Our Team
Our physicians consult with a variety of specialists, including cardiovascular surgeons, electrophysiologists, and molecular biologists.
In addition, a specialized team of cardiologists, clinical nurse specialists and social workers focus on the problems of each patient to establish diagnosis and plan for long-term care.
Heart Failure/Cardiomyopathy Specialists
Michael B. Fowler, MD
Dr. Fowler serves as a Professor of Medicine at Stanford's School of Medicine. He is also Director of the Heart Failure Program, and Medical Director of the Cardiomyopathy Center in the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine at the School of Medicine.
Dr. Fowler completed his medical degree at the Charing Cross Medical School in London, England, in 1975. During the following year, he worked as a house physician and house surgeon at the New Charing Cross Hospital before serving as a rotating medical senior house officer at the Kent and Canterbury Hospital, Canterbury, Kent.
Dr. Fowler then continued his postgraduate training with three years at the Royal Sussex County Hospital, Brighton, before joining King's College Hospital as a rotating registrar in Cardiology and general medicine and then an honorary research registrar in cardiology.
In 1982, Dr. Fowler became British/American reciprocal research fellow of the British Heart Foundation and the American Heart Association at Stanford University School of Medicine. Dr. Fowler was made a clinical assistant professor of medicine in cardiology and co-director of the Cardiac Advanced Therapies Clinic at Stanford Medicine in 1984.
In 1986 he was named co-director of the Coronary Care Unit and assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine. Dr. Fowler then served as the co-director of the Heart Failure Clinic and as an associate professor of medicine before being appointed director of the Heart Failure Program and medical director of the Cardiomyopathy Center, positions he continues to hold.
Dr. Fowler is also an active member of many societies, programs and committees, and serves on the editorial boards of several medical journals, including Congestive Heart Failure and the Journal of Clinical and Basic Cardiology. Dr. Fowler is a guest editor for the American Journal of Cardiology Supplement and other publications, and he serves on the scientific advisory board of the European Society of Cardiology. He has authored over 100 articles in peer-reviewed journals as well as several book chapters.
John S. Schroeder, MD
Dr. Schroeder is a professor of cardiovascular medicine at Stanford University School of Medicine. He has had a long career in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of congestive heart failure.
Dr. Schroeder was a member of the pioneering heart transplant team which performed the first transplant in the United States. He pioneered guidelines and treatment for heart transplant candidates and documented performance of the transplanted heart.
More recently, he has focused on the newer medical treatments for patients with congestive heart failure which has restored many very ill patients to essentially normal lives and therefore avoided heart transplant. His clinical research in heart transplantation has included methods to avoid recurrence of disease in the newly transplanted heart.
In recent years, Dr. Schroeder has focused on the identification of patients at risk for heart failure and its prevention through aggressive therapy of such common cardiovascular problems as hypertension, hyperlipidemia, coronary artery disease, and diabetes. In this regard, he has published several cookbooks aimed at a heart healthy diet including "œThe Stanford University Healthy Heart Cookbook & Life Plan."
He is a member of the American Heart Association, American College of Cardiology, and has served on many positions in these organizations as well as at Stanford Medical Center. He is a published author of 11 books and his bibliography reflects over 286 published scientific papers in national scientific medical journals.
Dr. Schroeder is a popular national and international speaker to physicians as well as patients. He is dedicated to cardiovascular health and optimal life function for all persons through healthy lifestyles and medical therapies.
Randall H. Vagelos, MD
Dr. Vagelos is a member of Stanford's Heart Transplant team, as well as the Interventional Cardiology group. He is an Associate Professor of Medicine, and is the Medical Director of the Cardiac Care unit of Stanford Hospital & Clinics.
He completed his medical degree and internal medicine residency training at Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York City. Dr. Vagelos then continued his postgraduate cardiology training at Stanford University School of Medicine, as well as fellowships in heart failure research and Interventional Cardiology.
Dr. Vagelos serves as Chairman of the Quality Assurance Committee, for Cardiovascular Medicine, as well as Chairman of the Hospital CPR Committee. Dr. Vagelos is also a member of the Medical Housestaff Committee for Residency Training and Clinical Service.
Currently, Dr. Vagelos serves as Secretary and Co-Founding Member of the Northern California Heart Failure Society. His clinical interests include studies of prognosis and novel therapies in congestive heart failure, as well as the chronic long-term cardiothoracic toxicities of radiation therapy.
