Duke Heart Pulse — August 3, 2025
Highlights of the week:
Duke Captures NCDR Platinum Awards, 4-Star Ratings Across All Hospitals
Congratulations to our Duke Heart teams across Duke University Hospital, Duke Regional Hospital, and Duke Raleigh Hospital, as well as two of our Duke Heart Network affiliate sites — Alamance Regional Medical Center in Burlington, NC and Frye Regional Medical Center in Hickory, NC — each of the hospitals has been recognized with a 2025 National Cardiovascular Data Registry (NCDR) Chest Pain—MI Platinum Performance Achievement Award!
The Chest Pain-MI Registry Performance Achievement Award recognizes hospitals participating in the Chest-Pain MI Registry who have demonstrated sustained, top-level performance in quality of care and adherence to guideline recommendations. Through full participation in the registry, hospitals engage in a robust quality improvement process, using data to drive improvements and positively impact patient outcomes for heart attack patients.
The Chest Pain – MI Registry has been the single most trusted source for outcomes-based, continuous quality improvement and remains the go-to registry for hospitals and health systems applying American College of Cardiology (ACC) and American Heart Association (AHA) clinical guideline recommendations. The NCDR, part of the American College of Cardiology’s Quality Improvement for Institutions Program, is the largest, most comprehensive, outcomes-based cardiovascular patient data repository in the U.S.
Each of our three Duke hospitals also achieved 4-star ratings – the highest available — by the NCDR CathPCI Registry and NCDR EP Device Implant Registry.
The NCDR CathPCI Registry assesses the characteristics, treatments, and outcomes of cardiac disease patients who receive diagnostic catheterization and/or percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) procedures. This registry captures the data that measure adherence to ACC/AHA clinical practice guideline recommendations, procedure performance standards, and appropriate use criteria for coronary revascularization.
The NCDR EP Device Implant Registry establishes a national standard for understanding patient characteristics, treatments, outcomes, device safety, and the overall quality of care for ICD/ CRT-D and select novel pacemaker procedures, while also delivering benchmarking data. This registry plays an important role in providing data-driven knowledge for optimizing patient care.
Congratulations to all teams – you are doing incredible work!
U.S. News Hospital Ratings Released
We are pleased to announce that Duke University Hospital is again nationally ranked in 11 adult and nine pediatric specialties in this year’s U.S. News & World Report’s Best Hospitals report. We are also happy to see that our cardiovascular, heart and vascular surgery data places us #29 in the U.S. overall, and at #1 in NC and #1 in the Raleigh-Durham metro area.
If you happen to see one of the “Best Hospitals” guidebooks, you’ll see that each of the recipients of the NCDR Chest Pain-MI Registry Performance Achievement Award (see above story) received special recognition from the ACC. Hospitals that received a 2025 Performance Achievement Award at Platinum, Gold, and Silver levels are featured in an ACC insert.
Congratulations, team!
Marshall Named APP Lead, Ambulatory Cardiology
Congratulations to Julie Marshall, physician assistant for cardiology, who has assumed the role of APP Team Lead for ambulatory cardiology as of Friday, August 1, 2025.
Julie has consistently demonstrated exceptional dedication, skill, and leadership throughout her 25 years working at Duke Health. She joined the cardiology division in 2007, where she started on the inpatient service and then transitioned to ambulatory in 2013. We know she will excel in this new role.
Please join us in congratulating Julie on this well-deserved promotion!
Pagidipati, Shah Selected Fellows of ASPC
Congratulations to Neha Pagidipati and Nishant Shah! Both have been selected to the 2025 Class of Fellows of the American Society for Preventive Cardiology! They are two of only eight providers named this year. Being named a Fellow of the ASPC (FASPC) is recognition reserved for members who have demonstrated their commitment to cardiovascular disease prevention and the ASPC.
Way to go, Neha and Nishant!
Passing of Businessman, Philanthropist David H. Murdock
We want to recognize the passing of David H. Murdock, a visionary philanthropist and the namesake of the MURDOCK Study, who died in June at the age of 102. Murdock made a transformative $35 million gift to Duke University nearly 20 years ago which led to the creation of the Measurement to Understand Reclassification of Disease of Cabarrus and Kannapolis (MURDOCK) Study, a pioneering research initiative based in Kannapolis, N.C. The study was named in his honor by Duke cardiologist Robert Califf, MD, former principal investigator of the study and former commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, in recognition of Murdock’s extraordinary commitment to advancing health research.
“David Murdock was a champion of nutrition and bringing people together to promote health,” said Califf. “I’m sure he would be engaged in the current national focus on nutrition. His funding helped many researchers improve their knowledge base.”
The MURDOCK study has subsequently been led by other Duke cardiologists, including Kristin Newby, MD, and current principal investigator, Svati Shah, MD, the Ursula Geller Distinguished Professor of Research in Cardiovascular Diseases.
“Mr. Murdock touched many with his generosity in creating the North Carolina Research Campus and starting the MURDOCK Study nearly two decades ago,” said Shah. “His legacy lives on through the thousands of lives impacted by this research.”
The MURDOCK Study Community Registry and Biorepository is a longitudinal cohort of 12,526 participants from a 20-zip code region centered in Kannapolis and Cabarrus County. Participants contributed health data, biospecimens, and ongoing engagement to support research aimed at reclassifying disease and improving health outcomes.
Our condolences to his family, friends, and colleagues. His obituary can be found here.
Upcoming Events & Opportunities
Duke Heart Fall CMEs
The Duke Cardiac Imaging Symposium is scheduled for Saturday, October 4, 2025. It will be held in the Trent Semans Center.
Our 2025 agenda features expert-led sessions on updated ASE guidelines, coronary artery disease evaluation, strain imaging in cardiomyopathies, tricuspid valve disease, cardiac POCUS, and technical skills development through hands-on breakout sessions.
To register, please visit https://events.duke.edu/DukeCIS2025.
The 17th Annual NC Research Triangle Pulmonary Hypertension Symposium will take place on Friday, October 31, 2025, at the Durham Convention Center.
Our 2025 symposium will include clinically challenging presentations, including CTD-PAH, CPPC PH, CTEPH, PH associated with ILD, COPD, portopulmonary hypertension (PoPH), and PH in end-stage renal disease. All will be addressed through interactive lectures and robust case-based discussions.
To register, please visit: https://events.duke.edu/17PH2025.
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 with any questions: 919-681-2868. Feedback on Pulse is welcome and encouraged. Submissions by Noon on Wednesdays will be considered for weekend inclusion.
Duke Heart in the News:
July 26 — Nina Nouhravesh
Knowridge.com
Eating fortified eggs does not raise cholesterol
July 29 — Duke University Hospital
U.S. News & World Report
July 29 — Duke University/Duke Health
Becker’s Hospital Review
Duke plans more layoffs after buyouts
July 29 — Duke Health/Duke University Hospital
U.S. News & World Report
U.S. News Announces 2025-2026 Best Hospitals
July 29 — Duke Health/Duke University Hospitals
U.S. News & World Report
These 19 hospitals earned top ratings in 22 procedures and conditions
July 29 — Duke University Hospital
Becker’s Hospital Review
50 top heart hospitals, per US News
July 29 — Duke University Hospital
Fierce Healthcare
U.S. News releases 2025-26 Best Hospitals lists, revamps regional rankings
July 29 — Duke University Hospital
Becker’s ASC Review
The top 50 cardiology hospitals: US News
July 29 — Duke Health
CNN
July 31 — Duke University Hospital
WBT/99.3 FM/Charlotte’s News Talk
Charlotte Hospitals Ranked North Carolina’s Best in U.S. News Report
Duke Heart Pulse — July 27, 2025
Highlights of the week:
Duke Again Captures GWTG Awards Across Categories for CV Care
Duke Heart & Vascular expertise and care has again led to recognition awards from the American Heart Association. We have recently been notified of Get With the Guidelines (GWTG) awards for excellence in quality for data collected from 1/1/2023 to 12/31/2024.
For Duke University Hospital:
- Get With The Guidelines®-AFib Gold
- GWTG Coronary Artery Disease STEMI Receiving Center – Silver Plus with Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll
- GWTG Coronary Artery Disease NSTEMI – Gold with Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll
- GWTG Heart Failure — Gold Plus with Target: Heart Failure Optimal and Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll
For Duke Raleigh Hospital:
- GWTG Heart Failure Gold Plus with Target: Heart Failure Optimal and Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll
Finally, Duke University Hospital has also been awarded the AHA’s 2025 Commitment to Quality award. This is the first year for this special award level — recognizing an elite group of hospitals having reached achievement level in three or more Get With The Guidelines® modules. Only 158 sites in the nation met the criteria for this award.
Way to go, team!!!
MAGNITUDE Trial Lifts off at Duke
Congratulations to our Precision Cardiomyopathy team! This week, they dosed their first research participant in the MAGNITUDE trial for patients with heart failure due to transthyretin amyloidosis with cardiomyopathy (ATTR-CM). The study, sponsored by Intellia Therapeutics, utilizes CRISPR technology to inactivate the amyloid gene.
Ravi Karra, MD, MHS, and Michel Khouri, MD, are serving as the co-principal investigators for the Duke site. MAGNITUDE is a multinational, multicenter, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, and Duke is one of the few centers in the southeastern U.S. participating.
A longer story on this exciting development will appear next month.
Kester Named to NC Great 100
Congratulations to Kelly Kester, DNP, senior nursing director with Duke Heart & Vascular! Kester has been named to the NC Great 100 Nurses for 2025. She is one of five Duke nurses who made this year’s list. The others are Melinda Busi and Kathy Sandel with Duke Regional Hospital; Derrick Glymph with Duke School of Nursing; and Blaise Nieve with Duke University Hospital.
Those named to the NC Great 100 exemplify excellence in nursing practice, leadership, and service — they will be honored at the 37th Annual NC Great 100 Gala on October 11 at The Maxwell Center in Goldsboro.
Well deserved, Kelly!
Successful JC VAD Visit
The Joint Commission visit this past week to review and reaccredit our Ventricular Assist Device program was a success! The Joint Commission is a major accrediting body for VAD programs, particularly for destination therapy VADs.
We had a successful visit with no findings. Many thanks to the teams who worked hard to prepare for the visit, to those who remained regulatory-ready, and to the leadership, faculty, and staff who participated in the survey itself.
Great job, all!
Protecting Patients’ Access to Duke Health
In a message shared with all Duke Health team members this week, Tom Owens, MD, COO of DUHS, and Lisa Goodlett, CFO of DUHS, announced the following:
Duke Health has relationships with health insurance companies, including Cigna, Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina, and more. As a responsible care provider, we regularly assess these contracts and negotiate with insurance providers to secure fair agreements that protect our patients’ access to Duke Health and appropriately reimburse us for the expert, complex care only we can provide.
We are currently negotiating a new agreement with Aetna to support these goals. If we are unable to reach a fair agreement, our contract with Aetna will end on Monday, October 20, and Duke Health will be considered out-of-network for patients with Aetna insurance. This may result in higher out-of-pocket costs for patients with Aetna insurance and may even force patients to find a new clinician that is included in Aetna’s network.
This negotiation will not impact Duke employees. Duke medical plans are managed under a separate Aetna agreement that is not included in the current negotiations.
