Meet Dr. Garcia-Zuazaga

Dr. Garcia-Zuazaga graduated from Marquette University with a degree of Biomedical Engineering. In college he earned a prestigious National Science Foundation scholarship and served as President of the Latin American Student Association. From Milwaukee, he moved to Ames, Iowa, where he completed his Master’s degree in Biomedical Engineering. It was his work with artificial heart valves that led him to consider a career in medicine.

In 1995, Garcia-Zuazaga was commissioned in the United States Navy and enrolled in the Navy Health Profession Scholarship Program. In 1999, he graduated at the top 5% of his medical school class at Penn State and moved to DC to complete his Internship at the renowned National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland.

After Bethesda, Dr. Garcia-Zuazaga moved to Pensacola, Florida for Aerospace Medicine training with the Navy. He earned his “wings of gold” as a United States Flight Surgeon in 2001 and was the recipient of the prestigious Surgeon General’s Award. Following his training at the Naval Aerospace Medical Institute, Dr. Garcia-Zuazaga moved to the

Marine Corps Air Station, Beaufort, South Carolina where he was assigned as flight surgeon for the world famous Crusaders (VMFA-122) squadron. As flight surgeon he served as Medical Department head for his squadron and participated in several deployments all over the world. For his leadership and dedication to the Marines, Dr. Garcia was selected as Marines Forces Pacific (MARFORPAC) Operational Flight Surgeon of the Year.

After 5 years with the Marines, Dr. Garcia-Zuazaga moved to Cleveland where he was offered a position as a Dermatology Resident at University Hospitals Case Medical Center, Department of Dermatology. As a resident, Dr. Garcia-Zuazaga used his leadership skills at a national level when he was elected Resident Member of the Board of Directors of the American Academy of Dermatology. He also was the recipient of the Dermatologic Surgery Research Award.

Following residency, Dr. Garcia-Zuazaga moved to Boston where he was offered a position as a Fellow for Mohs Micrographic Surgery and Aesthetic Dermatology at Harvard Medical School and the Lahey Clinic. During this year he performed over one thousand cases of Mohs surgery and facial reconstruction as well as other aesthetic procedures such as lasers and fillers.
In 2008, Dr. Garcia-Zuazaga was privileged to return to Northeast Ohio to serve as Director of Mohs Surgery and Aesthetic Dermatology at University Hospitals (Westlake and Strongsville Medical Centers). As

a faculty member of the Department of Dermatology at Case Western Reserve University, Dr. Garcia-Zuazaga was the recipient of a Dermatology Foundation Research Grant to study the effect on lasers on the skin. Results of this study were published in Dermatologic Surgery Journal in 2011.

In 2009, Dr. Garcia-Zuazaga enrolled at the Weatherhead School of Business of Case Western Reserve University to pursue his MBA, while still working full time as a Mohs surgeon. He completed this rigorous curriculum in 2011 and shortly after his graduation he relocated his practice to Concord, Ohio to establish Apex Skin Surgery Center.

Dr. Garcia-Zuazaga is Board Certified by the American Board of Dermatology, is a Fellow of the American College of Mohs Surgeons, a Fellow of the American Academy of Dermatology, and Fellow of the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery.

Professional Training:

• Fellowship: Harvard Medical School, Department of Dermatology, Mohs Micrographic SurgeryandCutaneous Oncology, Laserand
• Aesthetic Dermatology
• Residency: University Hospitals/Case Western Reserve University
• United States Marine Corps, Senior Flight Surgeon
• Medical School: Pennsylvania State University
• Masters of Science in Biomedical Engineering
• MBA: Weatherhead School of Management, Case Western Reserve University

Specialties:

• Mohs Micrographic Surgery and Cutaneous Oncology
• Cutaneous Oncology in Organ Transplant Patients
• Advanced Dermatologic Laser Therapy
• Photodynamic Therapy