Chief’s message: Mother’s Day weekend
Hope you all have a happy mother’s day weekend to remember and celebrate the mothers in our lives. This weekend also is an important weekend in the triangle with many groups of families in town for commencement for the universities in the area including Duke and UNC. This week’s pulse highlights many of the teams working hard in the Heart Center to care for patients and train the next generation. In addition, we are adding in some of our quarterly funding updates for recognition of the people continuing to help our research work. Finally – please find the time for the celebration of Dr. Jess Peter.
Highlights and updates of the week:
Dr. Jess Peter Celebration of Life Announced
A Celebration of Life will be held in memory of Dr. Robert “Jess” Peter on Saturday, May 23, 2026, at The Washington Duke Inn, 3001 Cameron Blvd., Durham, NC, from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m., with the program beginning at 1:30 p.m. Dr. Peter’s obituary can be found on the Walker’s Funeral Home site.
The Duke Chronicle published a tribute to Dr. Peter on April 28, 2026. The article is ‘A guiding presence’: Professor of Medicine Robert Peter remembered for mentorship, influence on cardiology.
Mitral Valve Program Earns 7th MVRR Center Award
We learned this week that our mitral valve program has earned the Mitral Foundation’s 2026 Mitral Valve Repair Reference Center Award for the 7th year in a row.
The Award was created to recognize centers in the United States that have a demonstrated record of superior clinical outcomes in degenerative mitral valve repair resulting from evidence-based guideline treatment. The Mitral Foundation’s Scientific Advisory Board, a multidisciplinary group of leaders including surgeons, cardiologists, and imagers from around the country, developed the criteria applied in the evaluation of candidate centers. Based on their review, our center has shown that it continues to meet their high standards of quality care.
Congratulations to Brittany Zwischenberger, Don Glower, Jeff Gaca, Andrew Wang, and our entire mitral valve team, with special thanks to Melissa Williams and our Center of Excellence team for monitoring our data as we continue our push for excellence in quality and safety outcomes.
Perfusion Week 2026
We are blessed to have an incredible team of perfusionists here at Duke!
In recognition of Perfusion Week (May 1-7), we extend our sincere appreciation for the critical expertise and unwavering dedication our perfusionists bring to patient care each day. Their work is essential to the success of our cardiac and vascular programs, providing life-sustaining support during some of the most complex and high-risk procedures.
Their precision, vigilance, and deep clinical knowledge ensure the highest standard of care in moments when it matters most. Equally important is their ability to work seamlessly within multidisciplinary teams, contributing to outstanding outcomes and advancing the quality of care we deliver.
While much of their impact occurs behind the scenes, its significance cannot be overstated. Their commitment to excellence, patient safety, and continuous improvement reflects the absolute best of the caregiving profession.
Please accept our deepest gratitude for all that you do to support our patients, our teams, and our mission. Thank you for your expertise, dedication, and extraordinary contributions.
*Our Perfusion team would like to thank their adoring fans for the lunches provided throughout the week. It was greatly appreciated — thank you!
Celebrating ECMO Team with ‘Team Day’
Our Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) team celebrated the first annual Global ECMO Team Day on Friday, May 8, 2026.
The event was established by the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization (ELSO) in honor of the birth date of ELSO’s founder and ECMO Innovator, the late Dr. Robert Hawes Bartlett.
Bartlett, who died in Oct. 2025, was a strong advocate for the entire team involved in ECMO care. In this spirit, Global ECMO Team Day celebrates the entire ECMO team – from clinical teams and specialists to researchers and device innovators, to those providing ongoing care and recovery support after ECMO. Our Duke team celebrated Team Day with donuts on the ECMO units – cheers to that!
Duke’s ECMO team has even more to celebrate — ours is the first center in the world to have all our experienced/eligible Respiratory Therapy ECMO Specialists achieve both the ELSO Adult ECMO Practitioner Certification and ELSO Neo-Peds Practitioner Certification.
Way to go!
Nurses Week 2026
In celebration of National Nurses Week (May 6-12), we would like to offer special thanks to our team nurses.
We extend our sincere gratitude and deep appreciation for the unwavering commitment, clinical excellence, and compassion you demonstrate each day. Your work is foundational to the care we provide and central to the outcomes we achieve for our patients and families.
