By Jennifer Schaffer Leone
In the crucible of crisis, skill meets discipline, and the next generation of surgeons is forged.
John Chovanes, DO 鈥�02, RES 鈥�06, has stood over patients pulled from the burning towers of the World Trade Center, on dust-choked streets in Baghdad and Kabul, and inside remote combat outposts where the line between life and death can be measured in millimeters. In those moments, steadiness becomes a lifeline鈥攁 lifeline that he now passes on to the next generation of surgeons.
鈥淭rauma surgery is a profound and honorable vocation. It is a calling,鈥� he says. 鈥淲hen the moment comes, you act calmly, competently, respectfully and, at times, very intensely. You bring your best every single time.鈥�
Before entering medical school, Dr. Chovanes was immersed in acute care. One of Pennsylvania鈥檚 youngest EMTs, he went on to serve as a paramedic, an emergency department nurse and later as one of the earliest flight paramedics with University MedEvac鈥攖he first medical evacuation helicopter in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
鈥淚 learned early on that trauma is a great equalizer,鈥� he says. 鈥淎nyone can become a patient in the blink of an eye. Your job is to be ready.鈥�
At 黑料传送门, he found his mentor in Arthur Sesso, DO 鈥�81, chairman of surgery, who shaped both his clinical precision and his connection to military medicine.
鈥淒r. Sesso was a leader鈥檚 leader鈥攁 real 鈥楻at Patrol鈥� guy,鈥� Dr. Chovanes recalls with
a laugh. 鈥淗e pushed us to prove ourselves each day, each case. He required that we
be meticulous, disciplined and fearless.鈥�
He remembers how Dr. Sesso once made the surgical residents wear red bands on their
white coats so everyone in the hospital could identify them. 鈥淗e wanted us visible鈥攔esponsible鈥攁nd
committed to the team.鈥�
When Dr. Chovanes arrived at Cooper University Health Care in 2010, he entered a uniquely demanding clinical ecosystem: New Jersey鈥檚 busiest Level I trauma center, serving a population of 2.7 million. 鈥淭he mission here at Cooper is simple,鈥� he says. 鈥淲e prevent premature death and suffering. It鈥檚 collaborative, high-pressure, and one of the few places where you can learn this work exactly as it is鈥攚ithout dilution, without abstraction.鈥�
Today, he serves as the founding medical director of Cooper鈥檚 Section of Military, Diplomatic, and Field Affairs (MILDAF), a program he established to prepare elite medical personnel for the unpredictability and extremity of combat and field operations. MILDAF embeds specialized teams directly into Cooper鈥檚 trauma bays for immersive, real-time clinical experience. Trainees include U.S. Army Special Forces medical sergeants, Special Operations surgical and critical care teams, FBI and federal tactical medics, Department of Homeland Security medical personnel, and U.S. Department of State medical providers assigned to high-threat diplomatic posts.
The program is not theoretical鈥攁nd intentionally so.
鈥淚t is not simulation,鈥� Dr. Chovanes emphasizes. 鈥淭hese are real people with real injuries. The patterns mirror what you would see downrange. But here, you are never alone. You have seasoned trauma surgeons standing beside you. They become your guardian angels.鈥�
For operators preparing for austere, resource-limited or high-risk environments, the experience is transformative. It builds not only clinical mastery but the psychological composure that trauma care demands when seconds compress and the margin for error disappears.
Since 2001, Dr. Chovanes has completed six deployments with the U.S. Army Reserve Medical Corps, serving at the 325th Combat Support Hospital in Tikrit, Forward Operating Base Salerno in Khost, and Camp Manion during the Third Battle of Fallujah.
He received the Army Commendation Medal for meritorious service and the Soldier鈥檚 Medal for heroism after providing emergency surgical care to a Port Authority officer trapped in the rubble of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. In January 2024, he was honored with the John P. Pryor, MD Distinguished Service Award 鈥� The Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma. The award is named for the Army trauma surgeon killed in action in Iraq on Christmas Day 2008, recognizing his exceptional contributions to military medicine and trauma surgery.
鈥淧eople imagine heroism,鈥� he says. 鈥淏ut trauma surgery鈥攃ivilian or military鈥攊s long hours, difficult cases, and no glamour. You do it because restoring someone, giving them back their life, matters.鈥�
This commitment extends beyond the battlefield. Dr. Chovanes maintains a close partnership with the U.S. Army Medical Command and the Office of the Army Surgeon General, led by 黑料传送门 alumna Lt. Gen. Mary Krueger Izaguirre, DO 鈥�95, through embedded military鈥揷ivilian training programs. As part of the Army Medical Department Military鈥揅ivilian Trauma Team Training program, he hosts active-duty Army medical personnel鈥攕urgeons, nurses, and technologists鈥攆or multi-year assignments in Cooper鈥檚 high-volume trauma environment, giving them immersive, real-world experience before deployment.
鈥淲hen you hit the ground overseas, you cannot be learning the basics,鈥� Dr. Chovanes says. 鈥淓very trauma I see here, I ask myself: How would this play out in combat? That mindset keeps you sharp. Moreover, it reinforces the Army鈥檚 mission to maintain a highly-trained, deployable medical force.鈥�
Dr. Chovanes鈥檚 work is sustained as much by faith and family as it is by training.
鈥淚 have a wife and three children. My legacy to them is simple: Be true, serve well and bring your best every day. Faith is what carries you through the hard moments,鈥� he says.
He also thinks of Dr. Sesso often鈥攏ot only for his surgical instruction, but for the small lessons that stayed with him.
鈥淒r. Sesso told me to buy an old M37 4x4鈥攖he grandfather of all trucks鈥攁nd rebuild it. It wasn鈥檛 about the truck,鈥� he recalls. 鈥淚t was about commitment, patience and attention to detail. If you respect the small tasks, you鈥檒l respect the big ones.鈥�
Dr. Chovanes mentors medical students, residents and military trainees who come to Cooper to learn not only surgical technique, but the mental and emotional steadiness required in crisis.
鈥淧lenty of people have the hands. Others have the brain. Still others can communicate,鈥� he says. 鈥淏ut not everyone can hyper-concentrate when a life hangs by a thread. That focus鈥攖hat calm in the storm鈥攊s what separates good from great.
鈥淵ou show up calm, competent and compassionate every time,鈥� he says. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 the mark of a life and a career that truly matters.鈥