Andrea M. Russo, MD, Chair
Dr. Russo, board certified in Cardiovascular Disease and Clinical Cardiac Electrophysiology, is Professor of Medicine at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University, Academic Chief of Division of Cardiology, Director of Electrophysiology and Arrhythmia Services, and Director of the Clinical Cardiac Electrophysiology Fellowship Program at Cooper University Hospital in Camden, New Jersey. Dr. Russo serves as Chair of the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) Cardiovascular Disease Board and member of the ABIM Council. She previously served on the ABIM Cardiovascular Test Writing Committee and the American Board of Medical Specialties Continuing Board Certification Vision for the Future Commission.
She is past President of the Heart Rhythm Society (HRS), current member of the American Heart Association (AHA) Atrial Fibrillation Systems of Care Advisory Committee and member of the American College of Cardiology (ACC) Cardio-Obstetrics Council. She previously served on or chaired multiple HRS, ACC, or AHA committees, subcommittees or working groups. In addition, she has served as co-Chair or member on several guideline and consensus documents, as well as Appropriate Use criteria writing groups. She also serves on editorial boards for several peer reviewed journals and is a current Associate Editor for Circulation: Arrhythmia and Electrophysiology. She has served on steering committees, events committees, and data safety monitoring committees for several clinical trials. Her areas of research interest include implantable cardioverter defibrillators, atrial fibrillation therapies, sex differences in arrhythmias, and the role of digital health in arrhythmia management.
As of May 2024, Dr. Russo reported the following external relationships:
Funding for clinical trial expenses and staff, paid to Cooper University, from the following companies:
- Bayer
- Boston Scientific
- Medtronic
Service on data and safety monitoring boards for the following companies, with honoraria:
- Biosense Webster
- The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
Service on a research-related steering committee for the following companies, without compensation:
- Bayer
- Biotronik
- Medtronic
Research-related consulting for the following companies, with honoraria:
- Abbott
- Atricure
- Biosense Webster
- PaceMate
Industry-supported continuing medical education supported by the following, with compensation for travel expenses and honoraria:
- Medtronic
- Sanofi
Work as an author or editor for the following companies, with compensation as listed:
- The American Heart Association, receiving compensation as associate editor
- UpToDate®, receiving compensation as an editor and author for chapters related to implantable cardioverter defibrillator therapy
Dr. Russo serves in significant roles with the following organizations, receiving reimbursement or compensation as listed:
- The American Heart Association, Council on Clinical Cardiology Arrhythmia Committee, Get with the Guidelines-AFib Systems of Care Working Group, without compensation
- The Heart Rhythm Society, Scientific Documents Committee, without compensation
Jameel Ahmed, MD
Dr. Ahmed is an Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine and Program Director of the Electrophysiology Fellowship Training Program at LSU Health Sciences Center in New Orleans. He is a fellow of the American College of Cardiology and the Heart Rhythm Society. He is board certified in internal medicine, cardiovascular disease and clinical cardiac electrophysiology.
Dr. Ahmed earned his medical degree at Boston University School of Medicine and remained there to complete residency in internal medicine. After serving as chief resident, he went on to complete fellowships in cardiology and clinical electrophysiology at Boston University.
As of April 2024, Dr. Ahmed reported no ongoing external relationships.
Simbo Chiadika, MD
Dr. Chiadika is an Associate Professor of Medicine at McGovern Medical School/University of Texas (UT) Health Science Center, Houston. She is the Director of Cardiovascular services at the UT Health community clinic and serves as co-Director of Quality initiatives in Cardiology.
Dr. Chiadika is board certified in Internal Medicine and Cardiovascular Disease. Dr. Chiadika currently serves as a member of the American Board of Internal Medicine Cardiovascular Disease Board. She is a fellow of the American College of Cardiology and board certified in nuclear cardiology and echocardiography. She is a member of the Association of Black Cardiologists.
Dr. Chiadika is passionate about engaging and educating communities regarding cardiovascular disease. She is an active speaker for the American Heart Association (AHA) and serves as a member of the AHA Houston Health Equity Collective (formerly Greater Houston Coalition for Social Determinants of Health).
Dr. Chiadika earned a bachelor's degree in biochemistry at City University of New York and medical degree at Columbia University- School of Physicians & Surgeons in New York. She completed an internal medicine residency and nuclear cardiology fellowship at the New York Presbyterian Hospital – Columbia University and general cardiology fellowship at St. Luke's Roosevelt Hospital – Columbia University in New York.
As of May 2024, Dr. Chiadika reported the following ongoing external relationship:
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Dr. Chiadika provides educational lectures regarding amyloidosis to at-risk communities, receiving honoraria from Pfizer.