You consistently exemplify the highest standards of professionalism while navigating complex, high-acuity environments with skill, precision, and empathy. Whether at the bedside, in procedural areas, ambulatory settings, or supporting care across the continuum, your contributions are essential and profoundly impactful.
Beyond your clinical expertise, it is your dedication to teamwork, your advocacy for patients, and your resilience in the face of ongoing challenges that truly distinguish this team. You lead with both competence and compassion, strengthening not only our service line but the entire health system.
Please know that your efforts are recognized, valued, and deeply respected.
Thank you for all that you do to advance care and improve lives each day.
We appreciate you!
FON Awards Presented During Nurses Week
Duke Heart & Vascular had a great showing at the 2025 Friends of Nursing Awards luncheon with nine winners from across the service line. The awardees were recognized on Thursday, May 7, 2026, at the Washington Duke Inn.
Our Excellence Award honorees are:
- Violeta Villaruel, BSN, RN, CCRN, Clinical Nurse III, Cardiothoracic Intensive Care Unit DMP 7W. She received the Wilma Minniear Award for Excellence in Nursing Mentorship.
- Steffi Molina, BSN, RN, CCRN, Clinical Nurse III, Cardiothoracic Intensive Care Unit DMP 7W. She received the Norma L. Harris Award for Excellence in Nursing Practice.
- James Hallberg, BSN, RN, CCRN, Clinical Nurse III, Cardiac Intensive Care Unit DMP 7E. He received the Hill-Rom Award for Excellence in Nursing Practice.
- Gracen Ellington, BSN, RN, PCCN, Clinical Nurse IV, Cardiovascular Short Stay Unit. She received the Nan & Hugh Cullman Heart Center Award for Excellence in Nursing Practice.
- Emily Anthony, BSN, RN, CCRN, Education Supervisor, Cardiac Intensive Care Unit, DMP 7E. She received the DUHS Ernestine Davis & Edward L. Cole Award for Excellence in Coronary Care Unit Nursing.
- Elizabeth Beebe, BSN, RN, Clinical Nurse III, Cardiothoracic Intensive Care Unit, DMP 7W. She received the Mary Ann & Robert H. Peter Award for Excellence in Nursing Practice.
- Jacob “Jake” Boger, BSN, RN, Clinical Nurse IV, Cardiology Stepdown Unit 7700. He received the Janet H. Clap Award for Excellence in Nursing Practice.
- Jessica Corrales Nebot, BSN, RN, Clinical Nurse III, Cardiothoracic Stepdown Unit 6300. She received the Heart Center Award for Excellence in Cardiovascular Nursing in Recognition of Mary Ann Peter.
- Morgan Lewis, BSN, RN, Clinical Services Nurse II, Advanced Heart Failure and Lung Transplant Clinic 2F/2G. She received the Nan & Hugh Cullman Heart Center Award for Excellence in Nursing Practice.
Congratulations to each of the winners for being recognized for the terrific contributions you make every day to our patients and their loved ones.
First SYNCHRONICITY Patient Enrolled
Last week, Daniel Friedman, MD, and lead clinical research coordinator Jessye Davis, enrolled the first patient at Duke in SYNCHRONICITY, a global randomized trial comparing left bundle branch area pacing with conventional cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) for patients with left bundle branch block (LBBB) and an ejection fraction of 35% or less.
Friedman, who is joined by Marat Fudim, MD, on the steering committee for SYNCHRONICTY, helped to design the study and ensure funding for this pivotal trial.
Congratulations to all!
Funding Awards for Duke Cardiology, January-March
Congratulations to the following cardiology faculty and students for receiving research funding awards in January, February, or March 2026.
- Anita Kelsey, MD, has received an award from Kardigan Inc. for a project entitled, Phase 3 Ataciguat Study. Total funding is $649,090.
- Christopher Kontos, MD, has received a sub-award via Wake Forest University for a project entitled, Variant Determinants of African American Limb Pathology in Peripheral Arterial Disease. Total funding is $125,969.
