Cardiology Fellowship Graduates Launch Careers and Pursue Additional Training

The University of Arizona Sarver Heart Center and the Division of Cardiology at UArizona College of Medicine – Tucson celebrated the graduation of eight cardiologists, including six who completed the three-year Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship Program and two who completed an additional year of specialized training in the Interventional Cardiology Fellowship Program.

Cardiovascular Disease Graduates with Dr. Nancy Sweitzer and Dr. Julia Indik (center). Fellows from left: Muhammad Ajmal, Omid Yousefian, Steven Chase Stroud, Sundeep Shenoy, David Hamilton, Gary Chan

“This is a heartfelt celebration of all you have accomplished,” said Nancy Sweitzer, MD, PhD, in her welcome remarks. “You have all become skilled cardiologists, thanks to the dedication of our faculty.  We are so proud of all our graduates, who you are now as well as who you will become,” added Dr. Sweitzer, professor of medicine, chief of cardiology and director of the Sarver Heart Center at the College of Medicine – Tucson.

“Thank you to the graduating class who have collaborated to make our program better. Collegial is a word I would absolutely use to describe this class of graduates,” said Julia Indik, MD, PhD, professor of medicine and program director of the Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship Program.

Cardiovascular Disease Fellows and their next career moves:

  • Muhammad Ajmal, MBBS – Interventional Cardiology Fellowship, University of Arizona Sarver Heart Center
  • Gary Chan, DO, PhD – Cardiologist, MercyOne Siouxland Medical Center, Sioux City, Iowa
  • David Hamilton, MD – Cardiology Faculty, Southern Arizona Veterans Health Care System, Tucson
  • Sundeep Shenoy, MBBS - Interventional Cardiology Fellowship, University of Arizona Sarver Heart Center
  • Steven Chase Stroud, MD - Heart Failure Fellowship, Columbia Cornell University, New York City
  • Omid Yousefian, MD - Cardiac Electrophysiology Fellowship, Cedars Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles

Interventional Fellow Cardiology graduates Kristina Skinner (left) and Chioma Nwagbara (right) with Fellowship Director Deepak Acharya

“First, thank you to the families of our interventional cardiology fellows for your support. There are a lot of calls, a lot of overnights, a lot of long hours. This requires substantial sacrifices from families and loved ones. I am very proud of our fellows who are the backbone of the cath lab. They’ve been resilient through the detours COVID has given us. I’m happy to call you partners and colleagues,” said Deepak Acharya, MD, MSPH, associate professor of medicine and program director of the Interventional Cardiology Fellowship Program.

Interventional Cardiology Fellows and their next steps:

  • Chioma Nwagbara, MBBS – Interventional Cardiologist, CHI Saint Joseph Hospital, London, Kentucky
  • Kristina Skinner, DO - Interventional Cardiologist, Saline Memorial Hospital, Benton, Arkansas

Outstanding Fellow Awards

Faculty members of the Division of Cardiology also selected Cardiovascular Disease Fellows for the following awards:

  • Outstanding Fellow On Call (TIE), and Outstanding Performance in Interventional Cardiology – Dr. Ajmal, MBBS, graduate
  • Outstanding Fellow On Call (TIE)- Jeffrey Tran, MD, rising second-year fellow
  • Outstanding Performance in Cardiac Imaging- David Hamilton, MD, graduate
  • Outstanding Performance in Heart Failure- Steven Chase Stroud, MD, graduate
  • Outstanding Performance in Electrophysiology- Omid Yousefian, MD, graduate
  • The Mark J. Friedman, MD, Outstanding Fellow award – Mahesh Balakrishnan, MBBS, rising third-year and chief fellow.

Outstanding Faculty Awards

Graduating fellows presented the following awards to faculty members:

  • Procedural Attending of the Year- Madhan Sundaram, MD, clinical assistant professor
  • Best Clinic Attending - Tushar Acharya, MD, MPH, clinical assistant professor
  • Best Teacher - Arka Chatterjee, MD, associate professor
  • Best Attending Faculty to Be On-Call With (TIE) - Elizabeth Juneman, MD, associate professor
  • Best Attending Faculty to Be On-Call With (TIE) - Satinder Singh, MD, assistant professor
  • Best Attending AKA “Fellows Favorite”- Krishan Patel, MD, clinical assistant professor, Southern Arizona Veterans Health Care System, Tucson
  • Fellowship Mentor of the Graduating Class of 2018-2021- Mark Friedman, MD, professor

Maharesh Balakrishnan accepts the award from Dr. Nancy Sweitzer and Dr. Mark Friedman

The University of Arizona Sarver Heart Center Fellows in the Division of Cardiology, College of Medicine – Tucson,  train with faculty at Banner University Medical Center Tucson, South and North, Southern Arizona Veterans Health Care System in Tucson, and St. Mary’s Hospital.  For more information on these cardiology training programs, visit https://heart.arizona.edu/education