Peter Gruber, chair and DEO of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery with University of Iowa Health Care, was recently elected a member of the American Surgical Association (ASA). Founded in 1880, the ASA is the nation's oldest surgical organization. Members include the nation’s most prominent surgeons from leading academic medical institutions. Ronald Weigel, chair and DEO of the UI Department of Surgery, currently serves as ASA secretary.

Gruber is the only pediatric cardiac surgeon, and one of only four cardiac surgeons in the country, who is a member of both the ASA and the American Society of Clinical Investigation, (ASCI), one of the nation’s oldest and most respected medical honor societies. The University of Iowa has eight members of ASA and 34 members of ASCI among the faculty.