Dr. Robert Hendel named interim chief of cardiovascular division

Robert C. Hendel, M.D., professor of medicine and radiology, has been named interim Chief of the Cardiovascular Division at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. Before this appointment, he was the Associate Chief of Clinical Cardiology, Director of the Cardiac Care Unit and Director of Cardiac Imaging at the Miller School.

A skilled cardiologist, Hendel specializes in the diagnosis and management of complex cardiac diseases with a particular focus on cardiac imaging and the appropriate use of cardiac technology. He has authored more than 150 publications and two textbooks as well as given invited lectures in more than 10 countries.

“Dr. Hendel has made important contributions in the area of myocardial perfusion imaging and is lauded for his outstanding mentorship and teaching skills,” said Roy E. Weiss, M.D., Ph.D., professor and Chairman of Medicine. “I am grateful to him for taking on this significant interim leadership role and look forward to working with him.”

Hendel received his undergraduate degree from Northwestern University before receiving his medical degree, with distinction, from George Washington University School of Medicine. He completed his residency in internal medicine at Northwestern University and went on to receive fellowship training in cardiovascular disease at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. After specialized training in nuclear cardiology, he returned as a faculty member to Northwestern University, where he remained for almost 10 years, before he moved to Rush University Medical Center, serving as the Director of the Coronary Care Unit and the Director of Nuclear Cardiology.

Nationally, Hendel has served as President of the American Society of Nuclear Cardiology and as President of the Cardiovascular Council of the Society of Nuclear Medicine, as well as chairing various committees for the American College of Cardiology (ACC) and American Heart Association. Recently he was elected to a five-year term on the Board of Trustees for the ACC, the chief governing and policy-making body for the 47,000-member organization. He also serves on the editorial board of five medical journals and is a section editor for Journal of the American College of Cardiology: Imaging.

Hendel succeeds Mauro Moscucci, M.D., M.B.A., who served as Chief of the Cardiovascular Division for five years. His appointment takes effect August 1.

Weiss has charged a committee, led by Alessia Fornoni, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of medicine, to conduct a national search and evaluation for a permanent Chief of the Cardiovascular Division. The committee will include Barry J. Materson, M.D., M.B.A., professor of medicine; Rafael Campo, M.D., Chief Medical Officer of University of Miami Hospital; Jay Sosenko, M.D., professor of medicine; Joshua Hare, M.D., Chief Sciences Officer and Director of the Interdisciplinary Stem Cell Institute; and Joyce Slingerland, M.D., Ph.D., Director of the Braman Family Breast Cancer Institute at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center.

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