John S. Rumsfeld, MD, PhD, MACC
University of Colorado School of Medicine
Aurora, CO

Presidential Citation

Dr. Rumsfeld has played a visionary role in championing innovation, clinical registries and data-driven quality improvement to optimize cardiovascular patient care and outcomes throughout his career. Dr. Rumsfeld served as ACC's first-ever Chief Innovation Officer and played a critical leadership role in the evolution of the College's NCDR registries to ensure they remained relevant and successful in today's health care environment.

Paul Wayne Armstrong, MD, FACC
University of Alberta
Kingston, Canada

Lifetime Achievement

Dr. Armstrong is a world leader in cardiovascular (CV) medicine, with exceptional contributions and a lifetime of achievements spanning more than 50 years. He co-founded the VIGOUR network and has played a leadership role in design and implementation of numerous novel therapies worldwide. He has conducted transformative research in the pre-hospital treatment of acute heart attacks and was instrumental in implementing this treatment in Alberta, Canada's ambulances, which is credited with increasing patient survival rates.

Thad F. Waites, MD, MACC
Forrest General Hospital/
Hattiesburg Clinic
Hattiesburg, MS

Distinguished Fellow

An exemplary role model for service, scholarship, education, and mentorship, Dr. Waites epitomizes what it means to be an FACC. He has consistently served as a role model for others through his participation in a multitude of committees, task forces, working groups and leadership positions. He has a longstanding legacy in promoting cardiovascular health and has been a leading force for improved access to cardiovascular care in Mississippi for decades.

Eileen M. Handberg, PhD, ARNP, FACC
UF Health Shands Hospital
Gainesville, FL

Distinguished Cardiovascular Team Member

Eileen has made an indelible impact on the College through her contributions to develop and advance the role of nurses and a team-based approach to cardiovascular care. From serving as chair of the cardiovascular team section, to working as co-lead on ACC's Health Policy Statement on Advanced Practice Providers, Eileen has served on and strengthened the work of a multitude of ACC committees. Eileen was one of the first cardiovascular team members of the College, and the first nurse to receive the FACC designation.

Catherine M. Otto, MD, FACC
University of Washington School of Medicine
Seattle, WA

Distinguished Teacher

Dr. Otto is an undisputed world expert in valvular heart disease and echocardiography, as reflected in numerous high impact publications, visiting professorships and textbooks. Her work in aortic stenosis has, in multiple ways, influenced the way we manage this common and clinically important disease. Her innovative approach to teaching has helped many outstanding clinicians learn the building blocks of a successful cardiology career and develop critical understanding of the field.

Partho P. Sengupta, MD, FACC
Rutgers RWJ Medical School & University Hospital
New Brunswick, NJ

Gifted Educator

Dr. Sengupta embodies the qualities of a dynamic and visionary teacher. His innovative training and fellowship programs have led many of his mentees to successful careers, with more than 50 going on to serve as faculty members at leading institutions. As a clinician-investigator, his work has also been transformational. He has led multidisciplinary teams who have employed novel technologies and approaches in clinical care delivery using ultrasonography, artificial intelligence, informatics and robotics.

Marcelo F. Di Carli, MD, FACC
Brigham and Women's Hospital
Boston, MA

Distinguished Mentor

Dr. Di Carli is unparalleled in his ability to recognize specific talents and in the care he takes to offer his mentees a personalized and appropriate roadmap for professional and personal growth. Dr. Di Carli's lifelong and unwavering dedication to clinical and research mentorship have led many of his trainees to Young Investigator Awards, grant funding and appointments as faculty at top-tier academic centers.

Paul L. Douglass, MD, MACC
Wellstar Health System
Smyrna, GA

Pamela S. Douglas Distinguished Award for Leadership in Diversity and Inclusion

Dr. Douglass has dedicated his career to diversity, health equity and servant-leadership. Through his work, he has served as a role model for all cardiologists who provide care for underserved communities. Through his leadership, he has encouraged organizations and hospitals to view major decisions through a diversity equity and inclusion lens. And as ACC's Health Equity Task Force chair, he is helping steer our work to pave a path to health equity.

Pamela B. Morris, MD, FACC
Medical University of South Carolina
Mount Pleasant, SC

Distinguished Service

A passionate educator, dedicated mentor and leader, Dr. Morris is an outstanding ambassador for the College and a role model for many women and men who wish to become involved with the ACC. She exemplified extraordinary leadership and tenacity as chair of the Annual Scientific Session during the challenging pivots of the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Morris has been a committed, collaborative volunteer on over 40 ACC committees and activities and she has also made significant contributions to the field of preventive cardiology.

Mirvat A. Alasnag, MBBS, FACC
King Fahd Armed Forces Hospital
Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

International Service

Dr. Alasnag has spent her career devoted to international collaboration. She has served on multiple ACC committees, including as chair of the ACC Early Career International Work Group, a member of the ACC Interventional Section Leadership Council and as chair of the ACC Women in Cardiology International Work Group. She was the first female interventional cardiologist in the Gulf region and has since represented women on multiple medical committees. Her consistent high performance also led to her appointment in 2015 as the first female cath lab director in the Gulf region.

Christine E. Seidman, MD
Harvard Medical School
Boston, MA

Valentin Fuster Award for Innovation in Science

Dr. Seidman pioneered the discovery of the genetic basis for heart muscle disorders, including hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) and congenital heart disease (CHD). The discovery has helped uncover real prospects for preventing the progression to heart failure in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Using molecular strategies to selectively deliver nucleic acid editors and nucleases to cardiomyocytes in preclinical disease models, she recently reported the successful correction and silencing of an HCM mutation.