- Daniel Friedman, MD, has received an award from Boston Scientific Corporation for a project entitled, Safety and Effectiveness of Left Bundle Branch Area Pacing versus Conventional Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy in Heart Failure. Total funding is $398,410.
- Gerald Bloomfield, MD, MPH, has received a sub-award via Temple University for a project entitled INTEGRATE RX. Total funding is $37,120.
- Jessica Regan, MD, has received an award from the American Heart Association for a project entitled, Interrogating Mechanistic Effects of Clonal Hematopoiesis in Heart Failure. Total funding is $230,960.
- Jonathan Piccini, MD, has received an award from the American Heart Association for a project entitled GWTG Clinical Insights CMS Linkages. Total funding is $530,764.
- Marat Fudim, MD, MHS, has received an award from the National Institutes of Health for a project entitled, The Iron Needed for Function and Undesirable Symptoms in Elderly with Heart Failure with Preserved Ejection Fraction (INFUSEHFpEF). Total funding is $2,982,563.
- Fudim also has received an award from Pharmacosmos Therapeutics Inc. for a project entitled, A phase III randomized trial of ferric derisomaltose in chronic heart failure. Total funding is $268,790.
- Senthil Selvaraj, MD, MS, has received an award from the American Heart Association for a project entitled, Impact of Exogenous Ketone Therapy on Skeletal Muscle Fuel Substrates After Exercise in HFrEF. Total funding is $77,000.
- Sudarshan Rajagopal, MD, has received a sub-award via Battelle Memorial Institute for a project entitled, Mass spectrometry platform for decoding GPCR hyperphosphorylation. Total funding is $251,924.
- Sunag R. Udupa, PhD (PhD student, Lefkowitz Lab) has received an award from the American Heart Association for a project entitled, Structural and Mechanistic Basis of β-arrestin2 Signaling Through MAPK JNK3. Total funding is $70,676.
- Svati Shah, MD, has received an award from Novo Nordisk A/S for a project entitled CVD Biomarkers Study (miR-132). Total research funding is $375,113.
Congratulations to all!
State of the School Address Planned for June 10
Mary E. Klotman, MD, Executive Vice President for Health Affairs and Dean of the Duke University School of Medicine, has announced her State of the School Address will take place from Noon to 12:45 p.m. on Wed., June 10, 2026. It will be held in the Great Hall, Trent Center for Health Education.
At this year’s address, Dean Klotman will explore how our School of Medicine community is harnessing artificial intelligence to accelerate discovery, enhance education, improve patient care, and strengthen partnerships, all while keeping our people at the center of everything we do.
All faculty, providers, staff, trainees, and students are invited to attend. You are welcome to bring your own lunch. Light refreshments and limited giveaways will be available.
Please join us if you can!
Upcoming CME Events & Opportunities
May is Celebrating Each Other Month at Duke Health. This is a time to pause, connect, and show gratitude for the ways we support one another and care for our patients, teams, and community. Thank you for all you do!
May 6 – 12: National Nurses Week
June 5: Wear Orange Day at Duke Health – in support of National Gun Awareness Day and “Wear Orange Weekend”. #DukeHealthWearsOrange
Cardiology Grand Rounds
May 13 (Wednesday): Highlights of the Heart Rhythm 2026 Meeting with Implications for Clinical Practice with Sana Al-Khatib, MD. 5 p.m., Zoom only.
May 19: Summoning Ghosts from Clinical Data: ECG-AI, Context Engineering and the Path to Trustworthy Clinical Intelligence with Ivan Nenadic Wood, MD. 5 p.m., DN 2002 and via Zoom.
All Duke CGR Recordings (except for those containing PHI) can be found on Duke Warpwire by year: 2026, 2025, 2024. Questions about recordings? Contact Tracey Koepke.
CD Fellows Core Curriculum Conference
May 13: DHP Case Conference with Rebecca Steinberg. Noon, DMP 7E39, and via Zoom.
May 15: Line Day in CCU with Willard Applefeld & other CCU faculty. Noon, DMP 7E39 only.
May 20: TBD. Noon, DMP 7E39, and via Zoom.
May 22 Board Prep Tips & Tricks with fellows who have recently taken the Boards. Noon, Zoom only.
