From Mount Auburn Hospital, Jan. 14: Russell J. Nauta, chairman of the Department of Surgery at Mount Auburn Hospital, was appointed governor of the American College of Surgeons at the organization’s year end meeting in Washington, D.C. Nauta is chairman of the Department of Surgery at Mount Auburn Hospital and a professor of surgery at Harvard Medical School. He specializes in general surgery and critical care surgery.

Nauta has been a fellow of the American College of Surgeons since 1986 and was elected to the American Surgical Association in 2001. He has been involved in various committees over the years and has been a member of the Committee on Trauma since 2010 and on the legislative Advocacy Committee since 2012.

Founded in 1913, the American College of Surgeons is a scientific and educational association of surgeons created to improve the quality of care for surgical patients by setting high standards for surgical education and practice. The Board of Governors is integral to the administration of the American College of Surgeons and is the representative body to the organization.

Members of the American College of Surgeons are referred to as “Fellows.” The letters FACS (Fellow, American College of Surgeons) after a surgeon’s name signifies that the surgeon’s education and training, professional qualifications, surgical competence and ethical conduct have passed a rigorous evaluation.

Nauta got his bachelor’s degree from Wesleyan University and his medical degree from Georgetown University. He lives in Auburndale.