Cardiothoracic Surgeon Recruiters
Healthcare Headhunters recruits healthcare professionals for employers. No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.
This is what we do all day: recruit healthcare professionals.
Hire a cardiothoracic surgeon whose CABG, valve, TAVR, or robotic thoracic work matches your open role.
No postings. No stacks of resumes. No chasing. You interview a short list.
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.
Need someone now? Call 305-306-4829.
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What happens next
- We review your role, responsibilities and location.
- Ivan or a senior team member will reach out soon.
- You meet a focused shortlist when qualified candidates fit the agreed search.
- Fees.
- No upfront fee. Pay only if you hire, under the signed agreement.
- Exclusivity.
- Set out in the signed client agreement.
- Confidentiality.
- We agree the brief before outreach. This is not a promise of absolute anonymity.
- No hire.
- No hire means no fee on standard searches.
- CT Surgeon
- Cardiac Surgeon
- Thoracic Surgeon
What does an open seat cost you every week?
An open role costs you more than the recruiting fee. Someone covers the work, waits for care, or stops a service. We ask what is falling behind and who is carrying it. Use your own figures to compare the cost of waiting with the cost of hiring.
The seat is costing you every week.
Overtime, diverted patients, a stretched team and a schedule held together by favors.
The posting brought the wrong people.
Applicants arrive, but the person who has done this exact work is employed and not looking.
You are the one chasing.
Screening calls, no-shows and follow-ups land on the desk of someone with a facility to run.
What does this hire really come down to?
A cardiothoracic title can hide a serious scope mismatch. You may need CABG and valve coverage, robotic thoracic cases, structural-heart participation, or shared call. We define the actual weekly work before contacting surgeons. Healthcare Headhunters handles permanent contingency placement. Start with the operative mix rather than the specialty label.
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire. We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement.
Review referral patterns, partner coverage, call, block access, perfusion staffing, ICU handoffs, and transfers. Ask whether the role includes isolated CABG, valve repair, replacement, redo work, aortic cases, thoracic procedures, or urgent consults. A cardiac-focused surgeon may not fit a thoracic-heavy opening.
Available STS data adds context, but it does not decide a hire. We ask about CABG and valve volumes, patient mix, available outcomes, and the surgeon’s role when a case needs review. Your physician leaders and medical staff office complete clinical assessment, credentialing, and privileging.
What do we check before you see anyone?
ABTS certification and license. We confirm American Board of Thoracic Surgery certification or the surgeon’s stated board pathway. We screen for an active license in the state relevant to your opening. Your medical staff office completes its own license and credential review.
- CABG and valve record. We ask for recent annual volume ranges, procedure types, personal operative role, and elective versus urgent or redo work. We ask which valve procedures the surgeon performs regularly. Repair, replacement, and reoperative experience are different discussions.
- STS outcomes context. We review available STS information for CABG and valve work. We ask about the referral base, patient complexity, program structure, and response after an outcome review. We identify items your quality leaders may want to examine directly.
- TAVR heart-team participation. We ask about valve conferences, planning discussions, surgical backup duties, and working relationships with structural cardiology. This separates active heart-team work from general familiarity with a TAVR program.
- Robotic thoracic work. We clarify the platform, procedure type, recency, console role, proctoring history, and operating room setup. Experience with robotic lobectomy differs from limited mediastinal or foregut cases.
- Team and governance decisions. We ask how the surgeon handles disagreement over a case plan, pressure on elective scheduling, and a case needing peer review. We discuss quality meetings, medical staff committees, and service-line decisions they have joined.
Where do we find them, and why would they move?
We recruit from academic cardiothoracic programs, cardiothoracic surgery groups, and fellows. These are source-pool types, not named employers. A surgeon may consider a move because of case mix, partner structure, call burden, research interests, family location, or access to a preferred surgical platform.
Fellows may fit when your physician team can assess training depth and provide suitable early-career guidance. Experienced surgeons may bring established CABG, valve, TAVR, or robotic thoracic work. We present work history clearly so you can compare candidates against the same role.
Which mistakes stall the search?
A common mistake is treating cardiothoracic surgery as one uniform scope. A surgeon with deep cardiac work may not bring the thoracic or robotic background you need. Another is reviewing total case counts without separating procedure type, surgeon role, recency, and available STS context. That can hide a CABG or valve mismatch.
Waiting until interviews to explain call, block access, structural-heart relationships, committee work, or equipment plans. Late disclosure can stop a serious discussion.
