Daniel Chu, MD

Hometown: Irvine, California
Undergraduate: Boston University
Medical school: Hofstra University
Residency: Baylor College of Medicine

Favorite aspects of the program: Robust, clinically focused training program.  Allows for great autonomy and procedural experience while caring for a variety of patients in different practice settings.  Strong in each subspecialty area. 

Career interests: Interventional Cardiology
Research interests: Quality improvement in the cardiac catheterization lab, preventive cardiology and cardiorespiratory fitness
Research publications: view publications

Candace Jackson, MD, MPH

Hometown: Yorba Linda, CA
Undergraduate: MIT
Medical school: UT Southwestern
Residency: Mayo Clinic, Rochester

Favorite aspects of the program:  Comprehensive training, complex pathophysiology, diverse patient populations, numerous research opportunities, supportive faculty and mentors.

Career interests: General Cardiology
Research interests: Preventive cardiology, cardiovascular epidemiology, familial hypercholesterolemia
Research publications: view publications

Andrew Lin, MD

Hometown: Carmel, Indiana
Undergraduate: Indiana University
Medical school: Indiana University School of Medicine
Residency: UC San Diego

Favorite aspects of the program: At UCSD we are exposed to the entire spectrum of cardiology care, with the perfect balance between autonomy and supervision. We also get to work with attendings who are experts in their respective fields and very invested in teaching. Lastly, love my cofellows!

Career interests: Electrophysiology, advanced heart failure
Research interests: CIED management, ventricular arrhythmia, atrial fibrillation, advanced heart failure
Research publications: view publications

John Power, MD

Hometown: Alexandria, VA
Undergraduate: Johns Hopkins University
Medical school: Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Residency: Vanderbilt University Medical Center

Favorite aspects of the program: Full exposure to complex and high acuity care, collaborative and supportive institutional culture, unique research environment.

Career interests: Advanced heart failure, clinical research
Research interests: Cardio-oncology, cardio-immunology, informatics
Research publications: view publications

Tatiana Saul, MD

Hometown: Downey, CA
Undergraduate: UC San Diego
Medical school: UC Riverside
Residency: UC San Diego

Favorite aspects of the program: Strong clinical training due to a high volume medical system with a diverse patient population and a variety of cardiovascular diseases. Also, the program has supportive faculty, mentors, and co-fellows to help navigate through all areas of cardiology fellowship.

Career interests: General cardiology, Advanced heart failure
Research interests: Non-ischemic cardiomyopathy, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy
Research publications: view publications

Omar Aldaas, MD

Hometown: Corona, California
Undergraduate: University of California, Riverside
Medical School: University of California, Riverside
Residency: University of California, San Diego

Favorite aspects of the program: The high volume of complex cardiac pathology and diverse patient populations.  Fellows get comprehensive experience in all areas of cardiology, with clinical training, research opportunities, and mentorship that are second to none. 

Career interests: Electrophysiology, atrial fibrillation, catheter ablation
Research interests: Outcomes after catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation, novel ablation techniques, left atrial appendage occlusion, anticoagulation with direct oral anticoagulants
Research publications: view publications

Omid Behnamfar, MD, MSc

Hometown: Isfahan, Iran
Undergraduate: Isfahan University of Medical Sciences
Medical School: Isfahan University of Medical Sciences
Residency: John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County

Favorite aspects of the program: High patient volume with complex cardiovascular physiology. Excellent research and clinical training opportunities, particularly in coronary and peripheral interventional cardiology. Camaraderie among fellows.

Career interests: Interventional Cardiology
Research interests: Balloon pulmonary Angioplasty in CTEPH; Coronary and peripheral CTO interventional techniques and results; TAVR outcomes
Research publications: view publications

Antoinette Birs, MD

Hometown: West Palm Beach, Florida
Undergraduate: University of Florida
Medical School: University of Central Florida
Residency: University of Washington

Favorite aspects of the program: UCSD is a very strong, high-volume, clinically focused program that has multiple training sites and a diverse patient population. I was extremely impressed with the tight knit community and camaraderie amongst the fellows and faculty and was intrigued by the variety of innovative research opportunities and numerous on-going projects. Of course, it is also hard to ignore the natural beauty of the city. 

Career interests: Advanced heart failure, interventional cardiology
Research interests: Risk prediction and health outcomes, heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, right ventricular pathology, infiltrative heart disease, heart disease in women
Research publications: view publications

Alison (Ali) Brann, MD

Hometown: Salt Lake City, Utah
Undergraduate: University of Notre Dame
Medical School: Rush Medical College
Residency: UC San Diego

Favorite aspects of the program: UCSD provides robust, hands on clinical training in all areas of cardiology which for me is highlighted by the high-volume advanced heart failure and transplant program. As a resident at UCSD I had a very positive experience working with supportive faculty and excellent mentors. Additionally, the research opportunities and camaraderie among the fellows made UCSD a very attractive place to continue my training. 

Career interests: Cardiac critical care, advanced heart failure and cardiac transplantation, imaging
Research interests: Outcomes in mechanical circulatory support and cardiac transplantation, heart failure risk prediction
Research publications: view publications

Gary Ma, MD

Hometown: San Jose, CA
Undergraduate: University of California, Berkeley
Medical School: University of California, San Diego
Residency: University of California, San Diego

Favorite aspects of the program: Active, enthusiastic emphasis on research in fellowship. Diverse and complete clinical training with high volume and autonomy.  

Career interests: Academic Physician-Science
Research interests: Calcified Aortic Valve Disease, Lipoprotein(a)
Research publications: view publications

Bryan Wu, MD

Hometown: Ambler, PA
Undergraduate: University of Notre Dame
Medical School: University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
Residency: University of Texas Southwestern

Favorite aspects of the program:  Diverse and well-rounded clinical training, high clinical volume and disease complexity, numerous opportunities for scholarly endeavors. 

Career interests: General cardiology    
Research interests: Hypertension, hemodynamic principles of cardiovascular diseases. 
Research publications: view publications

Quan Bui, MD - Chief Fellow

Hometown: San Diego, California
Undergraduate: Stanford University
Medical School: University of Colorado School of Medicine
Residency: University of California, San Diego

Favorite aspects of the program:  Exposure to a breadth of cardiovascular diseases at three diverse teaching hospitals (Jacobs/Sulpizio, Hillcrest and VA). Close mentorship and relationships with faculty. Strong camaraderie amongst the fellows.

Career interests: Heart failure, genetic cardiomyopathies, personalized medicine, cardiac medical devices
Research interests: Genetic cardiomyopathies, HCM phenocopies, Danon Disease, myocardial strain
Research publications: view publications

Prerana (Pre) Bhatia, MD - Chief Fellow

Hometown: Rochester, Minnesota
Undergraduate: University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
Medical School: University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
Residency: University of California, San Diego

Favorite aspects of the program: High volume, high complexity, fellow-run services, and longitudinal care in clinic. This is a busy program that has highly complex cases referred from neighboring communities but also balances caring for an underserved San Diego community. The training in EP, heart failure, interventional, and imaging is quite advanced and creates a well-rounded exposure for all trainees regardless of subspecialty interests. 

Career interests: General cardiology, imaging
Research interests: Pacemaker and ICD lead extraction outcomes, women's health
Research publications: view publications

Patrick Azcarate, MD

Hometown: Miami, Fl
Undergraduate: University of Miami
Medical school: University of Miami
Residency: UC San Francisco

Favorite aspects of the program: Stellar program with supportive colleagues in one of the best cities in the US

Clinical interests: General cardiology, imaging
Research interests: General cardiology, right atrial pressure assessment via ultrasound
Research publications: view publications

Shahzad (Shaz) Chindhy, MD

Hometown: Atlanta, Georgia
Undergraduate: University of Wisconsin-Madison
Medical School: University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health
Residency: University of Texas Southwestern

Favorite aspects of the program:  The high acuity and complexity of care coupled with the diversity of patient populations from treating our Veterans to private to indigent populations. Collegial environment that promotes fellow autonomy and clinical decision-making with direct faculty supervision.

Career interests: General cardiology, cardiac critical care, cardiac imaging
Research interests: Preventative Cardiology and epidemiology, Using imaging to identify vulnerable populations, CAC scoring, Lipidology
Research publications: view publications

Kevin Ting, MD

Hometown: San Diego, California
Undergraduate: University of California, Berkeley
Medical School: University of California, Irvine
Residency: Baylor College of Medicine, Houston

Favorite aspects of the program: UCSD is well balanced and truly academic in teaching, based on robust clinical experience and quality research. There is plenty of fellow autonomy and complex cardiac cases that require multidisciplinary approaches.

Career interests: General cardiology
Research interests: Non-invasive imaging, LVAD and transplant outcomes, Nonischemic cardiomyopathies
Research publications: view publications

David Torres-Barba, MD, PhD

Hometown: El Centro, CA
Undergraduate: San Diego State University
Medical school: University of California, Los Angeles
Residency: University of California, Davis

Favorite aspects of the program: The variety of clinical environments and patient populations as well as the caliber of research and educational opportunities. Also the support from faculty and other fellows in clinical and non-clinical aspects as I navigated through the first year was phenomenal.

Career interests: General cardiology and clinical research
Research interests: Computational medicine, cardiac rehabilitation, and remote patient care
Research publications: view publications

Harpreet S. Bhatia, MD

Hometown: Los Angeles, California
Undergraduate: Johns Hopkins University
Medical School: Emory University School of Medicine
Residency: NewYork-Presbyterian / Weill Cornell Medicine

Favorite aspects of the program: We see everything at UCSD from prevention and lipid management to the most advanced cardiac critical care including various forms of mechanical support and ECMO, and we see patients from all over the country. Our transplant program is one of the best in the country and creates learning and procedural opportunities for all other specialties. Most importantly, UCSD is a great place to work with supportive co-fellows, and accessible faculty who love to teach and constantly push us to be better. The clinical training at UCSD covers the full breadth of cardiovascular medicine and there are lots of opportunities for research in any aspect of cardiology.

Career interests: General cardiology, cardiovascular disease prevention
Research interests: Atrial fibrillation and anticoagulation, lipids, methamphetamine associated heart failure
Research publications: view publications

Calvin Hang, MD, PhD

Hometown: Walnut, CA
Medical School: UC San Diego
Residency: UC San Diego

Favorite aspects of the program: I stayed at UCSD for both resident and fellowship for its excellent clinical program and top-notch cardiology related basic science research.

Career interests: General cardiology, cardiac genetic
Research interests: Cardiac development and regeneration.
Research publications: view publications

Thomas Prohaska, MD

Hometown: Vienna, Austria
Medical School: Medical University of Vienna
Residency: UC San Diego

Favorite aspects of the program: The extraordinary science conducted at UCSD combined with a very strong clinical program in cardiology. For anyone interested in basic or translational research who also wants to get excellent clinical training, there is hardly any better place to be.

Career interests: General cardiology, basic science
Research interests: Immune cells in cardiac and metabolic disease
Research publications: view publications

Dan Mangels, MD, MS

Marin Nishimura, MD