While we hope to have an agreement with Aetna by Monday, October 20, we will begin communicating with patients about the ongoing negotiations soon. Our goal is to ensure patients experience minimal disruption throughout this process and continue to receive care from our incredible teams. We understand the outcome of this negotiation may impact some of our current processes, including scheduling, and how we support continuity of care. We will keep you updated with current information every step of the way.
Your Role in Supporting Patients
Our patients may have questions about the negotiation with Aetna. Please assure patients that nothing changes prior to Monday, October 20, and use this resource and FAQ page to support your conversations and direct patients to the following resources:
- To speak with a representative: 919-620-4555 or 800-782-69
- To review additional information: org
Thank you for everything you do for our patients, our teams, and the communities we serve every day.
Thompson Named ACNO, DUH; Craft Named AVP, Ambulatory Nursing & Patient Care
Chantal Howard, Chief Nursing & Patient Care Services Officer for Duke University Hospital (DUH) this week announced that Amanda Thompson, MHA, BSN, RN, NEA-BC, has joined the Duke Health team and been named the new Associate Chief Nursing Officer for DUH. She will support Med-Surg and Critical Care Services, Neurosciences, Musculoskeletal and Emergency Services.
Thompson brings more than 30 years of progressive nursing leadership experience spanning inpatient, procedural, and critical care environments. Her most recent roles include serving as Chief Nursing Officer at Advocate Health – Atrium Stanly and Executive Director of Heart & Vascular, Critical Care and Surgical Services at Wake Med. She is recognized for her ability to drive clinical excellence, lead large teams, and foster strong collaboration across disciplines. Her track record in advancing quality, operational performance, and workforce engagement makes her an exceptional addition to our nursing leadership team.
Howard this week also expressed her deep gratitude to Dawn Craft, DNP, RN, NE-BC, who has recently been named Assistant Vice President for Ambulatory Nursing and Patient Care Services. Craft’s impact on inpatient and ambulatory nursing operations at DUH has been profound, Howard said in her announcement, adding that “we are fortunate to continue benefiting from her leadership in her new role during a critical time of growth.”
Welcome to Duke, Amanda, and congratulations, Dawn!
Upcoming Events & Opportunities
Duke Heart Fall CMEs
The Duke Cardiac Imaging Symposium is scheduled for Saturday, October 4, 2025. It will be held in the Trent Semans Center.
Our 2025 agenda features expert-led sessions on updated ASE guidelines, coronary artery disease evaluation, strain imaging in cardiomyopathies, tricuspid valve disease, cardiac POCUS, and technical skills development through hands-on breakout sessions.
To register, please visit https://events.duke.edu/DukeCIS2025.
The 17th Annual NC Research Triangle Pulmonary Hypertension Symposium will take place on Friday, October 31, 2025, at the Durham Convention Center.
Our 2025 symposium will include clinically challenging presentations, including CTD-PAH, CPPC PH, CTEPH, PH associated with ILD, COPD, portopulmonary hypertension (PoPH), and PH in end-stage renal disease. All will be addressed through interactive lectures and robust case-based discussions.
To register, please visit: https://events.duke.edu/17PH2025.
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 with any questions: 919-681-2868. Feedback on Pulse is welcome and encouraged. Submissions by Noon on Wednesdays will be considered for weekend inclusion.
Duke Heart in the News:
July 17 — Joseph Turek
Popular Science
Surgeons develop 2 ways to ‘restart’ hearts without a donor’s body
July 17 — Joseph Turek
Becker’s Hospital Review
Duke Health surgeons perform world’s 1st on-table infant heart reanimation
July 18 — Ashley Ward (Nicholas Institute)
JAMA Medical News
Why Capturing Heat-Related Illness in the Medical Record Matters More Than Ever
July 18 — Christina Cui and Dawn Coleman
Vascular Specialist
‘Parenthood in vascular surgery a personal choice, not a professional deadline’
July 19 — Nishant Shah
Good Housekeeping
When Is the Best Time to Take Low-Dose Aspirin — Morning or Night?
July 19 — Branson Whitaker (peds heart patient) and Duke Children’s
WTVD/ABC 11
8-year-old patient who has spent time in Duke Hospital pays it forward
July 20 — Joseph Turek
Science Alert
Surgeons Resuscitate ‘Dead’ Heart in Life-Saving Organ Transplant to Baby
July 22 — Marat Fudim
HCP Live
GLP-1 RAs in Heart Failure and Patient Monitoring, with Marat Fudim, MD
July 23 — Duke Health
Becker’s ASC Review
July 24 — Sana Al-Khatib
Medscape
Everyone Deserves a Shot at the American Dream: Sinus Rhythm
Duke Heart Pulse — July 20, 2025
Chief’s message: Updates for the week:
We are happy to report that Tracey Koepke is back and doing well. She is helping again with the Pulse and we have some more stories of Amazing team work to save lives in our clinics, new research on pediatric heart transplants from Joe Turek and team, international work by Gerald Bloomfield and team, and the many day to day excellence in research, clinical care and teaching from our fellows, faculty, and staff. Stay out of the heat.
Highlights of the week:
Quick Thinking & CPR Saves Patient
On Tuesday, one of our Duke electrophysiology patients experienced a VT arrest just outside the front door of the Arrington clinic. The patient had just seen Anna Turner, NP and was leaving clinic to go home when they went into polymorphic ventricular tachycardia and arrested.
Marquis Holland, one of our new security officers who had only been on the job for three weeks, along with colleague Christopher Dees, promptly attended to the patient and delivered immediate and high-quality cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). Holland resuscitated the patient, who was then transported to the hospital.
This patient is alive today because of Marquis, Christopher, and their inspiring actions. We are so grateful for their quick thinking and life-saving actions. The Duke University Police Department is planning to honor them for their heroism.
Marquis is shown here with Anna Turner.
Way to go, Marquis, Christopher, and team!
Selvaraj Named Faculty Lead for CRU HF Cluster
Senthil Selvaraj, MD, assistant professor of medicine in cardiology specializing in advanced heart failure, and a faculty member in both the Duke Molecular Physiology Institute and the Duke Clinical & Translational Science Institute’s Center for Precision Health, has been named the faculty lead for the Duke Heart Clinical Research Unit’s Heart Failure Cluster.
Selvaraj leads several translational studies in cardiometabolism in HF using mechanistic randomized trials. He has significant experience in successful recruitment strategies and study execution in site-based research. This experience will continue to foster the ongoing success of the HF cluster.
Please join us in congratulating Senthil on his new role.
New Technique Could Increase Infant Heart Transplant by 20%
Duke Health has pioneered a world’s-first technique that could expand by up to 20% the donor pool for pediatric heart transplants in the U.S. — offering new hope to families on the waitlist.
The New England Journal of Medicine published the case study on Wednesday, July 16. It details a groundbreaking approach to overcome barriers to heart donation after circulatory death (DCD) in infants.
“This innovation was born out of necessity,” said Joseph Turek, MD, PhD, senior author of the study and chief of pediatric cardiac surgery at Duke Health. “We were determined to find a way to help the smallest and sickest children who previously had no access to DCD heart donation.”
DCD is a technique which allows for heart donation to take place after a circulatory death, rather than brain death (once the standard in donation), as long as the functionality of the heart can be assessed on a perfusion device. DCD has previously been used in adult and adolescent transplants, but existing perfusion devices are too large to fit infant hearts.
A technique called normothermic regional perfusion (NRP) could reanimate the heart inside of the body, but it carries logistical and ethical barriers – leading many centers to avoid using it. The lack of NRP uptake causes viable pediatric donor hearts to go unused.
To overcome this, the Duke team developed a novel technique that temporarily reanimates the donor heart outside of the body, on a surgical table using a heart-lung machine (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation or ECMO) – allowing surgeons to assess the organ’s viability before transplant. The approach avoids the barriers associated with NRP and could become a new standard of care.
Duke scientists are calling the new technique on-table heart reanimation. The first-of-its-kind case saved the life of a then 3-month-old patient, who received the procedure earlier this year.
Every year in the U.S. about 700 children are added to the waitlist for a pediatric heart transplant, and of those about 10-20% die while waiting on the list, according to the United Network for Organ Sharing.
Turek estimates the new on-table heart reanimation technique has the potential to save as many young lives as there are viable pediatric donor hearts currently going unused.
“This is a major step forward in pediatric transplant medicine,” Turek said. “On-table heart reanimation could dramatically expand the availability of precious donations — transforming loss into life with greater stewardship and hope.”
Duke Health has a history of pioneering research in DCD hearts transplants, performing the nation’s first DCD heart transplant in an adult in 2019 and the first in an adolescent in 2021.
Turek has also led several pioneering pediatric heart transplant techniques, including the partial heart transplant, the living mitral valve replacement, and the thymus-heart co-transplantation for tolerance.
In addition to Turek, other authors include John A. Kucera and Douglas M. Overbey.
Redefining Cardiac Care in Underserved Communities Across the Globe
Gerald Bloomfield, MD, MPH, associate professor of medicine in cardiology at Duke, is a leader in cardiovascular global health research dedicated to combatting heart disease in under-served areas of the United States and in low to middle-income countries.
“My early ideas of medicine were about having a skill and knowledge that I could use to help other people. Medicine isn’t the only way to do that, but it was the way that resonated with me as a kid,” Dr. Bloomfield said.
Dr. Bloomfield is the associate director for research at the Duke Global Health Research Institute where he leads research and funding initiatives. It’s where he combines his passions for cardiology and global health research.
“I’ve known since I was in grade school that I wanted to be a doctor,” he said. But it was his grandmother, a nurse, who inspired him to pursue medicine. His parents gave him a view that put the world at center stage.
“My parents immigrated to the US from Jamaica, and I always had the perspective that the issues that we’re dealing with today aren’t only happening where we live, they’re happening all over the globe,” he added. “Having seen medical care delivered in places with less resources than we have in the US, I was interested in doing the same for other areas like that,” he said.
After graduating from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, completing its internal medicine residency, master of public health programs and chief residency, he was admitted to Duke University’s School of Medicine’s cardiovascular fellowship program, and later, Duke’s Global Health Residency-Fellowship Pathway and the Fogarty International Clinical Research Fellowship. As a fellow, he got the opportunity to spend one year treating patients in rural Kenyan clinics.
“Heart disease, historically, in Kenya was always a terminal diagnosis. There was no expert to treat hypertension, a heart attack, or stroke,” Dr. Bloomfield said. “What really stuck with me was the fact that patients did not have a general knowledge around cardiovascular disease. The health literacy around heart disease was almost non-existent.”
To deliver the best care, he gained the trust of the community by actively listening to their concerns and educating them in Swahili about chronic conditions like high blood pressure. “I really wanted to hear what the needs are and then figure out if our team are the right people to address those needs,” said Dr. Bloomfield.
Most traditional cardiac fellowship programs didn’t include the opportunity to gain skills to be used specifically in under-resourced populations but spending a year of his cardiology fellowship learning and practice medicine and research in Kenya, closed the gap in training for Dr. Bloomfield.
Providing Care and Leading Research in Kenya
Afterward, Dr. Bloomfield and his family began spending six months out of each year in Kenya, and the other six months in North Carolina, which was supported by a career development award from Fogarty International Center. During that time, he launched a clinical research program to determine the causes of heart failure among East Africans at the Moi University School of Medicine, in Eldoret, Kenya.
