OUR TEAM

The care our center provides isn’t rooted in a single person but rather the expertise and support all disciplines bring together. From techs and nurses to our doctors and surgeons, we come together to deliver the best pediatric heart care.

Team members from across all disciplines are making a big impact on congenital heart care across the country and around the world. Some highlights include:

• David Bradley, M.D., received a Fulbright U.S. Scholar grant to promote cardiovascular education and services in Rwanda at the University of Rwanda.

• Louise Callow, R.N., M.S.N., CPNP, received the Patricia Hickey Award for Excellence in Pediatric Cardiovascular Nursing from the Pediatric Cardiac Intensive Care Society.

“I’m often asked, ‘What is the key to the Congenital Heart Center’s excellent culture and outcomes?’ And while we have world-class providers across the program, it is how we collaborate across multiple disciplines which makes us unique. We may be extraordinary surgeons, cardiologists, anesthesiologists, nurses, respiratory therapists, psychologists, pharmacologists, or any of the other key members of our program by trade, but it’s the way we work seamlessly together as a single unit that is crucial to our success. If someone asks me what I do at the hospital, I don’t say, ‘I am a congenital heart surgeon,’ I say, ‘I work at the Heart Center.’ We all feel that way. We work as a team at the Heart Center to provide the highest level of care for our patients.”

RICHARD (RICK) OHYE, M.D. HEAD OF PEDIATRIC CARDIOVASCULAR SURGERY CO-DIRECTOR OF THE CONGENITAL HEART CENTER

• Brynn Dechert-Crooks, R.N., M.S.N., CPNP, CCDS, FHRS, was elected to the Heart Rhythm Society Board of Trustees.

• Gregory Ensing, M.D., was awarded the 2022 Richard Popp Excellence in Training Award from the American Society of Echocardiography. Ensing has trained a generation of pediatric cardiologists in echocardiography locally and around the globe through his teaching and mentoring activities. He is the first pediatric cardiologist to receive this prestigious award.

• Jesse Hansen, M.D., and Amanda McCormick, M.D., received 2022 DEI Pediatric Heart Network Scholar Awards.

• Jimmy Lu, M.D., was appointed to the American Society of Echocardiography Pediatric and Congenital Heart Disease Council.

• Sara Pasquali, M.D., M.H.S., was selected as a Fellow in the Hedwig van Ameringen Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine (ELAM) Program.

• Jennifer Romano, M.D., M.S., now holds the First Vice President position in the Society of Thoracic Surgeons. Through a staged ascension, Romano will become the first female President in 2024.

• Alicia Valentini, R.N., M.S., CPNP, was elected as the Vice President of the Society for Pediatric Cardiovascular Nurses.