Karim Thomas Sadak

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Credentials

MD, MPH, MSE

Bio

Dr. Sadak received his medical degree from the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences in Washington, DC. He previously had received a Master's of Science in Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania in Biomedical Engineering. He completed his residency in Pediatrics at Inova Fairfax Hospital for Children in Falls Church, Virginia and his fellowship in Pediatric Hematology/Oncology at Children's National Medical Center in Washington, DC. During his fellowship, Dr. Sadak performed health services research in childhood cancer survivorship transition care and concurrently earned a Master's in Public Health in Epidemiology from the George Washington School of Public Health and Health Policy.

Dr. Sadak is currently the Director of the Childhood Cancer/BMT Survivor Program for the Division of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology in the Department of Pediatrics. His clinical and research expertise focuses on survivors of childhood cancer. He has particular interest in adolescent and young adult survivors and has performed research through mixed methodologies to identify facilitators of transition for childhood cancer survivors from pediatric- to adult-centered care.  Under his leadership, the Childhood Cancer/BMT Survivor Program has several clinical studies open to enrollment for childhood cancer survivors and has leveraged multi-disciplinary collaborations across the Cancer Center, the Academic Health Center, the University and beyond to obtain federal, institutional and foundation grants related to childhood cancer survivorship.

As Senior Medical Director of Pediatrics at the University of Minnesota Medical Center, Dr. Sadak provides operational leadership at M Health Fairview Masonic Children's Hospital related to its work in quality of care, patient/staff safety and patient experience.  His patient care quality improvement efforts have included reductions in hospital acquired conditions (e.g. central-line associated bloodstream infections) and serious safety events as well as improvements in patient flow, engagement in organizational safety culture and multi-disciplinary change management.

Research Summary

As Director of the Childhood Cancer/BMT Survivor Program, Dr. Sadak conducts health services research related to childhood cancer survivors of all ages.  His research focuses on survivors of childhood cancer/BMT and how to ensure that they have life-long survivor-focused care.  His research has helped inform program development specific to successfully transitioning the care of childhood cancer survivors from pediatric-centered care to adult-centered care ensuring that this vulnerable population does not slip through the cracks of our complex health systems. Through a mixed methods approach, including both quantitative and qualitative data, his research within a learning health system has resulted in rapid cycles of improvement in the care delivered to childhood cancer/BMT survivors and collaborative grant-funded research through institutional, federal and foundation awards.

Clinical Summary

Dr. Sadak delivers comprehensive and compassionate family-centered hematology/oncology care at the M Health Fairview Katie Hageboeck Children's Cancer Research Fund Clinic (formerly known as the Journey Pediatric Specialty Clinic), M Health Fairview Masonic Cancer Clinic, M Health Fairview Cancer Center Maple Grove Clinic and the M Health Fairview Masonic Children's Hospital.  

His focus is children, adolescents, and young adults that have been cured of childhood cancer or treated with a BMT to ensure they live the rest of their long lives with the highest quality of life possible.  He leads a team that delivers care to survivors of all ages and their families, performs research related to childhood cancer survivors and helps educate others on the care and needs of childhood cancer/BMT survivors.  This team includes nurse practitioners, nurses, social workers, neuropsychologists, several pediatric- and adult-subspecialists, complex schedulers, research personnel, medical providers and researchers.  

He believes each patient and family has a unique medical journey and therefore has unique medical needs that can be identified and then addressed together through patient-centered listening and teamwork that results in a patient-specific and personalized plan.

Specialties:

• Pediatric Hematology/Oncology
• Childhood Cancer/BMT Survivorship