Dr. José Rafael Espada (born 14 January 1944 in

Guatemala City Guatemala City (, also known colloquially by the nickname Guate), is the Capital city, national capital and largest city of the Guatemala, Republic of Guatemala. It is also the Municipalities of Guatemala, municipal capital of the Guatemala Depa ...

) is a retired cardiothoracic surgeon and politician who served as

Vice President of Guatemala Vice president of Guatemala () is a political position in Guatemala which is since 1966 elected concurrently with the position of President of Guatemala. The current vice president is Karin Herrera. The vice president needs to be a Guatemalan ...

from 2008 to 2012 under President Alvaro Colom. Espada unsuccessfully ran for president during the 2023 general election.

Life and career

Espada is well known in the Houston cardiothoracic surgery community. He grew up in

Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...

. From an early age, he wanted to become a doctor. Espada received his doctorate at the

Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala The Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala (USAC, ''University of San Carlos of Guatemala'') is the largest and oldest university of Guatemala; it is also the fourth founded in the Americas. Established in the Kingdom of Guatemala during the Spa ...

(USAC) in Guatemala and performed his surgery internship residency training in general and thoracic surgery at Baylor College of Medicine. He also received subspecialty training from LeClub Mitrale,

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, and other highly recognized international institutions. He was a resident of

West University Place West University Place, often called West University or West U for short, is a city located in the U.S. state of Texas within the metropolitan area and southwestern Harris County. At the 2020 U.S. census, the population of the city was 14,955. ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, a city surrounded by Houston. He was employed at the

Methodist DeBakey Heart Center Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

, and a professor of cardiothoracic surgery at the

Baylor College of Medicine The Baylor College of Medicine (BCM) is a private medical school in Houston, Texas, United States. Originally as the Baylor University College of Medicine from 1903 to 1969, the college became independent with the current name and has been se ...

. Espada was known to travel from Houston to Guatemala on a monthly basis to treat underprivileged patients requiring special cardiothoracic procedures. As a cardiac surgeon, he was best known for performing Pulmonary Thromboembolectomies. He has raised money for a charity hospital in Guatemala. He currently building a state-of-the-art facility specifically designed for cardiothoracic surgery. He performed an average of 10 charity surgeries out of the US every month. He was also board-certified in General Surgery. While at Houston, he performed nearly 1000 cardiothoracic procedures a year and around 400 in Guatemala. Espada has received numerous awards and recognitions throughout the course of his medical career, including an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Francisco Marroquin in Guatemala, an Honorary Professor from

Universidad La Salle Universidad (Spanish for "university") may refer to: Places * Universidad, San Juan, Puerto Rico * Universidad (Madrid) Football clubs * Universidad SC, a Guatemalan football club that represents the Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala ...

in Mexico City, Governor's award from The Chest Foundation, Paul Harris Award from the International Rotary Society, among many others. Since 1981, he has been related to the Brazilian Vascular Society and received many Brazilian doctors in

Houston, Texas Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

, who learned the best techniques on cardiovascular surgery with him. He was the main guest speaker for the Vascular Meeting of the Brazilian Society in Rio de Janeiro in June 1998. In 1992, Espada was honored with an honorary doctorate in science by

Universidad Francisco Marroquín Francisco Marroquín University ( Spanish: ''Universidad Francisco Marroquín''), also known by the abbreviation UFM, is a private, secular university in Guatemala City, Guatemala. It describes its mission as "to teach and disseminate the ethical, ...

. He recently resigned from Houston's Methodist Hospital/DeBakey Heart Institute and returned to his native Guatemala. There, he successfully ran for Vice President of Guatemala. On 14 January 2008, he took office alongside the President,

Álvaro Colom Álvaro Colom Caballeros (; 15 June 1951 – 23 January 2023) was a Guatemalan engineer, businessman, and politician who served as the 47th president of Guatemala from 2008 to 2012, as well as the General-Secretary of the political party, Natio ...

Affiliations

Dr. Espada is vice chairman of the board of directors of the

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

-based think-tank

Global Financial Integrity Raymond W. Baker (born October 30, 1935) is an American businessman, scholar, author, and "authority on financial crime." He is the founder and president of Global Financial Integrity, a research and advocacy organization in Washington, DC worki ...

Sources

*http://www.pinnaclecare.com/finding/mab/physicians/phcphysicianbio.2005-07-28.9726418592/phcphysicianbio_view *http://www.tmc.edu/tmcnews/05_15_01/page_05.html

References

External links

Honorary Doctoral Degrees

{{DEFAULTSORT:Espada, Rafael Living people People from Guatemala City Guatemalan surgeons Vice presidents of Guatemala 1944 births Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala alumni National Unity of Hope politicians 21st-century Guatemalan politicians 20th-century surgeons 21st-century surgeons Baylor College of Medicine alumni Baylor College of Medicine faculty