Promotions and Tenure
Please help the department congratulate Drs. Suwarna Anand and Sara Robertson on their academic promotion to professor and Drs. Bassam Farhat, Luiz Lima, Adriana Martini and Duane Williamson on their academic promotion to associate professor! All six anesthesiologists have worked tirelessly in the areas of service, education and research.
Suwarna Anand, M.D.
Suwarna Anand is a board-certified Cardiothoracic Anesthesiologist who completed her residency in Henry Ford Health System and fellowship training at Yale University. She specializes in the perioperative management of patients undergoing complex cardiac, thoracic, major vascular, and organ transplant surgeries. She is also a board-certified Transesophageal Echocardiographer (TEE), leveraging advanced echocardiographic expertise to guide intraoperative decision-making and support structural heart interventions, including atrial septal defect closure, left atrial appendage occlusion, and transcatheter mitral and aortic valve procedures.
A strong advocate for enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS), Dr. Anand has played a key role in advancing perioperative patient outcomes through multimodal analgesia and regional anesthesia techniques for Cardiac surgery. Her expertise includes upper and lower extremity nerve blocks as well as fascial plane blocks for thoracic and abdominal procedures, helping optimize pain management, facilitate early recovery, and improve overall surgical experience.
Dr. Anand's expertise in transplant anesthesiology was instrumental in helping establish UMMC's successful liver transplant program, contributing to the development of a comprehensive, multidisciplinary transplant service recognized for delivering high-quality patient care.
Dedicated to academic medicine and physician education, Dr. Anand is actively involved in the education and mentorship of anesthesiology residents and cardiothoracic anesthesia fellows. Her commitment to teaching has been recognized through multiple Teacher of the Year awards, as well as the School of Medicine's Trailblazer Teaching Award. In addition to her educational contributions, she has successfully mentored residents and fellows in developing podium and poster presentations presented at leading national conferences, including the Society of Cardiovascular Anesthesiologists (SCA) Annual Meeting and the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) Annual Meeting.
Beyond her clinical and educational responsibilities, Dr. Anand has demonstrated strong leadership in quality improvement and institutional initiatives. She spearheaded the Perioperative Glycemic Control Program, chaired the Perioperative Normothermia Project, and contributed to the UMMC Antibiotic Stewardship Program. She serves on the UMMC Staff Credentialing Committee, the School of Medicine Interview Committee, and the Residency Review Subcommittee.
At the national level, Dr. Anand has contributed to advancing the specialty through service on the Society of Cardiovascular Anesthesiologists (SCA) Transplant Committee, the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) Perioperative Medicine Abstract Review Subcommittee, and the ASA Cardiac Anesthesia Education Track Subcommittee. Within her department, she continues to serve on several key committees, including the Clinical Competency Committee (CCC) and the Promotion and Tenure Committee.
Dr. Anand currently serves as the Program Director of the Cardiothoracic Anesthesiology Fellowship and the Director of the Anesthesia Transplant Program. In these leadership roles, she is responsible for advancing fellowship education, fostering academic excellence, promoting innovation in perioperative care, and strengthening multidisciplinary collaboration to improve patient outcomes.
Bassam Farhat, M.D.
Dr. Farhat up in Lebanon and pursued my medical education in Beirut. He graduated from the Lebanese University Faculty of Medical Sciences in 2015, followed by a one-year internship in general surgery. He then completed my residency in Anesthesiology at the American University of Beirut Medical Center (AUBMC) in 2020. Subsequently, he completed a fellowship in Pediatric Anesthesiology at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore in 2021 followed by a fellowship in Regional Anesthesiology and Acute Pain Medicine at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City in 2022. Dr. Farhat am currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Anesthesiology at UMMC, where he works full-time as a pediatric anesthesiologist.
Luiz de Costa Lima, M.D.
Dr. Luiz Costa Lima with over two decades of experience in the healthcare system, is a board-certified anesthesiologist in both Brazil (SBA) and the United States (D. ABA), with a diverse and accomplished background that began with his service as a Navy dentist. Inspired by a strong passion for medicine, he transitioned to medical school and completed anesthesiology training in Brazil (2013). Seeking continued professional growth, he retrained in the United States through a second residency program, combining his international expertise with advanced U.S. training. Dr. Costa Lima manages patients in critical condition with extensive experience in high-acuity settings.
After completing a fellowship in Acute Pain Medicine in New York, Dr. Luiz Costa Lima returned to the University of Mississippi Medical Center to enhance education in regional anesthesia for both residents and faculty. As an educator in acute pain medicine and regional anesthesia, he trains residents in advanced nerve block techniques and multimodal analgesia strategies aimed at improving patient outcomes, minimizing opioid use, and reducing dependence on volatile anesthetics—an approach that also supports environmental sustainability.
Adriana Martini, M.D.
I am an Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. Originally from Venezuela, I completed my medical degree at the University of Carabobo before pursuing residency training in Anesthesiology at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital and a fellowship in Critical Care Medicine at the Cleveland Clinic. I am board certified in Anesthesiology and actively advancing my professional development in Critical Care Medicine and Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona.
My academic and clinical interests focus on perioperative and critical care, complex case management, and the integration of whole-person health principles into perioperative and critical care practice. I serve as the Critical Care Rotation Director for the Anesthesiology Residency program and participate in several institutional committees dedicated to quality improvement, opioid stewardship, and transfusion safety. I am actively involved in research projects and, with various peer-reviewed publications, national presentations, and multiple ongoing multicenter clinical studies.
I am passionate about mentoring trainees and advancing diversity and equity in academic medicine. I remain committed to improving care delivery for high risk underserved populations and advocating for the incorporation of evidence-based integrative approaches and therapies in the perioperative and critical care setting.
Sara Robertson, M.D.
Sara B. Robertson, M.D. is a Jackson, Mississippi native who received her bachelor of science degree in biology summa cum laude from the University of Mississippi in 2006. She earned her medical doctorate degree from the University of Mississippi Medical Center in 2010. She completed her anesthesiology residency in 2014 at the University of Arkansas for the Medical Sciences and her pediatric anesthesiology fellowship at Arkansas Children’s hospital in 2015. She joined the UMMC anesthesiology faculty in 2016.
She is an active member of several professional organizations, including the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) and the Society of Pediatric Anesthesia (SPA), having served on the ASA ACE Editorial Board for the past three years and as a senior editor for the SPA case guides. She also serves as an American Board of Anesthesiology (ABA) oral board examiner. Dr. Robertson has given numerous presentations and case reports at national scientific meetings. Her academic interests include medical student, resident, and fellow education as well as the pediatric difficult airway. She currently serves as the Anesthesiology Residency Program Director and the division chief for pediatric anesthesiology here at UMMC. She resides in Madison, Mississippi, with her husband, Dr. Hess Robertson and their daughters, Lucy and Louise.
Duane Williamson, M.D.
Following the completion of my residency, Dr. Williamson transitioned into private practice and quickly founded an anesthesia group that provided comprehensive services across multiple hospitals. He led the group as President for three decades, overseeing its growth and operations until its eventual dissolution. He then accepted the position of Medical Director at Hudspeth Regional Facility, a state-operated center dedicated to the care of individuals with intellectual and physical disabilities. After two years in that role, Dr. Williamson returned to the University of Mississippi Medical Center—the institution where my medical journey began. Over the past eight years, he has remained actively involved in both educational and administrative roles, contributing to the development of future physicians and the advancement of departmental initiatives.