How would we run the search for this opening?
We discuss procedure mix, license state, board status, call model, partner coverage, available platforms, and committee work. We speak with surgeons about CABG, valve, STS, TAVR, robotic thoracic, and team work. You meet candidates with surgeons and leaders who can assess the actual work.
Define the operative brief
We identify what your physician leaders and medical staff office need to review.
Screen and present
You receive credentials, work history, stated reasons for considering a move, and questions for deeper review.
Run the selection process
We keep communication clear through interviews, references, offer discussions, and relocation questions.
Where this search connects
National median annual wage. SOC 29-1249, Surgeons, All Other.
BLS reports Surgeons, All Other as one occupation. It does not publish a separate estimate for Cardiothoracic Surgeon, its setting or its engagement terms.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS, 2025-05, released 2026-05-15. View source. See the full guide.
Open roles
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What if we need robotic thoracic experience?
We identify the platform, procedures, and independence level you expect. We then ask about console cases, recency, proctoring, and the operating room model used in the surgeon’s current or prior practice. We also ask how they work with interventional cardiology, anesthesia, perfusion, advanced practice providers, and operating room leaders.
Do you recruit cardiac surgeons and thoracic surgeons separately?
Yes: the title can cover very different practice patterns. We start with the work in your opening, then screen for the relevant cardiac, thoracic, structural-heart, or robotic background.
How do you assess CABG and valve experience?
We ask about recent volume ranges, procedure mix, surgeon role, and available STS outcomes. Your physician leadership decides whether that record fits the scope and privileges under consideration.
Can you find a surgeon with TAVR heart-team experience?
Yes, when TAVR work is part of the search brief. We ask about valve conferences, structural cardiology relationships, planning discussions, and surgical backup rather than relying on a TAVR label.
What does your fee model look like?
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire. The written agreement describes the fee and replacement terms before the search begins.
What should you send us about this role?
Send us the role, where the person will work and what needs to change with this hire. We will ask about the work, not just the title. Share any license or schedule limits that could rule someone out before we begin the search.
Tell us which cases, teams, and decisions this surgeon will handle. We will screen for the operative mix and call duties your partners need covered.
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire. We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement.
What happens next
- We review your role, responsibilities and location.
- Ivan or a senior team member will reach out soon.
- You meet a focused shortlist when qualified candidates fit the agreed search.
- Fees.
- No upfront fee. Pay only if you hire, under the signed agreement.
- Exclusivity.
- Set out in the signed client agreement.
- Confidentiality.
- We agree the brief before outreach. This is not a promise of absolute anonymity.
- No hire.
- No hire means no fee on standard searches.
Which other positions in this family should you consider?
What do you get at each step of the search?
Our process for every search: calibrate the seat with you, map the market, research the real people, reach out to each one personally, qualify them in live conversation, then hand you a short list with a written brief on each person and support through the offer.
Search Calibration
You get an agreed brief: the work, reporting line, credentials, schedule, and offer you can make.
Market Mapping
You get a search aimed at relevant backgrounds, including people working now who have not applied.
Professional Contact Intelligence
We check appropriate ways to reach the people identified for your search. You do not have to chase them yourself.
Persistent Personalized Outreach
We explain your actual job and follow up with people who may consider a conversation.
Live Candidate Qualification
You see people we have spoken with about the work, interest, and practical fit, not an unread resume pile.
Candidate Intelligence and Process Support
You get a written brief and support through interviews and offer discussions. You make the hiring decision.
How long will it take to see a short list?
That depends on the job, schedule, available people, and what your employer can offer. We discuss those constraints before outreach and update you as candidates respond. We do not promise a fixed shortlist date. We check the job brief before arranging interviews. Tell us which parts of the role you can change.
What if a candidate receives a counteroffer?
We ask why the person wants to move and discuss competing decisions before an offer. A counteroffer can still change their choice. Keep the duties and offer clear rather than assuming more money settles every concern. Tell us early if parts of your offer cannot change, so the candidate hears it from us first.
What are the replacement terms?
We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement. Ask us to walk through those terms before you sign, so you know how a replacement would work for your opening and who would start it.
What do we not do in a standard permanent search?
We do not bill standard contingency search by the hour or simply repost your job. Temporary coverage is a separate arrangement. Any retainer or different engagement must be agreed, not assumed. Tell us early if you need coverage while the permanent search runs.