From there, he, along with several mentors, established the Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Disease Center of Excellence at the University, which led to the development of the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital-Duke Cardiovascular Fellowship Program, and the construction of a cardiac care unit.
He conducted research projects, mentored Kenyan physicians, and trained nurses and sonographers to perform heart procedures, echocardiograms (EGC), and ECG readings. Dr. Bloomfield instituted didactic talks, educational lectures, and served as a cardiac consultant in the hospital.
“When people saw others getting better, they started coming to the hospital on death’s door, and we were treating them and sending them home after they improved,” Bloomfield said.
As demand grew, more senior cardiologists were brought in to care for patients and mentor future clinicians, creating a new opportunity for Dr. Bloomfield. He discovered a passion for mentorship, a role he developed over time, and now leads with a specific approach.
“My overall approach to our training program has always been to listen first. When we’re seeing patients in clinic and hearing their stories, it applies to our research and what the community needs are,” he said.
After handing over the reins to Kenyan leaders, and with Duke doctors visiting intermittently, Dr. Bloomfield now only returns to Kenya two-three times a year to advise on the future growth of cardiac care and research. “The programs there are essentially sustaining themselves, and we get to collaborate on a higher level” he said.
Research in the US
Dr. Bloomfield is now bringing the lessons he’s learned abroad to the U.S. health care system. “Although the language and some details may be different, the issues around delivering high quality care to people who are sick and don’t have access to the resources they need, are very similar in many parts of the world, including in the U.S.,” he said. “Global includes international and domestic. We need global health approaches in the U.S. as well.”
He is currently working with a team of experts to address cardiovascular health in rural areas. Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the U.S. and accounts for every one in four deaths globally. Rural areas experience 60,000 more deaths than urban areas yearly due to limited access to health care providers and resources. Most rural hospitals don’t have specialists or the cardiac imaging machines required to detect, diagnose, and manage cardiovascular disease.
To combat this, Dr. Bloomfield is co-leading the Echocardiography Core Lab on the mobile examination unit for the Risk Underlying Rural Areas Longitudinal (RURAL) Study. It’s an ongoing population-based cohort study that helps physicians identify risk factors for heart and lung diseases in rural counties in Alabama, Kentucky, Louisiana, and Mississippi that have higher cardiovascular disease death rates than the rest of the country.
“We are bringing early diagnosis to individuals,” he said. The mobile examination units are outfitted with a lab, private exam rooms, and cardiovascular assessment and imaging tools. “We’re seeing community volunteers and assessing their heart health. Then we’re following them over time to figure out how we can prevent heart disease or treat it better in the future,” he added.
Dr. Bloomfield ensures the echocardiograms are performed correctly and then the scans are sent to Duke for analysis. Unlike similar studies, the results are returned to participants and shared with their doctors if abnormalities, like signs of heart failure, are found.
More than 3,000 participants have been enrolled in the study. The team engages with community leaders first and then hosts a free day for residents to tour the truck and get familiarized with the study. Researchers are comparing the data they gathered and comparing it to four counties that have lower cardiovascular disease rates.
*This piece was authored by Synclaire Cruel for Duke’s Dept. of Medicine, July 11, 2025.
Kudos to Kim
We received a wonderful kudos for Yoo Jin Kim, first year cardiology fellow, from Bharathi Upadhya, MD this week and wanted to share it here with our readers.
“Anna Lisa, I cannot believe this week marks Yoo Jin’s first week at Duke. She performed like a seasoned fellow. On the very first day, she knew all the patients. We had a jam-packed DHP service this week. She is very efficient. The service had 18 to 19 patients, and interns can only take 8. Interns are also new, and one was very stressed. She pre-rounded and primarily worked like an intern for a few patients. She did not complain and was happy to do that. She has the leadership quality. Her clinical skills are excellent. She is energetic.” — Regards, Bharathi
“Yoo Jin – great job on a new and busy service in a new hospital with new interns!” — Anna Lisa Chamis, MD
Excellent work, Yoo Jin!
Summer Fun Shout-out!
A shout-out on behalf of Carolyn Lekavich to Kara Lawson, head coach of the Duke women’s basketball team and to her players! Lekavich shared a happy parent moment with us this week. Her daughter, Venia, participated in Coach Lawson’s camp — a new program offering this year — and this week Venia was awarded Defensive Player MVP.
Venia is shown here alongside Duke women’s basketball team members.
Way to go, Venia and go DUKE!
Duke Heart Gains New Family Member
We are pleased to share that Duke Heart has gained a new family member — Niko Massengale, the son of Ashley and Johnny Massengale, was born on July 7. Diane Sauro received a message of gratitude from Ashley this week and asked us to share it here.
“First, I wanted to say how thankful I am to be part of such a kind team. Each text, visit, meal/Door Dash, and care package has been so thoughtful and sweet. I’ve been amazed by the outpouring of support. It’s made a tough time more manageable and means a lot to me and Johnny.
Our son, Niko Patrick Massengale, was born on 7/7. [Due to his early arrival] he will remain admitted until closer to his due date. He’s doing great and transitioned to room air yesterday! We are so relieved that he has done okay and hopeful that he continues to do well. I’m doing just fine. We’re at the hospital daily so I’m sure I’ll see y’all soon. Thank you again for all the love, Ashley, Johnny, Maya, and Niko.”
CME Programming Updates
The Duke Cardiac Imaging Symposium is scheduled for Saturday, October 4, 2025. It will be held in the Trent Semans Center.
Echocardiography remains a critical component in the diagnosis, management, and surveillance of cardiovascular disease. As cardiovascular care continues to evolve, so too must the knowledge and skills of clinicians utilizing imaging in practice. This year’s symposium is designed to address emerging clinical questions, updated guideline recommendations, and new imaging modalities through case-based learning and practical applications. The 2025 agenda features expert-led sessions on updated ASE guidelines, coronary artery disease evaluation, strain imaging in cardiomyopathies, tricuspid valve disease, cardiac POCUS, and technical skills development through hands-on breakout sessions.
To register, please visit https://events.duke.edu/DukeCIS2025.
The 17th Annual NC Research Triangle Pulmonary Hypertension Symposium will take place on Friday, October 31, 2025, at the Durham Convention Center.
The symposium aims to equip physicians and allied health professionals with current, evidence-based knowledge in the diagnosis and treatment of Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension (PAH). With a focus on frontline providers, this symposium will explore optimal diagnostic strategies, treatment selection, and timely referrals to specialized PH centers. Clinically challenging presentations, including CTD-PAH, CPPC PH, CTEPH, PH associated with ILD, COPD, portopulmonary hypertension, and PH in end-stage renal disease—will be addressed through interactive lectures and robust case-based discussions. The format encourages dialogue and debate to foster practical insights and collaborative decision-making in complex scenarios.
To register, please visit: https://events.duke.edu/17PH2025.
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 with any questions: 919-681-2868. Feedback on Pulse is welcome and encouraged. Submissions by Noon on Wednesdays will be considered for weekend inclusion.
Duke Heart in the News:
June 4 — Bradi Granger and Anna Tharakan (Health Policy summer intern)
American Hospital Association/Advancing Health Podcast
How Duke University Is Fighting Hypertension Through Community Collaboration
June 10 — Brittany Zwischenberger
STS.org/Surgical Hot Topics Podcast
Same Surgeon, Different Light w/ Dr. Brittany Zwischenberger
June 16 — Duke Health (mitral valve transplant)
Becker’s Clinical Leadership
6 1st-of-its-kind procedures performed in 2025
June 17 — Neha Pagidipati
Healio
Research updates in health technology, nutrition and diabetes management
June 18 — Pamela Douglas and Neha Pagidipati
JAMA Cardiology
Editorial: The Last Mile in Prevention—Can Coronary CT Angiography Help?
June 18 — Nishant Shah
Everyday Health
Is Exercise Safe When You Have Pericarditis?
June 20 — Neha Pagidipati, Stephen Greene, and Robert Califf
HCP Live
HCPLive Five at Heart in Diabetes 2025
June 23 — Adrian Hernandez and Robert Harrington
Medscape
Commentary: Academic Entrepreneurship Key for Clinician Researchers Given NIH Funding Uncertainty
June 25 — Pamela Douglas and Neha Pagidipati
tctMD
CCTA Bests CV Risk Scores for Bolstering Lifestyle Changes, Medication Uptake
July 2 — Robert Califf
HCP Live
Cardiology Month in Review: June 2025
July 3 — Jonathan Piccini
Heart Rhythm TV
July 11 — Nishant Shah
Everyday Health
When Should You Take Blood Pressure Medicine?
July 14 — Marat Fudim
HCP Live
FDA Approves Finerenone (Kerendia) for Heart Failure with Ejection Fraction of 40% or More
July 14 — Jonathan Piccini
tctMD
PRAGUE-25: Ablation Improves Rhythm Control, but Don’t Discount Lifestyle Changes
July 16 — Joseph Turek
Associated Press
Researchers try new ways of preserving more hearts for transplants
*This story was picked up by local news affiliates across the U.S.
July 16 — Joseph Turek
Science
New transplant techniques keep organ donors’ hearts healthy—even after they stop beating
July 17 — William Kraus
Today/NBC
This Is the Worst Time of Day to Eat, According to a Cardiologist
July 17 — Joseph Turek
Medpage Today
New Heart Transplant Technique Avoids NRP Restrictions
Duke Heart Pulse – July 13th 2025
Chief’s Message: We are in full swing with the summer. This week we saw continued integration of our fellows into our clinical services with busy teams working hard to continue to help achieve our missions. We are working on a multi-level strategic plan that we will be sharing with our leadership soon. We also welcome new faculty – who we will do highlights on in the coming weeks and say goodbye to some of our current faculty who are going on to lead and work at other organization. I also have a shout out for a fellow, and some upcoming events in the weeks to come.
Highlights and Updates from the Week:
Imran Aslam to take an interventional leadership position at Tuft’s Medical Center.
Imran will be taking a position at the Tufts Medical Center where he will be the Director of Acute Mechanical Circulatory Support, the Interventional Heart Failure fellowship program director and will tasked with helming research efforts behind testing current and new MCS devices, their interplay with cardiac physiology and relevant molecular signaling cascades.
Imran helped pave the way for our cath lab to be involved in ECMO cannulation and management as well as acute PE care; the latter will be continued by way of new incoming faculty who have trained to partake in these efforts, including Dan Loriaux, who will also be joining the ECMO call rotation as new faculty.
Imran has been a great member of our team and noted that he has “thoroughly enjoyed integrating his IC and HF expertise at the Duke Heart Center, including being able to work with our phenomenal Fellow trainees and faculty across both subspecialties to care for our patients.” It is always bittersweet when we have faculty that leave, and particularly so with Imran who has worked tirelessly to build important programs in our clinical and research practice. We look forward to all of his contributions to the field and to collaborating with him in the future.
Kudos to our fellows from our teams: Drs. Mugdha Joshi and Aarti Thakkar.
Dr. Mitchell Veverka from the Emergency Medicine group wrote this week about Mugdha…
“I wanted to take a moment to recognize one of your fellows, Dr. Mugdha Joshi. I had the opportunity to interact with her last night during a particularly challenging patient encounter, and I was impressed by the professionalism and patient-centered care she demonstrated.
