Heidi J. Miller, MDHeidi J. Miller
MD, MPH, FACS
I'm a subspecialty hernia and minimally invasive surgeon who questions conventional paths and builds beyond them. This is where the pieces come together.
Clinical Work & Research
Minimally invasive surgery, endoscopy and abdominal wall reconstruction; publications and CV.
Expedition & Travel Medicine
Experience, qualifications and availability for expedition and mission roles.
Projects
OffChart, the Honeycomb Packing Method, Buzzing Wanderlust and The Honeycomb and Hives.
About
The longer story, life outside the OR, and how to reach me.
Clinical Work & Research
Advanced minimally invasive surgery, flexible endoscopy and abdominal wall reconstruction, and training the surgeons coming up behind me.
Practice
Attending surgeon, Maine Medical Center
2020 to present. Complex hernia, bariatric, endoscopic, and primary and revisional foregut surgery.
Associate Professor of Surgery
Tufts University School of Medicine. 2025 to present.
Assistant Professor of Surgery, University of New Mexico
2016 to 2020. Built a complex hernia, minimally invasive and endoscopy practice drawing referrals from across New Mexico and neighboring states, serving rural and underserved patients.
Board certified, American Board of Surgery
Fellow, American College of Surgeons.
Leadership
Co-Director, Comprehensive Hernia Center
Maine Medical Center, 2020 to present. Introduced safety bundles and enhanced recovery pathways with perioperative, nursing, anesthesia and quality teams; recruited surgeons and APPs; liaison to community surgeons and referring physicians.
Associate Program Director, General Surgery Residency
Maine Medical Center, 2022 to present. Resident performance, faculty development, curriculum, wellness and simulation training.
Medical Director, Surgical Services Floor
University of New Mexico Hospital, 2019 to 2020. Also served on robotic surgery steering committees at UNM and MaineHealth, and developed credentialing for new procedures.
House Staff President
Albert Einstein Medical Center, 2013 to 2015. Led the House Staff Council and represented residents and fellows on the Graduate Medical Education Committee.
Leadership training
Stanford Physician Well-Being Director Course and SAGES Fundamentals of Leadership Development, 2023.
National roles & teaching
- Co-Chair, Fundamentals of Endoscopic Surgery (FES) Committee, SAGES
- Chair, Membership Committee, American Hernia Society
- Invited faculty at ACS, SAGES and AHS national meetings, 2018 to 2025
- Editorial board, Surgical Laparoscopy, Endoscopy & Percutaneous Techniques; reviewer for Hernia, Surgery and Surgical Endoscopy
- Department of Surgery Teaching Award, University of New Mexico, 2019
Selected publications
Inguinal hernia: mastering the anatomy
Miller HJ. Surg Clin North Am, 2018.
Laparoscopic ventral hernia repair with and without defect closure: 783 patients
Martin-Del-Campo LA, Miller HJ, Elliott HL, Novitsky YW. Hernia, 2018.
POEM is a cost-effective procedure
Miller HJ, Neupane R, Fayezizadeh M, Majumder A, Marks JM. Surg Endosc, 2017.
STORRM: a novel retromuscular repair of parastomal hernias
Majumder A, Orenstein SB, Miller HJ, Novitsky YW. Am J Surg, 2018.
Educational value of surgical residents operating as teaching assistant
Heidt N, Whiting J, Falank C, Olsen B, Miller H, Sawhney J. J Surg Educ, 2023.
Open flank hernia repair
Miller H, Bolton J. In: Novitsky YW, ed. Hernia Surgery. Springer, 2025.
In progress
Surgical site infection after hernia repair, compared across surgeon types.
Training
- Fellowship, Advanced GI Minimally Invasive Surgery & Endoscopy, University Hospitals Case Medical Center
- General surgery residency and chief resident, Albert Einstein Medical Center
- MD, University of Colorado School of Medicine
- MPH, Boston University School of Public Health
Documents
Expedition & Travel Medicine
Two decades of medicine in low-resource places, from Peace Corps public health in Cameroon to hernia camps in Kenya, Pakistan and Uganda. A surgeon's skills, a planner's habits and an endurance athlete's stamina, for teams working far from help.
What I bring
Medical leadership
Hospital medical director, hernia center co-director and Hernia International trip leader. I build protocols, credential teams and keep everyone working to the same plan.
Surgery in austere settings
Hernia, trauma and abdominal surgery in mission hospitals with limited equipment, including trip leadership.
Mountain and trauma medicine
Diploma in Mountain Medicine, plus surgical trauma training through ATLS, ASSET and ATOM.
Medical planning
Risk assessment, staged coverage, formularies and physician-grade kits for remote teams and endurance events.
Field public health
MPH and three years in rural Cameroon, including HIV and infectious disease programs.
Languages
Intermediate French and German, basic Spanish.
Experience
| When | Where | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 2026 | Kikyusa, Uganda Holy Cross Hospital, first hernia camp | Visiting surgeon. 52 patients, 62 procedures in 5 days. |
| Nov 2025 | Nyandarua, Kenya Hernia International | Surgical volunteer |
| Apr 2025 | Bewal, Pakistan Hernia International | Surgical volunteer |
| Nov 2024 | Meru, Kenya Hernia International | Trip leader |
| 2022–2025 | Sea to Summit, Maine to Mt. Washington Swim, bike and run to 6,288 ft | Medical lead |
| Jul 2017 | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Hernia International and Brazilian Hernia Society | Surgical volunteer |
| Mar 2013 | Maranhão, Brazil Operation Hernia | Surgical volunteer |
| Aug 2009 | Changde, China Cleft lip and palate mission | Surgical assistant |
| 2006 | Kabul, Afghanistan Equal Access | Program management consultant |
| 2003–2006 | Cameroon US Peace Corps; Walter Reed–Johns Hopkins Cameroon Program | Public health coordinator; field research on HIV and emerging viruses |
Qualifications
- MD, MPH; Fellow, American College of Surgeons
- Board certified, American Board of Surgery
- Diploma in Mountain Medicine, 2018
- Travel Medicine badge (Knowledge level), Global Medicine Program, University of Minnesota, 2026
- Lifetime member, Wilderness Medical Society
- Member, International Society of Travel Medicine
- Trauma training: ATLS, ASSET and ATOM courses
- Medical licenses: Maine, Utah
Availability
Open to expedition and mission medical roles. Contact me for availability: hello@heidimillermd.com
Projects
Things I'm building to give physicians and travelers more structure, more time and better trips.
Building
The Honeycomb and Hives
The umbrella for my ventures: structure for busy professionals, so life can be filled with the sweet stuff.
Buzzing Wanderlust
Travel advisory with Fora. Curating trips to reflect who you are and helping you grow into who you want to be.
The Honeycomb Packing Method
Personalized packing lists built around your packing identity. Packing for travel that reflects who you are.
LiveIdentity Atrophy
A course helping medical students protect identity, direction and rest while they train.
In development
Writing
The Honeycomb, a monthly letter on surgery, hard places and building a life medicine doesn't hollow out.
Launching 2027About
Story
I'm a subspecialty hernia and minimally invasive surgeon, an outcomes researcher by training and a doer by temperament.
Before medicine I studied in Heidelberg, served with the Peace Corps in Cameroon and worked on a health program in Kabul. That's where I learned that good care depends as much on planning, partnership and humility as on technique.
I grew up in Dubois, Wyoming, where my family still has ranch land, and I do my best thinking outdoors. I race endurance events, travel whenever I can, and look for work that connects people, broadens perspective and opens doors for others.
