Dr Robert Tam graduated from the University of Queensland in 1979. After graduation he completed his Fellowship in General Surgery in 1987 at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital. He then completed his Fellowship in Cardiothoracic Surgery at the Prince Charles Hospital (TPCH) in 1992. As a recipient of a British Heart Foundation Fellowship he had further training at the Southampton General Hospital. As part of the preparation for him to establish the Lung Transplantation Program in Queensland he worked in one of the world’s leading heart
lung transplant units at Papworth Hospital in Cambridge (UK).
He had a joint appointment as Staff Specialist in cardiac and thoracic surgery at TPCH and was a lead surgeon in Australasia’s first successful heart lung liver transplant. Another area of interest is minimally invasive surgery and he pioneered and is widely published in heart valve replacement through mini sternotomy. He established the Cardiothoracic unit at Ramsay’s Greenslopes Private Hospital in 1996 and was the Director until 2008. At that time he was invited to re-establish the suspended Cardiothoracic unit at the Townsville Hospital (TTH). Subsequent to the success of the unit he became the Medical Director of the Surgical Services Group at the TTH. He continues to practice both cardiac and thoracic surgery.
He has a passion for teaching and training younger surgeons and with his extensive experience he was elected by his peers to the position of Chair of the Cardiothoracic Board of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons. As a strong advocate for patient safety he has a current appointment as an Australian Council on Healthcare Standards (ACHS) surveyor.
Professional Memberships
• Chair Board of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (RACS)
• Adjunct Professor, James Cook University
• Medical Director, TTH
• Committee Member, Statewide Cardiac Clinical Network (SCCN)
• Executive Member of Australia and New Zealand Society of Cardiothoracic Surgery (ANZSCTS)
• Member of Australia Lung Foundation
• Committee Member of Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA)