The Great Falls Clinic is excited to welcome Dr. Robert Phillips to the cardiovascular thoracic (CVT) surgery team. For the past year, he has worked as a locum, a person who stands in temporarily for someone else of the same profession, at the Great Falls Clinic but is now transitioning to a full-time permanent provider. Dr. Phillips is a talented cardiovascular thoracic surgeon with over 40 years of experience.
In 1977, Dr. Phillips graduated with a Bachelor of Science in biology from the University of Alabama in Birmingham, Alabama; in 1981 he achieved a Doctor of Medicine from the same university. He spent the next seven years at the University of Alabama Medical Center as a resident studying general surgery CVT surgery. Dr. Phillips went on to complete a complex cardiac and thoracic aoristic surgery fellowship at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York, New York. Immediately following this, he went through a second fellowship which focused on heart and lung transplantation.
Dr. Phillips shared that when he was young knew he would be a doctor one day. Decades later, with his goals achieved, Dr. Phillips looks back at his career and feels pride in the steps that have led him here.
“I had a rotation as a medical student with the cardiovascular service at UAB with Drs. Karp and Dr. Kachoukos that was an unbelievable experience. I knew then I wanted to be a cardiovascular thoracic surgeon. I’ve had many wonderful experiences in my career, from helping my chairman do a complete aortic replacement to doing the first cardiac transplant in Tulsa, Oklahoma.”
Before working at the Great Falls Clinic, Dr. Phillips spent 9 years as a locum cardiovascular thoracic surgeon across the United States.
In his spare time, Dr. Phillips enjoys reading, traveling and spending quality time with his family at their lake house.
Dr. Phillips is accepting new patients and referrals at the Great Falls Clinic Specialty Center, 3000 15th Ave S. For more information or to schedule an appointment, please call (406) 205-1915.