Despite the late hour and what I imagine was a long day, Dr. Joshi remained calm, composed, and empathetic. She navigated a frustrating and complex situation with grace and provided thoughtful, compassionate care to the patient.
As grueling as fellowship can be, I wanted to highlight the excellent work Dr. Joshi is doing. She is a credit to your program and a reflection of the high standards you uphold in training exceptional physicians.”
Dr. Ruchi Doshi wrote about Dr. Aarti Thakkar ..
“I just wanted to send kudos for Dr. Aarti Thakkar. I have a patient getting a TEE tomorrow who required other care coordination during the sedation/anesthesia portion and she was helpful in arranging/coordinating the care. I was appreciative, and even if things fall apart tomorrow (as they sometimes do in the hospital), her hard work and dedication were noticed!”
Thanks to Mugdha and Aarti for helping to care for these patients with such compassion and excellence.
Duke Heart Pulse July 6th 2025 – New Academic Year
Chief’s Message: New Fellows and transitions of our Academic year
We hope you all had a wonderful 4th of July weekend with friends and family. The weekend marks a celebration of our country and the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4th 1776. It’s a time of year when summer is in full swing – with families going to lakes, beaches, and mountains in respective parts of North Carolina to see fireworks and spend a few days potentially near water in the heat of the summer. As the weekend comes to an end – we were blessed to have many national and regional celebrations providing us of the importance of the day. Next year will be the 250th anniversary with many planned celebrations.
For those of us at University based Medical Centers (Academic Medical Centers – AMCs) like Duke, this time of year also
marks the start of the next Academic year. In addition to planning and working on new strategic initiatives for our research and clinical missions in these times, the weekend marks the transition to new cardiology, surgical, and anesthesia trainees. In the cardiology fellowship, we welcome 10 new partners to our practice as we have them move through orientation – and quickly boot camp for cardiology. This series during the month aims to get all of our colleagues and faculty on the same page for common clinical issues that we see in the in-patient and outpatient arena. It’s an exciting time of year – 
with a few days of orientation and lectures and then working with our colleagues and fellows to help care of our patients. Please find a photo of our new fellows with our Chief Fellow Anthony Lim and our program Director Anna Lisa Chamis. Also included (left) are some photos of the boot camp with the Simulation lab work done on getting ready for our clinical services and procedures. Thanks to all or our faculty, staff, and senior fellows and residents for supporting our new fellows, residents to our cardiology and CT and Vascular surgical teams.
Summer Reading:
With the extent of the weeks transitions and work – I won’t be providing this week’s review as I have not yet completed the book. It is a great read, and for those of you wondering and possibly wanting to read it for the next week – its Genesis: Artificial Intelligence Hope, and the Human Spirit by Henry Kissinger, Craig Mundie, and Eric Schmidt. Full report for this group next week
Bonus Photo:
Marat Fudim sent this photo of his son taking at three point shot at the Duke Basketball camp with Coach Jon Scheyer watching on. Its a fun photo with lots of memories – as I know many of our faculty have had their kids go through this camp. Our son went through 10 years ago in 2015. I told Marat that time flies and to enjoy the games in the evenings during the week.
Duke Heart June 29th 2025 – Transitions, Partnerships and Summer Reading
Chief’s Message: This is the Moment – transitions, partnerships and lessons from summer reading.
This week we had another busy week at Duke Heart as we prepared for our new fellows and residents to join us while we continued our celebrations of the fellows finishing their training. Find some photos of our interventional fellow 
graduation dinner here – where we are lucky to continue to train the next generation of cardiovascular leaders – in this case in the field of interventional cardiology. The dinner and celebration were a testament to our faculty and the leadership that helps train and support these fellows education. We are excited to see their next steps in their career.
Additionally, we welcomed colleagues from Red Cell Partners to help us consider and build the future of CV care and beyond as we work to imagine systems to bring data to life for our patients. We had a robust meeting with our health system leaders and the Red Cell to envision how we can work to bring AI and transformative access to therapies to 
improve the workflow and operations of our practice and improve cardiovascular health of our community, state, and country. The speed of change in the way data and information will be brought to our clinicians is quite substantial and we are lucky to have the commitment of such an important partner and a health system looking to innovate. A photo from that meeting is included here. The next 12 months provide us with a clear moment and opportunity to help transform the CV health care and research enterprise as we lean in and learn how to better deliver CV care and discover the next therapies in a sustainable model. Over the coming weeks we hope to crystalize this opportunity and come back to our entire community to engage in working to innovate care and research.
Dean Klotman also gave her state of the union speech this week for the school of medicine. As always it was impressive 
how many in the school and health system have stepped up to meet these challenging times by increasing ways in which we collaborate, develop new ways to do research, and develop systems to support our trainees and faculty. The talk especially highlighted our administrative professionals and leaders that have helped moved the school, departments, and divisions quickly to meet this need. Perhaps most encouraging from the discussion was the numerous examples (with several in heart) of teams innovating and making an impact through discovery of new ways to do things to improve health.
Finally, I provide the next summer reading review – “Healing Children: A Surgeon’s Stories from the Frontiers of Pediatric Medicine” by Dr. Kurt Newman. I was lucky enough to meet Kurt as we kicked off our Made for This philanthropy campaign – and he was nice enough to give me a copy of his book. The lessons from the book, a compelling and quick read, seem even more timely this time of year.
The book opens with Kurt sharing a story from 40 years ago working as a third year medical student in Nobel Prize winner and Duke Cardiology Faculty member Dr. Bob Lefkowitz’s lab. He shares how he felt a thyroid mass while looking in a microscope and knew that he had thyroid cancer – and through his care at Duke as a medical student – resolved to become a surgeon. He shares the stories of his care and observations as a patient going through the system then and as a physician caring for children for years to come.
In fact, “Healing Children” is a compelling narrative that offers an insider’s perspective into the world of pediatric surgery from the viewpoint of Kurt – even questioning and sharing a heartfelt exploration of the challenges and triumphs in treating young patients and their families. It is both a memoir and a manifesto advocating for the importance of specialized pediatric care at many points throughout the book. Even more pertinent to our times, Kurt presents the strength of mentoring from Dr. Randolph early in his career, the lessons of system and quality improvement by looking standardize the operative care, and multiple stories and lessons on the strength of multi-disciplinary care in the outcomes of pediatric patients.
Through many of these narratives, he highlights the unique medical, emotional, and ethical challenges faced when treating children. He seamlessly weaves his personal experiences with broader discussions on healthcare policy and the need for dedicated pediatric resources. At a time that Duke and UNC are working to build the Children’s Hospital of North Carolina – this is a timely memoir on the work at Children’s National Hospital.
Key Themes:
The Unique Nature of Pediatric Care: Kurt Newman emphasizes that children are not just small adults; they require specialized care tailored to their physical and emotional development. He argues for the necessity of pediatric-trained surgeons and facilities, underscoring how such specialization leads to better outcomes.
The Emotional Impact of Pediatric Surgery: The book delves into the emotional roller coaster experienced by both families and healthcare providers. He shares poignant stories of hope, despair, and resilience, giving readers a glimpse into the human side of medicine.
Advocacy for Pediatric Healthcare: A significant portion of the book is dedicated to advocating for better healthcare policies and funding for pediatric research. He calls for systemic changes to ensure that children receive the best possible care, highlighting the disparities that exist in access to pediatric specialists.
The Interdisciplinary Nature of Pediatric Medicine: As noted through various anecdotes, he illustrates the collaborative nature of pediatric care, involving surgeons, nurses, therapists, and families. He stresses the importance of teamwork in achieving successful outcomes for young patients.
Impact of Philanthropy and Leadership. Dr. Newman shares how he learned from a key donor who had a child cared for by their team. He is pushed to move this vision forward and learns how to effect change and eventually become CEO and lead Children’s Hospital of Washington.
My Take Home Message:
This is an engaging and meaningful read to see and hear the stories of specific patients that Dr. Newman cared for and how it impacted his thoughts and actions to lead a multi-disciplinary team at Children’s Hospital of Washington. There are many analogies to the care we provide for cardiovascular patients – and his lessons on how to improve and move towards the community from a surgical center are quite relevant today. I personally found his voice, the stories, and ability to translate those to larger lessons in health care both impactful and important for our health care work today. If you get a chance – you can take a bit of time and hopefully find some meaning in this book from a past Duke Medical Student.
Duke Heart Pulse June 22nd 2025 – Summer Reading
Chief Message: Summer Reading Program
Hope you are all well. Our Duke Heart Pulse may look different over the next 3 -4 weeks.
The reason for this is that some of you may know that Tracey Koepke, communications director for Duke Heart, was diagnosed with breast cancer in November. She has an excellent care team at DCI, has done well through the first phase of her treatment, and is recovering from the next phase – a surgery. She has been amazing in supporting our teams – and we are supporting her and making sure she knows our thoughts are with her as she works to recover. She is comfortable with my sharing of this information – so keep her in your thoughts and if you get a chance send her a brief note.
While she is out of office (anticipated from till mid July), I have been thinking how to share more with our community. Given the summer time – my sense was to share detailed but concise reviews of things that I am reading – scientific and otherwise, a “summer reading list” if you will. The intention is to provide some thoughts and hopefully stir discussion amongst our community on topics of interest. This weekend I have been on call for our cath lab – so as with several cases and the energy of working with our teams and fellows near the end of their year of training – I wanted to share some thoughts on a book I recently read.
So first – the book that I wish to have you all consider is Super Agers by Eric Topol. As with everything Eric Topol does – it is a factual, easy to read, and informative book on some key themes that I believe will play a bigger role in all of medicine.
First, Eric Topol is a well known cardiologist (with many ties to Duke Faculty) and a history of working on some of our initial clinical trials in cardiovascular medicine, coronary revascularization – as I contemplate where we are with acute MI care this weekend and work with our team at Duke to carry out many of the lessons that Drs. Topol, Califf, Stack, Phillips, Granger, Ohman, Newby, Mark, and countless others have taught us. He is currently the founder and directly of the Scripps Research Translational Institute and still practices cardiology. He is also know as a digital health expert and broad thinker. He was previously also Director of the Cleveland Clinic Heart and Vascular Institute.
The concept for Super Agers he notes came from a study he performed on a cohort of 80 year old and above people with no medications and no signs of systemic disease. They did whole genome sequencing looking for the key genomics as their first hypothesis on what will be different for these people. And found that they are mostly healthy based on a serious of environmental and behavioral findings – and there was nothing in the genome sequences they could find to distinguish these peoples good aging.
These “Super Agers”—individuals who not only live longer but also maintain remarkable cognitive abilities, physical health, and emotional resilience well into their later years seem to have several findings. As noted – the answer is not in their genes. In fact, many had family members with many more clinical issues.
Fundamentally, Topal notes the big three (Cardiovascular disease, Cancer, and Neurodegenerative disease) are the keys to work on achieve Super Aging. In fact, he notes that all of these conditions often “inclubate” for 10- 20 years before clinically manifesting. Herein lies the greates opportunity with new science, technology – when added to routine daily behaviors.
Some Key Themes from the book:
- Defining Super Agers:
- Topol defines Super Agers as those who exhibit exceptional cognitive abilities and emotional well-being in their later years (above 80). They often outperform their peers in memory tests and maintain strong social connections.
- Biological and Environmental Factors:
- The book explores the interplay between genetics, lifestyle choices, and environmental influences on aging. Topol emphasizes the importance of diet, exercise, social interaction, and mental stimulation in promoting healthy aging.