Georges Ephrem, MD
Dr. Ephrem is a clinical and interventional adult congenital, coronary and structural heart diseases specialist. He is the Director of Structural Heart Interventions at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center/Lt. Col. Luke Weathers, Jr. VA Medical Center and an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. He is a fellow of the American College of Physicians, the American College of Cardiology and the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions. He is board certified in cardiovascular disease, interventional cardiology, echocardiography, nuclear cardiology and adult congenital heart disease.
Dr. Ephrem has received awards and peer recognition for his research. His main investigative interest is outcomes research in the adult congenital heart disease population, especially in the transition of proven therapies in the general patient population to the adult congenital population. He has published a series of articles, including many in the highest impact journals pertaining to this field, as well as innovative approaches in catheterization of cardiac patients in general, and the adult congenital population in particular.
Dr. Ephrem completed his internal medicine residency and cardiovascular disease fellowship in New York along with a chief resident year and a Master of Science in clinical research methods. His clinical adult congenital heart disease training was at Emory University in Atlanta. He completed his interventional training at William Beaumont in Michigan and his structural and congenital interventional fellowship at the University of Toronto.
As of September 2023, Dr. Ephrem reported no ongoing external relationships.
David E. Good, MD
Dr. Good is a general cardiologist at the Alaska Native Medical Center. He is also a United States Air Force Reserve Flight Surgeon, Commander of the 477 AMDF at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson.
Previously, he was an assistant professor in the Department of Internal Medicine at Louisiana State University in New Orleans, Louisiana and the Department of Cardiovascular Disease, in Lafayette, Louisiana. There he was involved in research, teaching and curriculum development.
Dr. Good completed his undergraduate degree at the University of Alabama in Birmingham and medical degree from the University of Alabama School of Medicine. His residency at Louisiana State University was in internal medicine/clinical investigator pathway, with research in the gene therapy department. His fellowship was in cardiovascular disease from Ochsner Clinic Foundation in New Orleans, Louisiana.
He is certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine in Internal Medicine, Cardiovascular Disease and Advanced Heart failure and Transplantation.
As of August 2023, Dr. Good reported no ongoing external relationships.
Yuli Kim, MD
Dr. Kim serves as the medical director of the Philadelphia Adult Congenital Heart Center, a joint program between the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and Penn Medicine as well as the fellowship director for the ACHD fellowship program at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. She is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and board certified in Adult Congenital Heart Disease.
Dr. Kim completed her undergraduate degree at Georgetown University and medical degree from the University of Virginia. She was an Osler resident at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Internal Medicine and went on to the Cleveland Clinic for Cardiovascular Medicine fellowship training. She completed a two-year fellowship in Adult Congenital Heart Disease at Boston Children's Hospital and the Brigham and Women's Hospital.
As of July 2023, Dr. Kim reported the following external relationships:
Dr. Kim serves in significant roles with the following organizations, receiving reimbursement or compensation as listed:
- The Administrative Core Research Collaborative, Member, without compensation.
- The Adult Congenital Heart Association, Medical Advisory Board, Member, without compensation.
- The American Heart Association, Adult Congenital Heart Disease Young Hearts Subcommittee, Member, without compensation.
- The International Society of Adult Congenital Heart Disease, United States Representative, without compensation.
Rowlens M. Melduni, MD
Dr. Melduni is an Associate Professor of Medicine and faculty in the Department of Cardiovascular Medicine at Mayo Clinic School of Medicine, Rochester, Minnesota. Dr Melduni is the Director of the cardioversion unit at the Mayo Clinic Rochester. He is the founder and president and CEO of Clinicians of the World and serves on the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) Cardiovascular Board. He is board certified in Internal Medicine, Cardiovascular Disease and Adult Comprehensive Echocardiography.
Dr. Melduni's research interests include the pathogenetic mechanism of atrial fibrillation, epidemiology and prognosis of atrial fibrillation and discovery of biomarkers of atrial fibrillation. He has authored numerous peer-reviewed publications, which have helped to improve our understanding of the mechanisms of atrial fibrillation, which has perplexed clinicians for quite some time. His work has recently received a major funding award from the National Institute of Health to examine the role of autoimmune mechanisms in the pathogenesis of atrial fibrillation. He was named a Rising Star Investigator by the American Society of Echocardiography in 2018.
Dr. Melduni received his medical degree from the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida. He completed his internal medicine internship and residency at Boston University Medical Center and obtained his cardiology training at Albert Einstein University Hospital and went on to complete subspecialty fellowship in echocardiography at the Mayo Clinic Rochester. He received his master's degree in public health from the Harvard University School of Public Health in 2012.
