Along with new clinical division leadership, the UK Department of Surgery is pleased to welcome an additional vascular surgeon and a trauma surgeon to its clinical faculty starting in October.
Elizabeth Bittner, M.D. | Division of Acute Care Surgery, Trauma and Surgical Critical Care
Bittner has made the UK College of Medicine the foundation of her medical training since she enrolled in 2016.
While a student, she opted to follow the medical school’s global health concentration, which included outreach to medically underserved areas of Kentucky and an international rotation in her final year of medical school.
She matched into the UK Department of Surgery's general surgery residency program in 2020 where she merged her interests in outreach with specialty training in trauma and critical care surgery. The transition between medical school and residency was made a unique experience from the impact of the global COVID epidemic. After completing her residency in 2025, she chose to specialize in trauma through the surgical critical care fellowship program at UK.
"It has been a privilege to complete my medical training at UK. I'm excited to continue contributing to the institution as a member of its faculty," Bittner said.
Throughout a decade of UK medical education and surgical training, Bittner has excelled in patient care, education, and applied outcomes research. Along with several resident and medical student teaching awards, Bittner earned special recognition for excellence in medical student education in 2021.
During her fellowship, she served on the Surgical Trauma Intensive Care Unit (STICU) Quality Improvement committee. She is involved with several work groups address a variety of quality improvement (QI) projects, such as the traumatic brain injury committee to develop new response and treatment protocols.
Madison Crutcher M.D. | Division of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery
In recognition of Kentucky's growing demand for advanced complex surgery in the Commonwealth, Crutcher is one of five new vascular surgeons to begin practice this year at UK HealthCare's Gill Heart and Vascular Institute. Her practice officially commences in October.
Crutcher's advanced surgical training includes completion of a vascular surgery fellowship at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago earlier this year after completion of general surgery residency at Jefferson Health in Philadelphia.
Her residency included two years of research studying pharmacological treatment regimens in colorectal cancer as a T32 research fellow in the Waldman Laboratory under the direction of Scott Waldman M.D., Ph.D. During that time, she also completed a master's degree in pharmacology.
"I am excited to work within the UK HealthCare's Gill Heart and Vascular Institute to improve the health of the citizens of Lexington and the surrounding areas in addition to the training of residents and fellows," Crutcher said.