May 27: EP Case Conference with Vincent Delgado and Nishkala Shivakumar. Noon, DMP 7E39, and via Zoom.
May 29: EP Case Conference with Yoo Jin Kim and Rebecca Steinberg. Noon, Zoom only.
MMCVI Grand Rounds
Multi-Modality Cardiovascular Imaging Grand Rounds: A multi-imaging approach to cardiovascular disease cases. Thursdays, Noon to 1 p.m., via Zoom.
May 14: Pericardial Diseases with Fawaz Alenezi
May 21: Imaging TOF Patient with Bharathi Upadhya
May 28: HFpEF Imaging Modalities with Rebecca/Harriet
June 4: Endocarditis with Fawaz Alenezi
June 11: CT Fractional Flow Review and Akshay Pendyal
June 18: D-Trans vs L-Trans Congenital Heart Disease with Fawaz Alenezi
June 25: Systemic and Pulmonary Hypertensive Heart Disease with Fawaz Alenezi
2026 Symposia
The dates for the following 2026 Duke Heart symposia have been set. We will announce others as they are added.
- June 6: Duke Heart Failure Symposium — Course directors are Marat Fudim, Rob Mentz, Richa Agarwal, and Stephanie Barnes. Location: Durham Convention Center, Durham, NC.
- September 26: Duke Case-Based Multimodality Imaging Symposium – Course directors are Sreek Vemulapalli and Anita Kelsey. Location: Trent Semans Center, Great Hall.
- October 30: 18th Annual NC Research Triangle Pulmonary Vascular Symposium – Course directors are Terry Fortin, Sudar Rajagopal, and Jimmy Ford. Location: Durham Convention Center, Durham, NC.
Please save the dates!
Victor J. Dzau Cardiovascular Seminar Series
May 27: G-Protein Coupled Receptors with Dr. Robert Lefkowitz. Noon, Auditorium of the Nanaline Duke Building, Duke University. Sponsored by Duke Cardiovascular Research Center and the Edna and Fred L. Mandel Jr. Foundation.
Support Ramos & Visionaries of the Year Campaign
Dayana Ramos, DNP, a critical care nurse practitioner in cardiology (and cancer survivor), continues to work toward her fundraising goal of $25,000 to help advance lifesaving treatments and support for families facing blood cancer during this year’s Visionaries of the Year campaign with Blood Cancer United.
She is hosting a virtual raffle as well as a “Sip to Save Lives” cocktail event this week at 9 p.m. on Tuesday, April 28, at The Velvet Hippo, 119 W. Orange Street, in downtown Durham. Half of the proceeds from sales of the “spicy mango margarita” will benefit Blood Cancer United.
The virtual raffle is for three prizes: a $25 Starbucks gift card; a $50 Amazon gift card, and a Grand Prize — a brewery tour and tasting at Ponysaurus Brewery in Durham. Tickets are $5 and can be purchased directly from Dayana. Winners will be announced on May 16.
Ramos’ fundraising finale is a 5K — and registration is open! The Race for a Cure 5K (run/jog/walk) will take place at 11 a.m. on Saturday, May 16, 2026, starting at Durty Bull Brewing Company, 206 Broadway St. #104, Durham, NC 27701. Recommended donation of $15 to register. All donations go to Blood Cancer United.
We hope you will consider supporting Dayana in any way you can, even if only with words of encouragement! Her fundraising page for Blood Cancer United can be found here. Her fundraising deadline is May 16.
Hitting with Heart Softball Tournament
The 10th Annual Hitting with Heart Softball tournament will be held on Saturday, August 22 at Valley Springs Park, 3805 Valley Springs Road, in Durham. The tournament raises funds that will, in part, support the American Heart Association’s 2026 Triangle Heart Walk.
Have news to share?
If you have news to share with the Pulse readership, please contact Tracey Koepke, director of communications for Duke Heart & Vascular, at tracey.koepke@duke.edu. We would love to hear about your latest accomplishments, professional news, cool happenings, and any events or opportunities that may be of interest to our team. Please call me with any questions: 919-681-2868. Feedback on Pulse is welcome and encouraged. Submissions by Noon on Wednesdays will be considered for weekend inclusion.
