28 HOUSTON METHODIST LEADING HEART & VASCULAR CARE
MYUNG H. PARK, MD: MULTIFACETED APPROACHES TO HEART FAILURE AND PULMONARY HYPERTENSION Houston Methodist Hospital is pleased to welcome Myung H. Park, MD, in her new role as division chief of heart failure and transplant. Park is nationally and internationally known for her contributions in the fields of pulmonary hypertension, heart failure and cardiac transplant. Park’s professional path has taken her from a fellowship in advanced heart failure and transplant at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation to the Ochsner Clinic in New Orleans as director of heart failure and transplant, and, most recently, to the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore, where she served as director of the pulmonary vascular diseases program and director of the cardiac care unit/cardiology inpatient services. In her new role at Houston Methodist, Park sees an opportunity to create and oversee an optimal patient care model for individuals with advanced heart failure. “We have a dedicated team of advanced heart failure specialists with expertise in cutting-edge treatment modalities such as heart transplant and mechanical circulatory support devices. We treat the full spectrum of cardiomyopathies, including the uncommon forms like amyloidosis and chemotherapy-induced heart failure,” Park said. “Our mission is to create a network approach in heart failure care delivery. By partnering with our colleagues in the community, my goal is to establish patient care models that will expand the delivery of heart failure treatments into the areas where our patients live.” Park is working closely with colleagues in the pulmonary division to build a multidisciplinary program for pulmonary hypertension. “Pulmonary hypertension is a condition with abnormalities in pathophysiology that involve both the heart and lungs. My goal is to integrate expertise from both cardiology and pulmonology, offering our patients a complete array of expertise that is so crucial in the management and care of this complex disease state,” Park said. Park has initiated another ambitious endeavor that will foster a unique treatment program for patients with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH). “This is a complex condition that is under-recognized and often misdiagnosed,” she said. “When accurately diagnosed, the condition can be completely cured with a surgical procedure called thromboendarterectomy.” Currently, there are no CTEPH centers in the southwest region. “With the collaboration of our cardiothoracic surgeons and anesthesiologists, pulmonary and critical care services, we will be able to create a lifesaving service,” she said. Park and Alan B. Lumsden, MD, medical director of Houston Methodist DeBakey Heart & Vascular Center, are planning a 2016 symposium that will address the management of acute and chronic pulmonary emboli. Park said she also looks forward to working closely with the Houston Methodist Institute for Technology, Innovation & Education (MITIESM) in continuing her studies in the mechanism and treatment of heart failure and pulmonary hypertension. “By focusing in both left- and right-sided heart failure, as well as the pulmonary vascular bed, we’re creating a one-stop shop for all forms of heart failure,” she said.