HCA Healthcare Trident Hospital in North Charleston has added two surgeons to its cardiovascular program, HCA announced Oct. 9.
Dr. Ara Ketchedjian, a board-certified cardiothoracic surgeon, has joined HCA Healthcare Lowcountry Cardiology Specialists. Dr. Stephen C. Miller II, a fellowship-trained vascular surgeon, has joined HCA Healthcare Trident Vascular Surgery Specialists.
Ketchedjian has performed more than 4,500 cardiac surgical procedures and 1,500 transcatheter aortic valve replacements, known as TAVR, according to HCA. He earned his medical degree from SUNY Syracuse Health Science Center, trained in general surgery at Brown University School of Medicine and completed a cardiothoracic surgery fellowship at Boston University School of Medicine.
Miller is a Lowcountry native whose father is a cardiologist, HCA said. He earned his medical degree from the Medical University of South Carolina and completed a vascular surgery fellowship at Prisma Health Upstate in Greenville. His interests include aneurysms, lower extremity vascular disease, cerebrovascular disease and dialysis access.
“Returning home to care for patients in the Lowcountry is incredibly meaningful to me,” Miller said in the announcement.
In 2025, Trident performed 805 percutaneous coronary interventions, 87 TAVR procedures and 2,628 electrophysiology procedures, and it treated 300 patients for STEMI, a type of heart attack, according to HCA. Healthgrades named the hospital one of America’s 50 Best Hospitals for Cardiac Surgery for 2026, HCA said.
“HCA Healthcare is making a significant investment in the future of cardiovascular care in Charleston, and recruiting exceptional physicians is an important part of that commitment,” said Marissa Aldridge, vice president of cardiovascular services for HCA Healthcare’s South Atlantic Division.
HCA did not say how much it is investing in the program.
