Kaj H. Johansen, MD

Born in Astoria, Oregon in 1945, Kaj Johansen matriculated at the University of Washington (1966), where he was an Honors graduate in Zoology, a two-year letterman on the rowing crew, and a Rhodes Scholarship candidate. A 1970 graduate of the University of Washington School of Medicine, Dr. Johansen was elected to Alpha Omega Alpha and was nominated as the outstanding student in his class in both Pediatrics and Surgery.

He completed an internship in Medicine and Surgery at the University of Rochester’s Strong Memorial Hospital (1970-71) followed by a General Surgery residency at the University of California San Diego (1972-1978). During this latter period, as part of an NIH Academic Surgery Training Grant, he completed a PhD in physiology/pharmacology (1977). Now a convert to long-distance running, he won the 1974 US SO-kilometer road racing championship in American record time (2 hours 57 minutes).

In 1978 Dr. Johansen was appointed Assistant Professor in the Department of Surgery at the University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle. In 1982 he was promoted to Associate Professor of Surgery, and he advanced to Professor of Surgery in 1987. His clinical practice was based at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, where he served as Chief of Vascular Surgery from 1978 to 1992. In 1992 Dr. Johansen moved to Providence Medical Center (now Cherry Hill campus, Swedish Medical Center) as Director of Surgical Education. Subsequently he served two terms as Medical Director for Vascular Surgical Services at Swedish Medical Center. In 2001 he founded the Vascular Institute of the Northwest and was named Clinical Professor of Surgery at the University of Washington.

Dr. Johansen has a career-long involvement with teaching of students, residents, fellows, paramedical personnel and practicing physicians. He has won numerous teaching awards and was named Outstanding Clinical Teacher by the 2002 graduating class of the University of Washington School of Medicine. Dr. Johansen’s investigative interests have focused on vascular trauma, portal hypertension, aortic aneurysms, carotid disease, vascular access, innovative uses of the vascular laboratory, amputation surgery, and thoracic outlet syndrome. He has published approximately 150 papers in peer-reviewed medical journals and written 60 book chapters.

Dr. Johansen is a member of numerous major academic surgical societies and in 2003 was named a Distinguished Fellow of the Society of Vascular Surgery. He has served as President of the Washington State Chapter of the American College of Surgeons (1993) and was a Founding Member (1985) and President (1997) of the Western Vascular Society.