The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center has found two nationally-renowned surgeons to fill empty spots within its department of surgery, according to a press release from the medical center on Monday.

Dr. Benjamin Poulose, previously of Vanderbilt University Medical Center, was selected in Ohio State’s national search to be the next director of the Division of General and Gastrointestinal Surgery.

As for the other position, Dr. Nahush Mokadam, who moves from the University of Washington Medical Center to Ohio State, will assume the role of the director of the Division of Cardiac Surgery.

These hires come after a string of departures from the Wexner Medical Center, with the latest being Carl Schmidt, a nationally recognized oncologist, who left in early April.

The hiring of Poulose and Mokadam bring Ohio State a step closer to its goal of ascending the ranks of leading academic medical centers, outlined in the university’s strategic plan that was unveiled in August 2017.

Dr. K. Craig Kent, dean of the Ohio State University College of Medicine, said the university is committed to recruiting the best doctors in order to develop a “talented team of high-impact leaders.”

“Under Drs. Polouse and Mokadam’s leadership, Ohio State will advance to the forefront of general and cardiac surgery research and care delivery,” Kent said in the press release.

As the director of the Division of General and Gastrointestinal Surgery, Poulouse not only will help expand surgical services and widen the medical center’s research areas, but he also will oversee educational training programs.

As director of the Division of Cardiac Surgery, Mokadam will not only allow the university to strengthen initiatives in heart failure and heart and lung transplantation, but also help the cardiac educational programs and clinical trials expand.

“[Mokadam’s] experience in the area of clinical trials will further expand the availability of novel and innovative cardiac treatment options offered at Ohio State,” Pawlik said.