As of May 2024, Dr. Melduni reported no external relationships.
Joseph Rogers, MD
Dr. Rogers is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Texas Heart Institute and a board certified specialist in advanced heart failure and transplant cardiology. Previously, Dr. Rogers served on the faculty at Washington University in St. Louis and Duke University as medical director of the advanced heart failure programs. At Duke, he also held leadership roles as the senior vice chief for clinical affairs and interim chief in the division of cardiology, clinical vice chair and interim chair in the Department of Medicine, and chief medical officer for the health system. He has held other national leadership roles as president of the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation and Chair of the United Network for Organ Sharing Thoracic Committee.
Dr. Rogers' research has focused on the broad field of advanced heart failure with particular emphasis on mechanically assisted circulation. He was the national principal investigator on several multicenter trials of left ventricular assist devices. He has written more than 280 manuscripts and 28 book chapters. He was a principal investigator on the Palliative Care in Heart Failure randomized, controlled clinical trial, a National Institutes of Health-funded trial examining the role of palliative care in heart failure.
Dr. Rogers obtained a Bachelor of Arts in human biology from the University of Kansas followed by a medical degree at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. He stayed at the University of Nebraska for a residency in internal medicine before a research and clinical cardiology fellowship at Washington University.
As of May 2024, Dr. Rogers reported no ongoing external relationships.
Leslie Beth Sossoman
Leslie Beth (L.B.) Sossoman, DNP, ACNP-BC, CV-RN, CPHQ has been a cardiac nurse for more than 30 years. Dr. Sossoman serves as the Faculty Specialist for the AG-ACNP Program, a collaboration between Atrium Health and UNC Charlotte to prepare nurse practitioners for the complex needs of hospitalized patients. She holds an appointment as Associate Graduate Faculty at UNC Charlotte. She maintains a clinical practice in Advanced Heart Failure at Atrium Health Sanger Heart & Vascular Institute.
Dr. Sossoman is also certified as an Acute Care Nurse Practitioner and a Cardiac Vascular Nurse from the American Nurses Credentialing Center and as a Certified Professional in HealthCare Quality from the National Association of Healthcare Quality.
Dr. Sossoman completed her undergraduate studies at Presbyterian Hospital School of Nursing and Wingate University. She has a Master of Science in Nursing from the University of South Carolina and her Doctor of Nursing Practice from UNC Charlotte.
As of May 2024, Ms. Sossoman reported the following external relationships.
Ms. Sossoman serves in significant roles with the following organizations, receiving reimbursement or compensation as listed:
- The Metrolina Coalition of Nurse Practitioners, board member, without compensation
- The North Carolina Nurses Association, Regional Liaison Person for the Metrolina Region of North Carolina, without compensation
- Sigma Theta Tau International, Governance/Bylaws Committee, chair, without compensation
Mellanie True Hills, CSP
Ms. Hills is an atrial fibrillation (A-fib) patient (more than 18 years A-fib-free), founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the American Foundation for Women's Health and StopAfib.org—a global atrial fibrillation patient advocacy organization—and a passionate advocate for patients. In addition, she is the author of three bestselling and multiple award-winning books, including A Woman's Guide to Saving Her Own Life. She is one of just three nonprofit CEOs worldwide to hold the highly prestigious Certified Speaking Professional (CSP) designation from the National Speakers Association. Ms. Hills speaks at medical conferences and corporate events across the world. Through StopAfib.org, the most visited heart arrhythmia site worldwide, she seeks to raise awareness of atrial fibrillation, wipe out A-fib-related strokes, improve the quality of life of those living with A-fib and enhance communication with health care providers.
Her successes include creating and lobbying with other organizations to gain U.S. Senate designation of September as National Atrial Fibrillation Awareness Month. She brings the voice of the atrial fibrillation patient community to guidelines, think tanks, health policy discussions and awareness-raising coalitions and partnerships worldwide. Ms. Hills co-chaired the global Sign Against Stroke in Atrial Fibrillation Task Force, co-created MyAFibExperience.org with the American Heart Association, served on the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute's PCORnet Patient Council, convened the National AF Health Policy Roundtable and hosts the annual “Get in Rhythm. Stay in Rhythm.®” Atrial Fibrillation Patient Conference.
As of April 2024, Ms. Hill reported the following external relationships:
Ms. Hills is the CEO of StopAfib.org and the American Foundation for Women's Health, receiving salary support and reimbursement for travel expenses. She is also an employee of True Hills, Inc.