- The Role of Technology:
- Topol is a strong advocate for the integration of technology in healthcare. He discusses how digital health tools, such as wearable devices and telemedicine, can empower individuals to take charge of their health and monitor their well-being.
- He highlights how the confluence of AI, omics, Lifestyle +plus (resistance / muscle training / diet / GLP-1), cells, and drugs and vaccines will lead to many more super agers.
- Neuroscience of Aging:
- The author examines advances in neuroscience that shed light on how the brain changes with age. He discusses neuroplasticity and the potential for the brain to adapt and grow, even in older adults.
- Real-life Examples:
- The book is enriched with stories of Super Agers and insights from researchers in the field of gerontology. Many of these story serve to help understand the work. Importantly – many of the chapters have great tables and all have references.
- Topol provides actionable recommendations for readers to enhance their cognitive and physical health. This includes adopting a Mediterranean diet, engaging in regular physical activity, maintaining social relationships, and pursuing lifelong learning.
Key Biologic Insights:
As is often the case with Eric Topol – he has summarized an amazing amount of information. He covers the GLP-1 and Gut-Brain axis, the biology of aging and three peaks for proteins that work to age, he covers gene editing and beyond, and ends with providing the overall impact of high computational biology and Agentic AI. These parts of the book provide what is likely the processes that we all will see explored to make breakthrough or continue those in diagnosis, immune reprogramming, and measures of biologic age. The book provides over 300 references.
My Take Home Message:
This is one of the next big frontiers for us to consider and conquer in how we move from caring for patients with existing and clinical disease to true prevention of cardiovascular, cancer, and neurodegenerative disease. Many of the process and underpinnings are similar, the technology and data for individual personalization are upon us. Hopefully we can all play a part in building trust in the scientific community and process to ensure these breakthrough reach all in our community.
The book is worth a read if you have the time and interest. Now for me – back to call with our great interventional fellow and team to ensure we can help those with urgent needs while we strive for a better world of prediction and care. Hope you all have a good week and I am open to any other summer reading suggestions from our Duke Heart Community.
Duke Heart Pulse — June 15, 2025
Chief’s message: Fellow Graduation and Happy Father’s Day!
Dear Duke Heart Community: We hope you all got to spend time with family celebrating father’s day. We also hope all the fathers and father figures on our team are having a wonderful day today, especially all those who are celebrating for the first time.
This weekend we also celebrated the general fellows graduation. We were able to have a fun gathering celebrating all the amazing fellows who have gone through our fellowship, their supportive families, and the village of people including faculty, staff and colleagues who help us train the next generation. We are especially appreciative at this time of those in our communities that support our fellowship – and we had the pleasure of having Malbert and Alisa Smith join us. Their Academic Cardiology Excellence award and support joins our other awards and support that include the Greenfield award, the Cassel-Saperstein Award, and the Brandt and Belinda Louie award. All of these and other support is much appreciated as we continue to work to keep the fellowship program the best we can make in the country. Please find some photos from the evening included
DCRI Welcomes New Co-Chief Fellows & Incoming Fellows
The Duke Clinical Research Institute (DCRI) Fellowship Program leadership team has announced that Allison “Allie” Levin, MD, MSc (Cardiology) and Henry Foote, MD (Pediatrics) will be the co-chief fellows during the 2025-2026 academic year. Beginning this July, they will step into the positions currently filled by co-chief fellows Mark Kittipibul, MD, and Annette Roberts, MD. Both Levin and Foote bring a wealth of experience and a passion for advancing medical research and patient care.
“I really look forward to working with Allie and Henry in the upcoming academic year,” said Sana Al-Khatib, MD, professor of medicine in cardiology at Duke and DCRI Fellowship Program Director. “As co-chief fellows, they will undoubtedly be committed to supporting their peers and to taking our program to new heights.”
Henry Foote, MD
Henry Foote grew up outside of Boston before attending Yale University for undergraduate training, where he majored in mechanical engineering and molecular biophysics and biochemistry. He earned his medical degree from the University of North Carolina School of Medicine while conducting cell biology research at Duke University. Foote then returned to Duke for residency, where he completed his combined Internal Medicine-Pediatrics training. Foote is currently pursuing his fellowship training as a Pediatric Cardiologist and Pediatric Critical Care Medicine fellow. He is also working on his master’s in clinical research degree through Duke’s Clinical Research Training Program. His research interest is in improving outcomes in critically ill children.
Allie Levin, MD, MSc
Levin grew up in northern New Jersey and earned her bachelor’s degree in neuroscience from Columbia University. She went on to pursue a master’s degree in biostatistics at Columbia’s Mailman School of Public Health while concurrently serving as the research coordinator for the institution’s mechanical circulatory support program. Levin subsequently earned her medical degree from Columbia University’s Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, where she was inducted into the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society. She was also selected by faculty to receive the Janeway Award, presented to the graduating student with the highest achievement and abilities in the graduating class.
Following her many years in New York, Levin completed her residency in Internal Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School. She is now a third-year Duke general cardiology fellow and in the first of two years of the Duke Clinical Research Institute Fellowship Program. She plans to pursue an advanced fellowship in Heart Failure and Transplant Cardiology, with a special interest in the intersection of heart failure and adult congenital heart disease.
Congratulations, Allie and Henry!
The incoming DCRI fellows from cardiology for 2025-2026 are Jonathan Hanna, Seamus Hughes, Anthony Lin, Joshua Rushakoff, Husam Salah, and Aarti Thakkar. Their fellowships begin on July 1. Continuing fellows include Allison Levin and Paula Rambarat.
From Data to Decisions: A Model for Returning Individual Results to Research Participants
Returning individual research results to clinical study participants has not historically been the norm, even for participants with abnormal findings. The paradigm, though, is shifting, with return of results becoming not only a scientific responsibility but also an ethical imperative. However, best practices haven’t been established yet.
A team of Duke researchers led by Svati H. Shah, MD, MS, Ursula Geller Distinguished Professor of Research in Cardiovascular Diseases, and Neha Pagidipati, MD, MPH, associate professor of medicine in cardiology, have developed a model using the Project Baseline Health Study (PBHS) for how to effectively communicate results to patients and help empower them towards their health and medical choices. The study also detailed the large number of abnormal results that were returned to participants, highlighting the need to consider these processes early in study design. Results were published in the American Journal of Medicine Open.
As scientific research shifts to emphasize transparency, participant empowerment, and the democratization of data, this model demonstrates the feasibility and value of a comprehensive, systematic approach to returning clinically significant findings in a research context.
Project Baseline launched in 2017 to create a comprehensive reference point, or “baseline,” of good health and to build a robust data platform for studying how health transitions to disease. Over 2,500 participants across three sites, including Duke and Stanford, enrolled and completed assessments conducted by the study team that included a wide range of health data, like clinical, genetic, behavioral, and environmental information, through baseline eye, heart and lung imaging and annual visits, wearable devices, surveys, and biospecimen collection.
Among the 2,002 participants analyzed, nearly 40% would receive at least one result that required immediate or urgent attention. In some cases, individuals received as many as eight separate findings, again highlighting the need to return results to study participants to help them manage and be in control of their health choices. The participants had abnormal results returned to them for a variety of conditions, including vital signs, clinical laboratory testing, chest CT scans and X-rays, electrocardiograms, echocardiograms, and ophthalmologic assessments.
To accomplish this task, a Return of Results (RoR) Committee was established early in the study to oversee the return of findings. They developed a systematic, ethical, and clinically informed process for returning individual-level urgent and emergent results to participants and detailed determination for what types of results should be returned and within what time period.
Some results were more pertinent to get to participants faster than others, given potential clinical implications of the abnormal findings, so the team developed a color-coded flag system to prioritize and categorize results:
Red flag: Emergent, requiring immediate clinical attention
Orange flag: Urgent, but less time-sensitive
Yellow flag: Actionable or uncertain results
Green flag: Within expected clinical range
Participants had their results returned to them by site principal investigators — practicing physicians — or their designees.
However, with that many results to return, there is also a strong need for a streamlined process to alleviate the burden placed on health care professionals. So, the Project Baseline team also developed a predictive model using widely available clinical and demographic variables, like age, sex, body mass index, blood pressure, smoking status, and history of chronic conditions, which helped identify which participants were most likely to have actionable results.
As the research community continues to evolve its approach to participant engagement, the Project Baseline study offers a robust framework for returning results ethically and effectively. It also raises important questions for future studies, such as how to define “urgent” findings and how to balance return policies with participant preferences, and the need to consider design and funding for return of results prior to study initiation.
Project Baseline is a groundbreaking initiative between Duke University, Stanford University and Verily Life Sciences. The Duke Clinical Research Institute serves as the coordinating center. Story by Alissa Kocer for Duke School of Medicine.
IM Resident Works to Raise Awareness of ‘Resi-teering’ Opportunities
Victor Ayeni, MD, a PGY-1 Duke Internal Medicine Resident who is currently interning with electrophysiologist Camille Frazier-Mills, MD, is working to raise awareness of community engagement opportunities throughout Durham for Duke IM residents (and others) who might have time to volunteer with organizations that need some support.
His latest ‘resi-teering’ outreach message:
This is Victor again with more community engagement opportunities for June! Many thanks to those of you who came out last month, especially those who came and danced with the kiddos of Bull City Fit. As a reminder, the goal of these events is to help people know and love the Durham community for as long as we’re here, and hopefully create a lot of fun activities that let residents bond with each other, too!
Here’s what we have for the coming month:
Root Causes: Fresh Produce Program
Take a driving tour of Durham and help Root Causes, a Duke organization fighting food insecurity in Durham, by driving groceries to families around the city! They’re in desperate need of help, especially during the summer months. Volunteers are also needed to help pack groceries.
Time: Every Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. (for packing) or 10 a.m. to Noon (drivers)
Location: Uncle Harry’s General Store (1925 Yearby Avenue)
Sign-Up: select a time slot at this link
Contact: Scott Brummel (419-708-4569, scott.brummel@duke.edu)
Durham Refugee Day
Come and celebrate Durham’s refugee and immigrant communities at Durham Refugee Day 2025!
Time: Saturday, June 21 from 3-6 p.m.
Location: Durham Central Park
Sign-Up: You can just drop by and celebrate, but they’re also in need of volunteers and you can sign up for that here!
Contact: None but please let Victor Ayeni– 678-894-5948, victor.ayeni@duke.edu know if you plan to attend so he can get a group together!
Duke Memorial Mobile Market
This opportunity is courtesy of Matt Wood, husband of Jenny Van Kirk, MD. Join one of many local groups fighting food insecurity in Durham as you load and organize food for distribution to our neighbors in Durham.
Time: Saturday, June 20 from 9 a.m.-11 a.m. (but happens every third Saturday)
Location: Duke Memorial (504 W Chapel Hill St)
Sign-Up: Here (there are multiple sign-up times with various tasks to choose from!)
Contact: Matt Wood at 828-301-9703
Finally, for those who can’t make it to these events but want to help out, the group we’ve chosen to highlight for donations this month is CWS Durham. In the spirit of celebrating Durham’s rich refugee and immigrant community, CWS is a major organization in Durham for helping refugee families get resettled. The group helps incoming families with everything from finding housing to getting jobs to providing legal aid. Even more, under the “Get Involved” tab of their site, they have concrete action steps to advocate for refugee populations asynchronously, which hopefully empowers those who want to make a change but don’t know where to start.
