Fuster currently serves as director of the Cardiovascular Institute and Physician-in-Chief at Mount Sinai in New York. He is also general director of the Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares Carlos III in Madrid, Spain, and is founder and chair of the Science for Health and Education Foundation. He is also editor-in-chief of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

He has served as president of the American Heart Association and of the World Heart Federation and is the only cardiologist to have received the highest awards for research from the four leading cardiovascular organizations. He was been named Doctor Honoris Causa by 33 universities around the world and has authored more than 900 scientific articles and six books.

“This is only a selection of his accomplishments,” notes James S. Forrester, MD, FACC. “It should be known his contributions to cardiovascular medicine have had an enormous impact on the treatment of patients with heart disease and the advancement of the specialty.” <<< Return to top

Gunnar attended Northwestern University as a member of the V-12 Navy College Training Program. He completed his medical residency at Cook County Hospital after serving as a U.S. Army Captain and Battalion Surgeon in the Second Infantry Division in Korea, during which he was awarded the Bronze Star with V Device for Valor. Following his residency, he went into private practice in Berwyn, IL, with his father until 1959. Later, he did his cardiology fellowship at Harvard Medical School.

Among his many accomplishments, Gunnar served as director of Adult Cardiology and the Division of Medicine at Cook County Hospital; he was the first Edmund F. Foley Professor of Medicine and Director of the Section of Cardiology at the University of Illinois; professor of medicine, chief of the section of cardiology and later chair of medicine at Loyola University Medical Center. Nationally, he served as chair of the Board of Regents of the American College of Physicians, president of the Association of University Cardiologists and vice president of the ACC.

Dr. Gunnar’s research interests included acute myocardial infarction as well as circulatory shock at a time when the discipline of cardiology was relatively new. He and his co-authors published more than 400 scientific papers and abstracts and he co-authored a published book on shock in myocardial infarction. <<< Return to top

During her more than 20-year tenure at the ACC, Gates has served the College in a variety of roles, including ACC’s “Chief People Officer” and she has worked on a number of significant projects, including spearheading the ACC’s move from its Heart House headquarters in Bethesda, MD, to Washington, DC. Prior to joining ACC, Gates supervised financial and Securities and Exchange Commission reporting for three publicly held real estate investment trusts. She also served as a Certified Public Accountant at Ernst and Young, where her client focus was health care and real estate.

Additionally, Brendan Mullen has joined Cathy and Bill Oetgen, MD, FACC, as ACC EVP overseeing communications, business development, marketing, digital and enterprise strategy and international affairs. Prior to this role, Brendan served as ACC vice president of market strategy. Brendan also worked for nearly 10 years as a consultant for the Advisory Board Company and served as vice president of Programs and Strategy at the National Quality Forum. <<< Return to top