FIT Member Spotlight: Carlos A. Vergara Sanchez, MD: "All it Takes is Motivation, a Plan and Passion"

Carlos A. Vergara Sanchez, MD

I am originally from Colombia. I attended medical school at Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Cali, Colombia, and completed my internal medicine residency at the University of Miami/JFK Medical Center in Miami, FL. Currently, I am a second year cardiology fellow at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, FL.

When I'm not practicing cardiology, I watch and play tennis, swim, and work out. I also enjoy reading nonfiction, history and historical novels, and capacity development/leadership literature.

In the future, I plan to dedicate my life to noninvasive academic cardiology. I plan to do a fourth year of advanced fellowship in preventive cardiology and focus on preventive cardiology, cancer survivorship population, and advanced echocardiography. I also plan to obtain an MPH to be able to apply clinical research at the population level to work towards population scale impact on preventive cardiology and cancer population.

I first got involved in ACC as a resident, specifically with the ACC Hispanic/Latinx Internal Medicine Cardiology Program. I served as vice chair of the FIT committee of ACC's Florida Chapter from 2023 to 2024, and I am currently serving as chair. During my leadership, I created the FIT Leadership Academy which earned the 2024 Special Achievement Award. I also had the amazing experience of participating in the ACC Educator Program this year Heart House in Washington, DC. More recently, I was chosen as one of the 2024-2025 ACC Editorial Fellows as part of an editorial program for FITs to help with writing and editing in peer groups, which I am very excited about.

I have learned many valuable lessons so far:

  1. Don't let fear or self-doubt prevent you from seeking opportunities. All it takes is motivation, a plan and passion.
  2. There will be many rejections throughout your career. Don't get discouraged; learn from them and try again.
  3. Don't grow alone. Your growth is exponential when you bring people up with you in the process; you will learn so much from everyone around you along the way and there is space for everyone.
  4. Enjoy the process and don't forget your "why." Finding purpose will make the hard days better and the good days sweeter.
  5. Be thankful. Don't forget those that gave you a hand and pay it forward.
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This article was authored by Carlos A. Vergara Sanchez, MD, a second-year cardiology fellow at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, FL.

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