AMPLIFY NASHVILLE HONOREES

Dr. Naji Abumrad is a Lebanese American surgeon whose groundbreaking medical research and mentorship of the next generation have helped shape the healthcare landscape in Nashville for several decades.

Dr. Abumrad moved to the US in 1972 after completing his medical degree at the American University of Beirut. After several years as a surgeon in Syracuse, NY, he and his wife relocated to Nashville in 1979, where he accepted a position at Vanderbilt University Medical Center to pursue opportunities for research and mentoring young healthcare professionals.

Since then, Dr. Abumrad has focused on critically important, yet often under-researched, metabolic issues that affect the everyday lives of many Americans. His research has led to more than 250 published articles in peer-reviewed journals on topics such as the repair of metabolic processes, the discovery of HMB as an agent in muscle mass preservation, the effects of metabolic responses during insulin deficiency, and the metabolic effects of opiates.

As Professor of Surgery at Vanderbilt, Dr. Abumrad has mentored hundreds of surgical residents, teaching them the subtle art of paying attention and always asking why. As a result, Dr. Abumrad has had an exponential impact on the world through his students, 147 of whom were also Lebanese American, who have gone on to conduct impactful research and important surgical work.

Whether his own patients or students, or those whose treatment is influenced by his research, Dr. Abumrad has touched the lives of thousands of people. His significant contributions to medical research and education in Nashville, the healthcare capital of the US, have earned him the Culture Shaper honor at Amplify Nashville 2026.