Meet Our Team

Crouse Health’s Weight Loss (Bariatric) Surgery team has years of experience in helping people realize successful weight loss. Each of the team’s members is affiliated with Crouse Medical Practice – Bariatric Surgery.

Jeffrey DeSimone, MD
Dr. DeSimone is a board certified diplomate by the American Board of Surgery. He earned his medical degree from Georgetown University Medical College in Washington, D.C. Dr. DeSimone completed his internship, residency and fellowship here in Syracuse at the State University of New York Health Science Center. He is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons.
Listen to Dr. DeSimone on the Crouse Healthcast podcast.

Kenneth Cooper, DO
Dr. Cooper is a board certified diplomate by the American Board of Surgery. He earned his medical degree from the University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine in Biddeford, Maine. Dr. Cooper completed his internship and residency at State University of New York – Upstate Medical University here in Syracuse, New York.

Taewan Kim, MD
Dr. Kim is a board certified diplomate by the American Board of Surgery. He earned his medical degree from SUNY Health Science Center, in Syracuse, where he complete his residency in general surgery and a fellowship in minimally invasive surgery. He is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons. He has a special interest also in minimally invasive general surgery.

Thomas Griffiths, PhD
Dr. Griffiths is a New York State licensed psychologist with a specialty in clinical neuropsychology. Dr. Griffiths has more than 25 years of experience in the field of clinical neuropsychology in a variety of inpatient and outpatient settings. He is currently engaged in independent practice with CNY Psychological Associates, PLLC, where he provides a wide variety of psychological and neuropsychological services in addition to consultative services in both medical and legal settings. He has worked in the medical field of bariatrics for over 15 years.

Melinda Shaw, MS, PA-C
Melinda is a member of the American Academy of Physician Assistants as well as the New York State Society of Physician Assistants. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Cornell University and an MS and PA Certification from the Northeastern University Physician Assistant Program in Boston, MA.

Heather Green, NP-C
Heather is a nurse practitioner for our bariatric surgery program. She earned both her bachelor’s and masters in nursing from the University of Rochester.

Michael Merola, NP-C
Michael is a nurse practitioner for our bariatric surgery program. He is board-certified by the American Association of Nurse Practitioners. Michael received his bachelor’s and masters degrees from Le Moyne College.

Heather Neely, RD, CDN
Heather attended SUNY Oneonta and received a bachelor of science in Dietetics. Heather completed her dietetic internship through Sodexo. Heather has received her certification in Weight Management through the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and became a certified Food Allergy Specialist through ELL and PAC.

Colleen Cauley, BSN, RN, CBN, Program Administrator
Colleen is the program administrator for our Bariatric Surgery Program. She completed her RN program at the University of Ottawa in Canada and earned her designation as Certified Bariatric Nurse in 2014.