As always, these events are either suggested or led by members of the IM residency. If you have any ideas at all about community volunteering events, or about happenings in Durham that could help others get to know the city better, reach out to victor.ayeni@duke.edu to get it added to the next email.
Way to go, Victor! Special thanks to Camille for sharing this with us. We love highlighting the excellent work being done by members of the Duke community!
AAHFN 2025 Update
The American Association of Heart Failure Nurses annual meeting was held June 11-14 at the Westin Savannah Harbor in Savannah, Georgia.
Duke was well-represented with presentations from Stephanie Barnes, Midge Bowers, Mike Felker, Steve Greene, Rob Mentz, and Ashlee Davis, as well as a poster presentation by Johana Fajardo.
Allison Fox and Krystan Coble developed and facilitated a simulation session for physical examination of the heart failure patient. Laura Blue moderated the Mechanical Circulatory Support pre-conference.
Duke had representation from patients, as well!
Heart failure care is multidisciplinary and the role of nurses from bedside through advanced practice and nursing research was highlighted throughout the meeting.
Kudos to all!
DUHS Leadership & Campus Updates:
Duke Health Breaks Ground on Cary Expansion
Duke Health broke ground on a new facility on Thursday, June 12, that adds hospital services at its existing Duke Health Cary location, providing access to health care closer to the homes and workplaces of the community’s rapidly growing population.
The new facility will include phase one of a new inpatient hospital campus, including an emergency department, surgical services, imaging, and a small number of inpatient beds, as well as gastro-intestinal endoscopy, cancer care, and other infusion services in the same building. The building housing these services is expected to be completed in 2027.
“At Duke Health, we strive to provide hope, health, and healing by bringing high-quality care closer to where our patients live and work,” said Craig Albanese, MD, chief executive officer of Duke University Health System. “Cary, and the broader Wake County community, is one of the fastest-growing areas in North Carolina. We want to grow together by providing greater access to the world-class care Duke Health is known for.”
The new hospital services are part of a broader plan for the 85-acre campus at Duke Health Cary. The health system has already received state approval for 40 hospital beds at the location. When fully built, the Cary hospital campus is projected to employ about 1,600 people.
“In 2022, we were excited to open Duke Health Cary with several clinics including primary care, pediatric care, and urgent care,“ said Morgan Jones, chief strategy officer for Duke University Health System. “This next phase of the campus provides a convenient option for emergency and inpatient care. We envision adding more specialized services in the future to round out the needs of the local community. As a live-work-play-care campus, Duke Health Cary will provide high quality, convenient healthcare in a vibrant, mixed-use community and drive further economic development.”
For Cary residents needing hospital services and emergency care, these new services will reduce travel time, which studies show saves lives. Providing Cary residents with convenient, accessible care is aligned with Duke University Health System’s goals for our patients, including:
- Improved adherence: Reduced travel time can enhance patients’ ability to adhere to treatment schedules.
- Lower financial burden: Decreased travel expenses can alleviate the financial strain on patients and their families.
- Enhanced quality of life: Less time spent traveling allows patients more time for rest and recovery, potentially improving overall health.
Upcoming Events & Opportunities
June is Men’s Health Awareness Month and Pride Month
June 19 is Juneteenth
Cardiology Grand Rounds
June 17: Updates from HRS 2025: What does the cardiology community need to know? with Jonathan Piccini, MD. 5 p.m., DN 2002 and via Zoom.
If you missed any of our CGR’s from the past year, all Duke Cardiology Grand Rounds recordings are housed on Warpwire. To access recordings please visit:
NET ID and password are required. Enjoy!
CD Fellows Core Curriculum Conference
June 18: Board Review with Paula Rambarat and Nishant Shah. Noon, Hybrid: DMP 7E39 and Zoom.
June 20: No conference
June 25: TBD.
June 27: Returning Fellows Orientation with Anna Lisa Chamis. Noon, Zoom.
Upcoming Duke Heart CMEs
The following CME activities, sponsored by Duke Heart, have been scheduled. Registration is coming soon.
- October 4, 2025: Duke Cardiac Sonography Symposium (live event at Trent Semans Center)
- October 31, 2025: 17th Annual NC Research Triangle Pulmonary Hypertension Symposium (live event at Durham Convention Center)
DCRI Research Forum
The Duke Clinical Research Institute will welcome Durham Mayor Leo Williams as their guest for the final DCRI Research Forum of the 2024-25 season. We hope you’ll join us for this fireside chat from Noon-1 p.m. on Tuesday, June 24.
What: DCRI Research Forum: A Fireside Chat with Durham Mayor Leo Williams
When: Noon-1 p.m., Tuesday, June 24.
Where: Zoom: https://duke.zoom.us/j/99974125544?pwd=UvTBQn3QOeF2JYXfwQJ4QmfU89XMpf.1
Webinar ID: 999 7412 5544
Duke School of Medicine Events
State of the School Address
Thursday, June 26, 12 p.m. — 12:45 p.m.; Great Hall, Trent Semans Center for Health Education
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 with any questions: 919-681-2868. Feedback on Pulse is welcome and encouraged. Submissions by Noon on Wednesdays will be considered for weekend inclusion.
Duke Heart in the News:
June 1 — Harry Severance
Emergency Physicians Monthly
Add Another Year to Physician Residency Training?
June 6 — Craig Albanese
Triangle Business Journal
June 6 — Duke University Hospital
HIT Consultant
Avant-garde Health Reveals the Top 13 Research Hospitals in the U.S.
June 6 — Stephen Greene
HCP Live/Podcast
Don’t Miss a Beat: CONFIDENCE Trial and Combination T2D, CKD Therapy at Heart in Diabetes 2025
June 7 — Stephen Greene
HCP Live
Contemporary Guideline-Directed Medical Therapy Underused in Heart Failure
June 7 — Neha Pagidipati
HCP Live
Improving Evidence-Based Cardiometabolic Care, with Neha Pagidipati, MD, MPH
June 8 — Robert Califf
HCP Live
Confronting Cardiology’s Data Accessibility Problem, with Robert Califf, MD
June 9 — Adrian Hernandez
NBC News
As ivermectin goes over the counter, some pharmacists worry about a lack of guidance
June 10 — Scott Gibson
Duke Chronicle
How the School of Medicine plans to cut $125 million by next year
June 12 — Duke University & Duke CTSI
NC Newsline
HHS budget cuts threaten America’s health and innovation—including in NC
Duke Heart Pulse — June 8, 2025
Highlights of the week:
Dzau Awarded Order of the Rising Sun by Emperor of Japan
The government of Japan announced in April that Victor J. Dzau, MD, Chancellor Emeritus and James B. Duke Distinguished Professor of Medicine at Duke, and president of the National Academy of Medicine, has been awarded one of its highest honors — the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon — bestowed by the Emperor of Japan for his contributions to the promotion of academic exchange, global health and mutual understanding between Japan and the United States.
The Order of the Rising Sun was founded in 1875 by Emperor Meiji and is bestowed on foreigners for significant contributions to Japan.
Dzau, a cardiologist and principal-investigator with the Duke Cardiovascular Research Center, has made a significant impact on medicine through his seminal research in cardiovascular medicine and genetics and his leadership in healthcare innovation. His work on the renin angiotensin system (RAS) paved the way for the contemporary understanding of RAS in cardiovascular disease and the development of RAS inhibitors as widely used lifesaving drugs. He also pioneered gene therapy for vascular disease, and his work on stem cell paracrine mechanisms and the use of microRNA in direct reprogramming has provided insight into stem cell biology and regenerative medicine. Dzau has actively contributed to the G20 Health Task Force during his presidency at NAM, and has co-led the Japan-U.S. Global Health Dialogue, which brings together government officials, academics, and industry leaders from the fields of international health in Japan and the U.S. He is also a member of the prestigious Japan Academy, and the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science’s Program Committee of the Japan World Premier International Research Center Initiative. The initiative brings together global university presidents, Nobel laureates, industry experts, and other prominent leaders to steer Japan’s efforts to become a world-class research center.
“I am proud to contribute to efforts to advance excellence in Japan’s scientific and medical enterprise and help it build lasting connections with the global health community,” said Dzau. “I am honored to receive this recognition from the Japanese government and look forward to continuing this important work of mutual benefit to both Japan and the U.S.”
Other spring 2025 recipients of the award include the former Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Hsieh Loong, International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach, and U.S. Senator Bill Hagerty, former U.S. ambassador to Japan.
Congratulations, Dr. Dzau!
DCRI Fellowship Program Graduates Eight Researchers, Recognizes Excellence
On May 8, the Duke Clinical Research Institute hosted a celebration at the University Club in Durham to honor eight graduates of the DCRI Fellowship Program.
The event gathered fellows, mentors, leaders, and family members to recognize the accomplishments of the 2025 graduates of the fellowship program.
Sana Al-Khatib, the program director, along with associate directors Neha Pagidipati and Adam Goode, presented awards and shared personal congratulations with the fellows.
“To our remarkable fellows, you have consistently impressed us with your commitment to this program and your passion for advancing patient care,” Al-Khatib said. “We are immensely proud of all you have accomplished during your time with us and excited to see the impact you will continue to make in your careers.”
Rachel Greenberg received the Robert M. Califf Award for Outstanding Mentorship. This award recognizes a DCRI faculty member who has demonstrated excellence in mentorship activities for DCRI research fellows. Current DCRI fellows select the award through nominations, discussion, and voting.
Veraprapas “Mark” Kittipibul, 2024-2025 co-chief fellow, was presented with this year’s Robert A. Harrington Excellence in Fellowship Award, which recognizes a graduating DCRI research fellow who has contributed the most to the program during his or her tenure. It recognizes excellence in academic accomplishment, participation in clinical research operations, and peer-to-peer mentoring.
The Karen S. Pieper Teaching and Fellowship Support Award was awarded to Jenny Jackman in recognition of a non-faculty colleague at the DCRI who a consistent contributor to the education of fellows and a strong supporter of the fellowship program has been.
This year, two Eric D. Peterson Manuscript Awards were presented, one to Andrew Andreae and the other to Jeeyon “Grace” Rim. This honor is awarded to a graduating DCRI research fellow whose writing excellence is demonstrated in an impactful and novel article, as well as for their superior writing skills and potential impact on the field.
This year’s DCRI Fellowship Citizenship Award recipient is 2024-2025 co-chief fellow Annette Roberts. Awardees are graduating DCRI fellows chosen for their strong character and leadership, devoted service to the institution, acceptance of responsibilities and duties, and positive attitude towards peers, the DCRI, and the medical community. The recipients of this award are also recognized for demonstrating an eagerness to learn, showing care for others, and helping when needed.