James E. Muller, MD, FACC
InfraReDx Inc
Aburndale, MA

Distinguished Scientist (Basic Domain)

Dr. James Muller has led groundbreaking research on the triggers of myocardial infarction, helping document morning increases in MI, stroke and sudden cardiac death. To study triggering of MI, he helped develop the case-crossover method of research that has been used in thousands of studies worldwide. Dr. Muller also co-founded start-ups that developed catheters to identify vulnerable plaques I patients, and co-founded International Physicians for Prevention of Nuclear War which was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1985.

Gregory Y. H. Lip, MD, FACC
Liverpool Centre for Cardiovascular Science at University of Liverpool, Liverpool John Moores University and Liverpool Heart & Chest Hospital, Liverpool, United Kingdom; Aalborg University, Denmark

Distinguished Scientist (Clinical Domain)

Dr. Lip is among the world's most prolific and influential clinical investigators who continues to make major contributions to scientific knowledge in clinical cardiology. He is consistently ranked as one of the foremost experts on atrial fibrillation (AF) in the world and has led the effort over the last quarter of a century to define the pathophysiology, risk factors, optimal treatments and quality of care related to thrombosis in AF. Among his most significant achievements is the development of risk assessment tools to guide anticoagulation for stroke prevention among the many millions of patients with atrial fibrillation.

Margaret M. Redfield, MD, FACC
Mayo Clinic
Rochester, MN

Distinguished Scientist (Translational Domain)

Dr. Redfield has led groundbreaking research on the prevalence of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) and its relationship to other cardiac and systemic disease, which has led to advances in its management. Her worked proved that HFpEF affects half the heart failure population and disproportionately impacts elderly women. Her work has been used to evaluate HFpEF therapies that include advanced glycation end-product cross-link breakers and cyclic guanosine monophosphate-enhancing therapies.

Michael Honigberg, MD, FACC
Massachusetts General Hospital
Boston, MA

Douglas P. Zipes Distinguished Young Scientist

Dr. Honigberg has contributed to many new observations in women's heart health. Among his many contributions, he has demonstrated wide-ranging cardiovascular effects of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy among middle-aged women; the use of human genetics to reduce the risk of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy; and the use of retinal imaging and genetics to explore the influences of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy on microvasculature. He has also investigated premature menopause's effects on multiple cardiometabolic risk factors and discovered age-related blood cell mutations predictive of cardiovascular risk are enriched among women with natural premature menopause.

Karol E. Watson, MD, FACC
UCLA Medical Center
Los Angeles, CA

Bernadine Healy Leadership in Women's CV Disease

Dr. Watson's impressive career integrates outstanding clinical care, research, and education with her deep interest in health equity and professional support for women and individuals underrepresented in medicine. She is a steadfast champion for women in cardiovascular medicine. She has a translational and clinical focus on atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease and within that arena, she has purposefully examined differences in care and outcomes for women and racial and ethnic minorities.

C. Noel Bairey Merz, MD, FACC
Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute
Los Angeles, CA

Master of the ACC (MACC)

Dr. Bairey Merz is an international leader in the field of cardiovascular disease in women and cardiovascular prevention. She is well known for her outstanding teaching skills and her successful mentorship and sponsorship of many young physicians and cardiovascular team members. In addition to her scientific contributions, Dr. Bairey Merz has shared her time, talent, and expertise in service to the ACC, serving as a trustee of the College from 2002-2007 and on more than 20 ACC committees, task forces and ad hoc work groups—including as chair of six ACC committees.

Paul N. Casale, MD, MPH, FACC
Weill Cornell Medicine
Lancaster, PA

Master of the ACC (MACC)

With his command of alternative payment models, population health and health policy, Dr. Casale has contributed greatly to the College's focus on health systems and the impact of new payment models on its members. Dr. Casale has also served as a knowledgeable resource for the ACC's international expansion. During his tenure on the Board of Trustees, Dr. Casale led many efforts including serving as Chair of the ACC Health Systems Strategy Taskforce and then co-chair of the combined ACC CV Enterprise and Health Systems Taskforce.

Edward T. A. Fry, MD, FACC
Ascension Medical Group Cardiology
Indianapolis, IN

Master of the ACC (MACC)

Over the course of the past year, Dr. Fry has led the College as it continues to grow and transition to meet the needs of cardiovascular clinicians and patients in a post-pandemic world. Thanks to his vision and leadership, the ACC has made great strides toward achieving its vision of a world where science, innovation and knowledge optimize patient care and outcomes. He has been a strong proponent of taking tangible actions to address health equity, grow the pipeline of future cardiovascular clinicians and leaders, and advance solutions to the current workforce crisis, ensure clinician wellbeing and stop continued cuts to physician reimbursement. ACC is grateful to Dr. Fry for his service as ACC president.

Janet S. Wright, MD, FACC
Director, Div for Heart Disease & Stroke Prevention, CDC
Littleton, CO

Master of the ACC (MACC)

Dr. Wright has spent nearly four decades devotedly contributing her time, energy and leadership skills to the Mission of the ACC. She has been an active volunteer, serving as a trustee of the College and on several taskforces and committees. She also served as ACC's first senior vice president of science & quality, where she was a champion of both the PINNACLE Registry and the College's appropriate use criteria, the first effort to instantiate evidence-based accountability for cardiovascular practitioners. Since 2011, she has also served in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention.