Biography

Dr. Andrew Taitano is a board-certified general and bariatric surgeon with over 8 years of experience in surgical practice caring exclusively for our nation’s heroes in the VA healthcare system.  He served as the director of the bariatric surgery program at the CW Bill Young (Bay Pines) VA Medical Center from 2017-2021 and relocated to Orlando VA Medical Center to start a brand-new bariatric surgery program in 2022.  He is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons (FACS), and a member of the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS), the Society for Surgery of the Alimentary Tract (SSAT), and the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons (SAGES). 

Dr. Taitano received his medical degree from Brown Medical School in Providence, Rhode Island, and is a graduate of the 8-year Program in Liberal Medical Education of Brown University where he also received an undergraduate degree in Psychology.  In this program he distinguished himself as a scholar in multiple academic disciplines and was awarded the Frederick Barnes Prize for excellence in the Social Sciences. 

Dr. Taitano completed surgical residency training at Albany Medical College where he received multiple resident research awards.  He solidified his interest in medical and surgical education and was invited to complete the Residents as Teachers and Leaders Course sponsored by the American College of Surgeons.  He completed Fellowship in Minimally Invasive and Bariatric Surgery at the University of South Florida. 

Dr. Taitano joined the UCF College of Medicine in 2014 as an Instructor of Surgery and as Site Director for the Surgery Clerkship at Bay Pines VAHCS. In 2015 he became an Assistant Professor of Surgery with the College.  He has a passion for clinical education and is a core educator and supervisor of surgical residents, medical students, and other healthcare trainees from multiple academic institutions.  Today he is an Adjunct Associate Professor with UCF College of Medicine, the Director of the Surgery Clerkship, and the Surgery Chair for Education.  In these roles, he continually works on education and mentorship of UCF medical students, faculty development with surgeons from partner clinical sites, and curriculum development with the College of Medicine.

Peer-Reviewed Publications: 

• Fleming JP, Smith K, Bennett R, Piparo GF, Taitano A. A case of primary gastrointestinal lymphoma presenting as colonic perforation. J Case Rep Images Surg 2017;3:29-34. 
• Smith KA, Fleming JP, Bennett RD, Taitano A. A case of fatal internal jugular vein perforation during nasogastric tube insertion. J Surg Case Rep. 2017 Jul 12;2017(7):rjx128.
  doi: 10.1093/jscr/rjx 128. eCollection 2017 Jul. 
• Taitano A. Paired Editorial: a systems innovation model. Surgery for Obesity and Related Diseases 2017 Apr;13(4):606-607, Epup 2016 Dec 30. 
• Taitano A, Markow M, Finan J, Wheeler D, Gonzalvo J, Murr MM. Bariatric Surgery Improves Histological Features of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease and Liver Fibrosis. Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery 19.3 (2014): 429-37.