Congratulations to this year’s awards recipients and the following 2025 graduating fellows:
Andrew Andreae, MD, specialty: cardiology, mentor: Jonathan Piccini
Benjamin Catanese, MD, specialty: nephrology, mentor: Daniel Edmonston
Pishoy Gouda, MB, BCH, BAO, MSC, specialty: cardiology, mentor: Schuyler Jones
Veraprapas “Mark” Kittipibul, MD, Co-Chief Fellow, specialty: cardiology, mentors: Robert Mentz, Marat Fudim
Nkiru “KiKi” Osude, MD, MS, specialty: cardiology, mentor: Neha Pagidipati
Jeeyon “Grace” Rim, MD, specialty: pulmonary/critical care, mentors: Jamie Todd, Scott Palmer
Annette Roberts, MD, MPH, Co-Chief Fellow, specialty: pediatrics/gastroenterology, mentors: Rachel Greenberg, Brian Smith
Manasi Tannu, MD, MPH, specialty: cardiology, mentor: Schuyler Jones
Heart Failure Symposium Held
Duke Heart held its annual Duke Heart Failure Symposium yesterday, June 7, 2025, at the Durham Convention Center. It was a resounding success – our largest so far with more than 255 registrants and 25+ industry sponsors. This year’s theme was Leading Edge in Medical Management.
We had broad representation from across NC and SC, making this a truly regional conference. We also had external speakers, including former Duke fellow Josephine Harrington, MD who joined us from Colorado, and Carlos Santos Gallegos who joined us from NYC.
A special shout out to Christy Darnell, who did a tremendous job both in planning and execution of the symposium, as well as Anthony Doll who ensured excellence with audio and visual presentations.
Congratulations to the entire Duke Heart Failure team – keep up the amazing work!
Cardiac MRI Reaccredited by IAC
Duke Heart’s Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Imaging team has received renewed three-year Intersocietal Accreditation Commission (IAC) accreditation for demonstrating excellence and documenting quality care in the field of Cardiovascular MRI.
IAC accreditation is a means by which MRI facilities can evaluate and demonstrate the level of patient care they provide.
Congratulations to the entire cMRI team and thank you for your skill and dedication to ensuring this distinction of quality for all Duke Health patients!
Moore Reaches Career Milestone!
Congratulations to Annette Moore, Health Center Administrator for cardiology at Duke Health Center Arringdon who is celebrating 40 YEARS with Duke! This is an amazing achievement and a tremendously important career milestone. We are grateful for her support, commitment, and unwavering leadership throughout her time at Duke Health. She is a leader that people trust and follow, and she has truly left her mark on Duke Heart.
Annette, congrats on 40 years of making a difference to our patients and to your teammates, and for directly impacting so many people!
Teves Appointed NM, Operations 7100, Effective June 9
We are pleased to announce the appointment of Melissa Teves, BSN, RN, CCRN, as Nurse Manager of Operations for the Cardiology Stepdown Unit 7100 at Duke University Hospital, effective June 9th. We also acknowledge the significant contributions Ashley Frazier made to Duke Heart patients and staff during her service as the 7100 Nurse Manager. We wish her well with her future endeavors!
Melissa earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Hawaii Pacific University in 2001. She began her nursing career in Hawaii as a GenMed/MICU nurse before joining Duke Health in March 2003. Her first role at Duke was in the Trauma/Surgical Stepdown Unit (formerly 2300, now 6DCT), and she soon transitioned to the Surgical Intensive Care Unit (6W), where she served as an Assistant Nurse Manager.
While in the SICU, Melissa played a pivotal role in advancing safety, quality, and educational initiatives. Notably, she co-created and presented the SICU Core Classes and participated in a range of leadership activities both within her unit and across the broader nursing community. During this time, she also became a Clinical Ladder Advisor.
In January 2023, Melissa transitioned into hospital administration as an Operations Administrator. In this role, she continued to demonstrate her leadership through active participation in the Schedule, Standard Work, and Orientation Committee. She has also been a contributor to the Workplace Violence Committee and the Behavior Concern Flag Oversight Committee.
Melissa’s leadership extends beyond Duke. She is actively engaged in the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN), serving in local and national roles. Most recently, she served as co-president of the Triangle Chapter and as a national Beacon Reviewer. She also completed a three-year term as Chapter Advisor (CAT) for Region 5, covering North and South Carolina. Through her work with AACN, Melissa has become an enthusiastic advocate for Healthy Work Environments and a commitment to wellness and excellence.
Please join us in congratulating Melissa on her new role!
Quote of the Week
“The Pacers have a really fast-paced game, but I think Jalen Brunson’s the real deal. My prediction is the Knicks in six.” — Sunil Rao, director of interventional cardiology, NYU Langone. (Quoted in The New Yorker article “Knicks in Six? Ask Fran Lebowitz, Alison Roman, and Spike Lee”)
Save the Dates: Upcoming SOM Events
Two notable events for Duke School of Medicine are scheduled for this month. Please save the dates and consider attending.
June 10: School of Medicine Leadership Town Hall: Financial and Operational Strategy Updates
12 p.m. – 12:45 p.m. via Zoom.
June 26: School of Medicine State of the School Address
12 p.m. — 12:45 p.m.; Great Hall, Trent Semans Center for Health Education
DUHS Leadership & Campus Updates:
June is Pride Month
As we enter the month of June, we take the opportunity to recognize Pride Month and celebrate the strength, resilience, and contributions of the LGBTQ+ community – both within our organization and beyond.
At Duke Health, we are deeply committed to fostering an environment where every individual is safe, respected, and valued. We believe that delivering exceptional care, groundbreaking research, and top-notch education requires us to stand for values and actions that promote health for all communities.
Pride Month is not only a time of celebration, but also a time for reflection and continued commitment to lead with compassion, cultural humility, and a steadfast dedication to treating all people with dignity and respect.
We take pride in each other – this month and every month. Thank you for being part of a community that champions dignity, humanity, and respect for all.
Register Now for the 2025 Duke Health Juneteenth Celebration
Everyone is invited to attend the 2025 Duke Health Juneteenth Celebration on Tuesday, June 17 from 11:30 a.m. – 1 p.m. The hybrid event will take place in the Great Hall of the Trent Semans Center (registration is full) and virtually.
The guest speaker will be Christopher Wolfe, a West Point graduate and Bronze Star recipient. He served in the U.S. Army before earning an MBA from Duke. He later pursued an MFA at Columbia University, where he was selected as the inaugural Artist-in-Residence at the Eric H. Holder Jr. Initiative for Civil and Political Rights, teaching creative writing at Columbia and at Rikers Island through the university’s Justice-in-Education Initiative.
The Duke Children’s Health Center Turns 25!
The Duke Children’s Health Center (CHC) is celebrating 25 years since its doors first opened. To celebrate, CHC team members gathered for remarks from Clinical Operations Director, Kristen Ammon who spoke on the history of CHC and recognized team members who have been with the CHC from the beginning. Frozen treats followed and to ensure everyone could celebrate, Kristen Ammon, Heather Harrison, and Kristin Parker delivered treats and commemorative pens to each floor of the CHC.
Congratulations on this milestone, Duke CHC!
Upcoming Events & Opportunities
June is Men’s Health Awareness Month and Pride Month
June 9-15: Men’s Health Week
Cardiology Grand Rounds
June 10: Revascularization for Ischemic Cardiomyopathy: Disproving the 45-year-old Concept of Hibernating Myocardium with Aman Kansal, MD. 5 p.m., Zoom only.
June 17: Updates from HRS 2025: What Does the Cardiology Community Need to Know? with Jonathan Piccini, MD. 5 p.m., DN 2002 and via Zoom.
If you missed any of our CGR’s from the past year, all Duke Cardiology Grand Rounds recordings are housed on Warpwire. To access recordings please visit:
NET ID and password are required. Enjoy!
CD Fellows Core Curriculum Conference
June 11: DHP with Mugdha Joshi. Noon, DMP 7E39.
June 13: Annual Duke Cardiovascular Disease fellowship program review with Anna Lisa Chamis. Noon, Zoom.
June 18: Board Review with Paula Rambarat and Nishant Shah. Noon, Hybrid: DMP 7E39 and Zoom.
June 20: No conference
June 25: TBD.
June 27: Returning Fellows Orientation with Anna Lisa Chamis. Noon, Zoom.
Upcoming Duke Heart CMEs
The following CME activities, sponsored by Duke Heart, have been scheduled. Registration is coming soon.
- October 4, 2025: Duke Cardiac Sonography Symposium (live event at Trent Semans Center)
- October 31, 2025: 17th Annual NC Research Triangle Pulmonary Hypertension Symposium (live event at Durham Convention Center)
2025 Duke Health Juneteenth Celebration
Everyone is invited to attend the 2025 Duke Health Juneteenth Celebration on Tuesday, June 17 from 11:30 a.m. – 1 p.m. This in-person event will take place in the Great Hall of the Trent Semans Center. Team members can also attend virtually.
The guest speaker will be Christopher Wolfe, a West Point graduate and Bronze Star recipient. He served in the U.S. Army before earning an MBA from Duke. He later pursued an MFA at Columbia University, where he was selected as the inaugural Artist-in-Residence at the Eric H. Holder Jr. Initiative for Civil and Political Rights, teaching creative writing at Columbia and at Rikers Island through the university’s Justice-in-Education Initiative.
2025 Duke Caregiver Community Event – Register Now!
The annual Duke Caregiver Community Event provides education, support, and valuable resources for those who are navigating the complex journey of caring for others. Attend informative presentations from experts in caregiving and wellness and visit our exhibit hall to connect with representatives from more than 100 organizations to discover tools that can assist in every aspect of caregiving.
The event will be held on September 3 and 4 from 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. at the Sheraton Imperial Hotel in Durham. You can attend one or both days. Learn more and register here.
Duke School of Medicine Events
Leadership Town Hall: Financial and Operational Strategy Updates
Tuesday, June 10, 12 p.m. – 12:45 p.m. via Zoom.
State of the School Address
Thursday, June 26, 12 p.m. — 12:45 p.m.; Great Hall, Trent Semans Center for Health Education
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 with any questions: 919-681-2868. Feedback on Pulse is welcome and encouraged. Submissions by Noon on Wednesdays will be considered for weekend inclusion.
Duke Heart in the News:
May 31 — Dawn Coleman
Vascular Specialist
Taking the lead: The vascular surgeon in the pediatric vascular surgical space
June 2 — Duke University Hospital
Cardiovascular Business
The top 25 heart hospitals in the United States (#15)
June 2 — Susan Faye Dent (formerly DCI)
Pharmacy Times
June 3 — Mitch Krucoff
tctMD
Words of Wisdom for Early-Career Interventional Cardiologists
June 3 — Stephen Greene
HCP Live
Cardiology Month in Review: 2025
June 4 — Bradi Granger and Anna Tharakan (formerly with Bass Connections)
American Hospital Association Advancing Health Podcast
How Duke University Is Fighting Hypertension Through Community Collaboration
June 4 — Adrian Hernandez
Newsweek
Can Trump Tackle US ‘Chronic Disease Crisis’? Experts Weigh In
June 5 — Stephen Greene and Robert Califf
Healio/Endocrinology
What not to miss at the upcoming Heart in Diabetes meeting
June 6 — Joseph Turek
The Charlotte Observer
After mystery staph infection, heart surgery, Charlotte girl is back on her feet
Duke Heart Pulse — June 1, 2025
Chief’s message: End of Year events and looking back to see the future
Hopefully you all are having a wonderful weekend. This month marks the end of the school year and full spring in North Carolina. We will have our end of year fellow events and see our graduates off into the world of cardiovascular medicine – charged with the skills, will, and drive to improve cardiovascular health in our communities and those they practice in around the world. We will highlight those events in the upcoming weeks. There were also high school and college graduations in the last weeks. For those of you with graduates – congratulations – the time, love and energy to get to these moments is amazing and worth celebrating.
