant Professor of Surgery at Georgetown University Hospital and the Virginia Commonwealth University, where she is a faculty member of the surgical residency program. In addition, Dr. Edmiston is the Medical Director of the Inova Fairfax Hospital Cancer Center and the physician liaison for Fairfax and Fair Oaks Hospitals for the American College of Surgeon's Commission on Cancer. As the medical director, Dr. Edmiston works to advance the delivery of state of the art cancer care at Inova Fairfax Hospital and Inova Health System

Dr. Edmiston's main areas of interest are general and oncologic surgery. She was one of the first in Northern Virginia to do sentinel lymph node surgery for breast cancer and melanoma. She is interested in surgeries for benign and malignant diseases of the breast, melanoma, soft tissue sarcomas, gastrointestinal, gallbladder, pancreas, and endocrine systems. She is also dedicated to advancing new scientific knowledge for the future. Her funded research interests deal with the proteomic profiling of noninvasive breast cancer (DCIS) and it's relationship to atypical benign lesions. She is committed to advancing this translational research through an ongoing relationship with researchers at George Mason University and others. Lastly, Dr. Edmiston is interested in cancer prevention and outreach as a Site Principal Investigator for the Latin American Cancer Research Coalition and the Avon Inova Cares Breast Program.

Richard V. Brenner, M.D. is a graduate of Brown University, where he earned both his bachelor's and medical degrees. He received his surgical training at Georgetown University Medical Center. While at Georgetown, Dr Brenner researched breast cancer, colon cancer, stomach cancer, and melanoma at the Lombardi Cancer Center. His interest in treatment of these and other malignancies has continued in his clinical practice.

Dr. Brenner has maintained a focus in advanced laparoscopic surgery. He performs laparoscopic gall bladder surgery, hernia surgery, colon surgery, Nissen fundoplication, splenectomy, and adrenalectomy. As an advanced laparoscopic surgeon, he is always looking for opportunities in which minimal access surgery will serve as a preferred alternative to open surgery. Dr. Brenner is an active member of the Society of American Gastrointestinal Endoscopic Surgeons.

Upon completion of his training at Georgetown, Dr. Brenner practiced at Kaiser Permanente in Falls Church, Virginia. His experience there provided him with insight into the HMO model as a form of health care delivery. He joined Virginia Surgery Associates, PC in 2000. He currently maintains an academic affiliation with Georgetown University as Clinical Assistant Professor of Surgery. He is one of the attending staff at INOVA Fairfax Hospital who is responsible for instructing Virginia Commonwealth University medical students and residents. Dr. Brenner is board-certified by the American Board of Surgery and is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons.

Christine M. Habib, M.D. is a 1998 graduate of Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine. She completed her surgical residency at St. Elizabeth Health Center in 2003. Dr. Habib pursued additional training in surgical critical care at Children's Memorial Hospital, Northwestern University. Dr. Habib is board-eligible by the American Board of Surgery. She is board certified.

Karen D. Phillips, M.D., F.A.C.S. is a 1995 graduate of the Medical College of Ohio where she graduated with honors in Surgery. She was also the student representative from Ohio to attend the American College of Surgeons annual meeting. She completed her 5 year General Surgery residency at the University of South Carolina and its affiliate hospitals in 2000. She has been in private practice since graduating and has practiced in New Mexico, as well as, South Carolina.

She is board certified by the American Board of Surgery and is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons. She is a member of the American Medical Association and the Association of Women Surgeons. Dr. Phillips joined Virginia Surgery Associates in September 2007. She is on the medical staff for all Inova hospitals, but will spend most of her time between Inova Alexandria and Inova Mt. Vernon.

Dr. Phillips enjoys all of General Surgery, but has a particular passion for oncologic and benign breast surgery. She is looking forward to bringing a comprehensive and caring breast team to the Alexandria and Mount Vernon communities.

Enoch M. Sanders, Jr., MD. is a 2001 Graduate of MCPHahnemann School of Medicine in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He completed his surgery residency at Graduate Hospital in Philadelphia as well. He later went on to Boston and became just the third surgery fellow to complete an endocrine surgery fellowship at Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary through Harvard Medical School. He is currently board eligible and a member of the American College of Surgeons.

Dr. Sander's first love is thyroid surgery. He specializes in recurrent nerve monitoring. He trained under world renowned otolaryngolist Dr. Randolph in Boston and continues to work with him on research projects. He also performs parathyroid surgery and intraoperative parathyroid hormone assays. As a general surgeon he continues to perform a wide range of surgeries and when he is not in the operating room, he is providing educational talks or collaborating on research projects.

Timothy R Shaver, MD. graduated from the University of Tennessee College of Medicine in 1982. He completed his residency in General Surgery at Tripler Army Medical Center in Honolulu, Hawaii in 1987. He then completed a Fellowship in Transplantation at the University of Pittsburgh in 1988. Dr. Shaver was the Chief of the Organ Transplant Service at Walter Reed Army Medical Center until 1995. During his tenure at Walter Reed, he was the head of the transplantation program for the U.S. Army Medical Department as well as a member of the General Surgery teaching staff. After leaving the Army in December 1995, he assumed the role of Director of Abdominal Transplantation at Inova Fairfax Hospital, a position he held until starting his own surgical practice in general and hepatobiliary surgery in 2000.

Dr. Shaver was lured away from Northern VA in 2004 to Farmville, VA where he was recruited to help rebuild the department of surgery at Southside Community Hospital. He served as the Chief of Surgery and the President of the Medical Staff there as well. He joined Virginia Surgery Associates in 2007.

Dr. Shaver performs all types of general surgery and hepatobiliary surgery (surgery of the liver, pancreas and bile ducts) and many advanced laparoscopic procedures. He has a strong interest in Surgical Quality Improvement and patient safety as well as the training of future surgeons. He currently holds academic appointments in surgery at the Uniformed Services University for the Health Sciences, George Washington University School of Medicine, and the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine. He also holds a clinical faculty appointment at Eastern Virginia Medical School for the Master of Physician Assistant program.

Dr. Shaver is board certified by the American Board of Surgery and is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons. He is a member of several surgical societies and remains active in organized medicine, working to improve the access and quality of health care to all patients. Dr. Shaver recently completed the Claude Moore Physician Leadership Institute as a member of its inaugural class.

Gordon Hafner, MD. received his medical degree as well as his general surgery training at the George Washington University Medical Center. He finished his residency in 1989, after which he took a two year fellowship in surgical oncology at the Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo, New York. For the past 14 years he practiced general and oncologic surgery at George Washington, where he was also actively involved with teaching medical students and residents, and is a Clinical Professor of Surgery. He joined Virginia Surgery Associates in 2008.

Dr. Hafner is experienced in all aspects of general surgery, and with both open and laparoscopic procedures. He has a particular interest in malignant melanoma, soft tissue sarcomas, as well as gastric, pancreatic, and breast malignancies, and surgical palliative care. He is also interested in surgery of the colon and rectum, hernia, and gallbladder.

Dr. Hafner has been recognized as one of Washington's Top Doctors in Washingtonian Magazine, as well as Checkbook Magazine. He is Board Certified by the American Board of Surgery, and is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons, the Society of Surgical Oncology, and is a member of the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons.