Alex D. Ammar, MD

Professional Background

Dr. Alex Ammar obtained his doctorate of medicine from the University of Virginia in 1976, completed his general surgery residency at St. Francis Hospital in 1981 and his vascular surgery fellowship at the University of California–San Francisco in 1982. He then joined Wichita Surgical Specialists (WSS) in 1982 and became President and CEO in 1998. In the same year, he also became Professor and Chairman of the Department of Surgery at the University of Kansas School of Medicine–Wichita (UKSM-W)

Dr. Ammar is the co-founder and chairman of the board of Specialty Independent Practice Association of Kansas (SIPAK). He is an initial member of the 4-Wichita Advancement Board (formed initially to facilitate the expansion of the medical school in Wichita) serving as its chairman from 2014 to 2017. He is also a member of the board of the Wichita Center for Graduate Medical Education. Subsequently he became a member of the Ascension Via Christi (AVC) Health System Board for the state of Kansas. He spearheaded the efforts to name the Frederic C. Chang Clinic for Primary and Specialty Care at AVC in honor of Dr. Chang's contributions to graduate medical education.

The Wichita Business Journal has recognized Dr. Ammar as Top Doctor in vascular surgery each year since its inception, physician Healthcare Hero in 2011, and the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2018. In addition, WSS was named Best in Business in 2008, and in 2021 Dr. Ammar was named Executive of the Year.

In 1983 Dr. Ammar successfully completed the first board examination offered in vascular surgery and became the first board-certified vascular surgeon in the state of Kansas. He performed over 15,000 vascular procedures during his 36 year clinical practice career. He was involved in the training of over 2,000 medical students and 220 surgical residents. Dr. Ammar has published 40 clinical research studies in peer reviewed journals and was asked to be a reviewer of clinical research studies presented for publication to the Annals of Vascular Surgery. He received the student award for Outstanding Faculty in the department of surgery in 2016 and 2017, and was presented the Faculty Teacher Award by the residents for the department of surgery in 2019.

Dr. Ammar has contributed to the community through his support of Wichita State University. He is currently a member of the Dean's Advisory Committee of the College of Health Professions. He and his wife Pamela were inducted into the Fairmont Society at WSU, which is the highest honor bestowed each year to an individual or couple for their service and contributions to the university.

Dr. Ammar is currently retired from vascular surgery but remains President and CEO of WSS as well as Professor and Chairman of the Department of Surgery at UKSM-W.