Dr Blakeman is a board certified Cardiac and Thoracic Surgeon at the Franciscan St James Heart and Vascular Institute in Olympia Fields.

His specialties include minimally invasive heart surgery. Beating heart surgery. Specialty valve replacement and repair, and major vascular surgery. Specializing in all aspects of arrhythmia surgery including state of art in atrial fibrillation.

Dr. Blakeman spent 19 years as an academic surgeon. He rose quickly to full professor because of strong academic interests and ground breaking surgery in the Midwest. He has personally published nearly 70 articles and papers, and participated in 13 clinical studies. He is also a member of the American Association of Thoracic Surgery – the most prestigious clinical and academic thoracic society in the world. 

In midcareer Dr. Blakeman decided to pursue private practice to extend high risk heart surgery to the community setting. Now every case short of heart transplant can remain in the comfort and efficiency of the Franciscan St James Medical Center in Olympia Fields. Attention to care, quality and efficiency has allowed his personal care team and hospitals to surpass national standards for outcomes every year for the past 10 years and counting.