Finally, we are also rely on our own past, culture, and work to see how we can move forward to continue to improve and change science and health. Perhaps no one has been as much a part of that culture in Duke Cardiology and Duke Heart as Rob Califf, for whom there was a celebration this weekend. We will share more photos as they become available – but Rob was remembered by colleagues near and far (including collaborators, trainees, and many of our own cardiovascular team members) that came to the Granger’s Farm to celebrate Rob. 
The evening was filled with funny stories, memories, and most of all a testament to the culture and commitment to science, truth, data, and patient care that Rob Califf has instilled over 40 years at Duke. Whatever the challenges we face to improve the lives of people with 
cardiovascular disease, we are blessed by the people, teams and culture of discovery and excellence in care over the years.
Congratulations to Rob and we look forward to his continued leadership and direction on our journey of continual improvement in CV health.
Highlights of the week:
Adult Cardiac STS Results Through December 2024
The Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) has released analyzed results for Harvest 1 2025, which include the three-year period from January 2022 through December 2024. The data are from the STS Adult Cardiac Surgery Database (ACSD) and announced by STS as part of their public reporting initiative.
Duke received 3-star (Better than Expected) ratings for isolated coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) procedures, isolated aortic valve replacement (AVR) surgery, and isolated mitral valve replacement or repair (MVRR) surgery; and 2-star (As Expected) ratings for AVR+CABG and MVRR+CABG.
A new Multiprocedural Overall rating has been added to the latest analysis by STS, and we are pleased to announce Duke received a 3-star rating in that category. The Multiprocedural cases include CABG, AVR, AVR+CABG, MVRR, MVRR+CABG, AVR+MVRR, and AVR+MVRR+CABG.
The STS star rating system is one of the most sophisticated and highly regarded overall measures of quality in health care, rating the benchmarked outcomes of cardiothoracic surgery programs in the U.S. Star ratings are calculated using a combination of quality measures for specific procedures performed by an STS Adult Cardiac Surgery Database (ACSD) participant.
Great job, everyone!
Mobile Cath Lab Opens at Duke Raleigh
The Duke Raleigh Hospital’s cardiac catheterization team has opened a temporary mobile cath lab space while their Cath Lab Room 1 is being upgraded. The mobile unit was placed in April and several weeks were spent securing and equipping the space for approval by the NC Division of Health Service Regulation (DHSR).
The team shut down Cath Room 1 on May 22 and moved into the new mobile space. Their first cath patient was in the mobile unit the next day.
Construction to Room 1 is expected to last about six months. The newly upgraded space should be operational in November.
Julie Yamadi, director of Heart and Procedural Services for Duke Raleigh expressed, “special thanks to Kyarra Rogers from hospital operations; the Facility, Planning, Design and Construction team; Materials Management — especially Kevin Lawson, the supply chain team lead; to J.P., our cath lab nurse manager and to the entire cath team, and Dr. James Mills, who is supportive of everything we do.”
Great progress, Raleigh team!
McDermott Named VAD Team Lead, Effective July 1
We are excited to share that Jaime McDermott, DNP, will become the Ventricular Assist Device (VAD) Team Leader starting July 1. Jaime has been with our VAD team since 2024 and previously was a valuable member of the Cardiology Advanced Practice Provider team at Duke University Hospital.
Jaime is well respected by her peers and colleagues. Her passion for supporting teams and the patient experience, coupled with her past involvement in VAD program development and quality and process improvement, make her a wonderful choice for this role.
Congratulations, Jaime!
Leadership Changes within Cardiology APP Team, Effective July 1
Allison Lindgren, PA-C, will be stepping down from her role as Co-Team Leader of the Cardiology APP team at the end of June. While her leadership in this capacity will be missed, we are pleased that she will continue to be with the APP team as a provider.
“I want to take a moment to sincerely thank Allison for her dedication, hard work, and the thoughtful leadership she brought to her role,” said Diane Sauro, director, Advanced Practice for Duke Heart. “Her contributions have made a lasting impact, and her commitment to excellence has helped shape the strong, collaborative team we are today. Please join me in expressing our heartfelt appreciation to Allison for all she has done, and in looking forward to the continued opportunity to work alongside her.”
Nicolena D’Sola, APRN, NP-C, will step into the role of Co-Team Leader for the Cardiology APP team on July 1. She will join the current Co-Team Leader Faith Williams. Nicolena has been a dedicated provider on the Cardiology APP team for the past four years.
“Throughout her time with us, she has consistently demonstrated a deep commitment to our patients and a genuine passion for supporting her colleagues,” Sauro said. “Her calm composure, thoughtful approach, and ability to foster positive relationships have made her a trusted and respected member of our team. Nicolena is a passionate advocate for our team’s well-being and success, and we are confident that her leadership will bring continued strength and unity to our group.
Congratulations, Nicolena and thank you, Allison!
Shout-out to Champion!
We received a wonderful compliment this week about cardiology fellow Cosette Champion, MD.
“I just wanted to put in a shout-out to what an incredible doctor Cosette is. I have been on echo with her for several days over the past few weeks and she always goes above and beyond for patient care (including escorting a chest wall patient to the bathroom; going to check on a gen med patient with endocarditis to make sure they were well enough for the floor; always knowing patient histories thoroughly). A truly empathetic and caring doctor!” — Svati Shah, MD, MHS
Way to go, Cosette!
Boyd Named to Chron15 List
Congratulations to Thoracic Surgery resident Rebekah Boyd, MD! She was named this week to the 2024-2025 Chron15: Duke’s icons, leaders, pioneers list by the Duke Chronicle. At the end of each academic year, The Chronicle names five icons, five leaders and five pioneers. Boyd made the ‘Icons’ list along with Cooper Flagg, Manny Diaz, Ed Sheeran, and Luis Alonso Juárez.
Nominated by Chronicle readers and selected by a committee of Chronicle staff, this year’s Chron15 members are both individuals and groups who have built community and rallied around a cause. The article states, “They’re people who have dedicated themselves to making the Duke community a more welcoming place to be. They are people who have inspired us all, and they are people who make Duke, Duke.”
Read all about it here. Congratulations, Rebekah!
Tannu Presented CGR on May 27
Thank you to everyone who joined us on Tuesday evening last week for Cardiology Grand Rounds. If you missed this CGR, Manasi Tannu’s presentation, Post MI Inflammation and Trials of Emerging Therapies, can be found in Warpwire: https://warpwire.duke.edu/w/I-AIAA/
This Week: CGR Presenter will be Andrew Andreae, MD
Please join us on Tuesday, June 3 at 5 p.m. for Cardiology Grand Rounds with Andrew Andreae, MD. He will present Leadless Pacemakers: Are We Ready to Cut the Cord? The location will be DN 2002, or you can join via Zoom. See your calendar invitation for the link.
Save the Dates: Upcoming SOM Events
Two notable events for Duke School of Medicine are scheduled for this month. Please save the dates and consider attending.
June 10: School of Medicine Leadership Town Hall: Financial and Operational Strategy Updates. 12 p.m. – 12:45 p.m. via Zoom.
June 26: School of Medicine State of the School Address. 12 p.m. — 12:45 p.m.; Great Hall, Trent Semans Center for Health Education. More information
Submissions for Pulse, June 16-July 11
Please send any news content for Pulse directly to Manesh Patel from June 16 – July 11. Our communications director will be on leave during this time. Thank you!
DUHS Leadership & Campus Updates:
Thomas Appointed Chief FEOO
Robin Thomas has been appointed Chief Facilities, Engineering & Operations Officer, Medical Center & Duke Health, effective immediately. The news was announced on Thursday by Tom Owens, MD, executive vice president and chief operating officer of DUHS, and Scott Gibson, executive dean for administration of the Duke SOM.
Many of you have had the opportunity to work with Robin over the past several years in her role as Executive Director of Engineering & Operations for Duke Health. In that time, she has demonstrated exceptional leadership, integrity, and a deep commitment to our teams and facilities. Her ability to drive meaningful transformation while building strong, collaborative relationships has positioned her as a trusted and respected partner across our health system.
In her new role, Robin will provide strategic and operating leadership for the Engineering & Operations (E&O), Facility, Planning, Design & Construction (FPDC), and Occupational & Environmental Safety Office (OESO) teams who support our Duke Health facilities, including Duke University Health System hospitals and clinics, and the Duke University Schools of Medicine and Nursing.
Robin is a certified general contractor, has a PMP certificate, LEED AP BD+C, EIT Certification, and has completed Lean Six Sigma Green Belt training. She will work closely with leaders across DUHS, SOM, SON, and Duke University to support our long-term strategic priorities and ensure our physical environment continues to serve as a strong foundation for discovery, healing, and learning.
Congratulations, Robin!
Upcoming Events & Opportunities
June is Men’s Health Awareness Month
June 9-15: Men’s Health Week
Cardiology Grand Rounds
June 3: Leadless Pacemakers: Are We Ready to Cut the Cord with Andrew Andreae, MD. 5 p.m., DN 2002 and via Zoom.
If you missed any of our CGR’s from the past year, all Duke Cardiology Grand Rounds recordings are housed on Warpwire. To access recordings please visit:
NET ID and password are required. Enjoy!
CD Fellows Core Curriculum Conference
June 4: HF/Tx with Aubrie Carroll. Noon, DMP 7E39.
June 6: EP Case Presentation with Hannah Schwennesen and Jemi Galani. Noon, Zoom.
June 11: DHP with Mugdha Joshi. Noon, DMP 7E39.
June 13: Program Review with Anna Lisa Chamis. Noon, Zoom.
June 18: Board Review with Paula Rambarat and Nishant Shah. Noon, Hybrid: DMP 7E39 and Zoom.
June 20: No conference
June 25: TBD.
June 27: Returning Fellows Orientation with Anna Lisa Chamis. Noon, Zoom.
Upcoming Duke Heart CMEs
The following CME activities, sponsored by Duke Heart, have been scheduled. Registration coming soon; now open for June 7th symposia.
- June 7, 2025: Duke Heart Failure Symposium (live event at Durham Convention Center in Durham). Registration is required.
- October 4, 2025: Duke Cardiac Sonography Symposium (live event at Trent Semans Center)
- October 31, 2025: 17th Annual NC Research Triangle Pulmonary Hypertension Symposium (live event at Durham Convention Center)
Duke School of Medicine Events
Leadership Town Hall: Financial and Operational Strategy Updates
Tuesday, June 10, 12 p.m. – 12:45 p.m. via Zoom.
State of the School Address
Thursday, June 26, 12 p.m. — 12:45 p.m.; Great Hall, Trent Semans Center for Health Education
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 with any questions: 919-681-2868. Feedback on Pulse is welcome and encouraged. Submissions by Noon on Wednesdays will be considered for weekend inclusion.
Duke Heart in the News:
May 25 — Duke University Hospital
The Signal (Santa Clarita Valley, CA)
Ventura family in SCV awaits life-saving transplant for newborn
May 28 — Robert Califf
Spectrum News Central NC
Changes on COVID vaccine recommendations – how do agencies interact on health policy?
May 28 — Adjoa Boateng Evans (Anesthesiology)
Woman’s World
Broken Heart Syndrome Symptoms Can Mimic a Heart Attack—What You Need to Know to Stay Safe
