Mary Norine Walsh has become president of the American College of Cardiology during the Convocation Ceremony held in conjunction with the society’s 66th Annual Scientific Session (ACC; 17-19 March, Washington, DC, USA).
Walsh is the director of the heart failure and cardiac transplantation programs and director of nuclear cardiology at St Vincent Heart Center in Indianapolis, USA. In her 25 years of membership in the ACC, she has been active both locally and nationally, serving as president of the Indiana Chapter and serving on and chairing multiple committees.
“Volunteering as a member of the ACC has been a very important part of my life. I realised early on that the mission and vision of the College meshed with my own and I really found a ‘home’ at ACC,” Walsh says. “To succeed the many gifted leaders who are past presidents of the College is truly a dream come true for me. I am so inspired by the dedication of so many of our staff and members who contribute their talents to make our organisation better. It is truly my honour to take the helm and lead this year.”
As president, Walsh plans to focus on equipping ACC members to navigate the changing healthcare environment as it moves from being volume-driven to value-driven.
“Team-based care has been a passion of mine in my own practice and the College will continue to have a focus on this in the next few years to come,” Walsh says. “Working in teams will allow us to better serve the populations of patients whose care we undertake.”
She also hopes to engage more members in advocacy efforts.
“We need to make our voices heard on Capitol Hill [Washington DC, USA] and at our state houses by advocating for patient access, quality care and even public health issues that result in a decrease in cardiovascular morbidity and mortality,” Walsh says. “Being an advocacy leader can be a goal for all of our members and I hope to help foster that leadership.”
Walsh earned both her undergraduate and medical degrees from the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, USA. She completed her internship and residency at the University of Texas Southwestern, Dallas, USA, and her cardiology fellowship at Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, USA. She then served as an assistant professor of medicine in the division of cardiology, as well as an assistant professor of radiology at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA.
Walsh serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Cardiac Failure and as an editorial consultant for JACC: Heart Failure. She is a reviewer for multiple other journals and has authored more than 80 articles and book chapters. Previously, Walsh has served as an associate editor of HeartWatch, a publication of the Massachusetts Medical Society.
Walsh is actively involved in clinical research in heart failure, nuclear cardiology and systems approaches for quality initiatives in the practice setting. She is the 2014 recipient of the Wenger Award for Medical Leadership and has been elected by her peers for inclusion in “Best Doctors in America” annually since 2005.