Euan A Ashley MRCP, DPhil
Specialities
- Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy
- Decompensated heart failure and cardiogenic shock
- Cardiovascular disease in the athlete
Professional Education
University of Glasgow, Scotland 1996 (MB ChB)
University of Oxford, England 2002 (DPhil)
Residency: John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford
Fellowship: Stanford University Medical Center, Stanford, California
Internship: Western Infirmary, University of Glasgow, Scotland
Board Certification: Royal College of Physicians (UK) 1999
Dr. Ashley has a special interest in the care of patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and other forms of familial cardiomyopathy. With expertise in cardiovascular molecular genetics, he runs an NIH funded laboratory investigating the biology of heart muscle disease. In addition, he has a particular interest in the care of athletes with cardiovascular disease and has active links to the Stanford Sports Medicine program.
Ronald Witteles, MD
Dr. Witteles earned his M.D. with Honors from the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine. He completed internship and residency in Internal Medicine at Stanford University, where he served as Chief Medical Resident. He subsequently completed his Cardiology fellowship training at Stanford University, also serving as Chief Fellow.
He is currently a member of the Cardiology faculty at Stanford University, appointed as Assistant Professor of Medicine and Associate Director of the Stanford University Cardiac Intensive Care Unit (CCU). His specialty within Cardiology is in the evaluation and treatment of patients with heart failure, and he serves as Co-Director of the Stanford Amyloid Center.
Dr. Witteles runs an active research program, leading and participating in multiple clinical trials. His research involves investigations of insulin resistance (prediabetes) in heart failure, cardiac effects of cancer therapies, interactions between heart failure and kidney disease, and treatment options for patients with cardiac amyloidosis.
Dr. Witteles has won many awards for his clinical care and research work. His research studies have twice been cited by the Journal of the American College of Cardiology as being among the most important publications of the year, and he has won research awards from the Heart Failure Society of America and the American College of Physicians. He is a 3-time winner of the Stanford University Franklin G. Ebaugh, Jr. award for Research and of the Cardiovascular Medicine Division award for Clinical Research. For his clinical work, he was awarded the Clinical Excellence Award by the Cardiovascular Medicine Division, the Charles Dorsey Armstrong Award for Clinical Care, and he is a 3-time winner of Department of Medicine Teaching Awards. He has authored 17 peer-reviewed publications and two book chapters, and is a reviewer for six scientific journals.
Clinical Coordinators
Cara Chao, RN, BSN, MS
Cara earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing from St. Louis University and her Masters of Science from Southern Illinois University.
She moved to California from North Carolina to join Stanford's Heart Failure and Cardiomyopathy team in September 2003.
Cara's clinical background includes experience in cardiac rehabilitation, cardiovascular research, and heart/lung transplant as part of the cardiovascular surgery unit. Cara works primarily with Dr. Michael Fowler and Dr Ron Witteles.
Kim Sangalli, RN, BSN, MSN
Kim earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing from the University of San Francisco in 1996 and her Masters of Science degree in Nursing from University of California San Francisco in 2004.
Her nursing experience has included general surgery, cardiac surgery, heart/lung transplant, nursing education, stroke, and quality improvement. She previously worked at the Stanford Cardiothoracic ICU and returned to join our Heart Failure/Cardiomyopathy Team in March 2006. Kim works primarily with Dr. Michael Fowler and Dr Ron Witteles.
Annie Mullin, RN, BSN
Annie has worked at Stanford Hospital & Clinics for more than 10 years. Her area of specialization and interest is heart failure and cardiovascular medicine.
As part of the heart failure/cardiomyopathy team, Annie works as nurse coordinator for Dr. Randy Vagelos.
On a personal note, Annie is an avid golfer and loves the sport.
Heidi Salisbury, BS, RN, MSN
Heidi received her BS in Kinesiology and minor in Spanish from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, CA in 1999. In 2002, Heidi completed her Masters and Clinical Nurse Specialist degrees in Nursing from San Francisco State University.
In 2002, Heidi started at Stanford Hospital & Clinics as a staff nurse for the Cardiac Surveillance Unit and the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit. Heidi practices as a Staff Nurse IV and received her Critical Care RN certification. Heidi joined the team in the Cardiology Clinic as a Nurse Coordinator in September 2005 and continues to work closely with the Cardiac Care Units and Inpatient Cardiac Rehabilitation Teams.
Heidi is dedicated to working to increase awareness of Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy in the community. In addition, she has a special interest in developing educational tools and support networks for families living with Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy.
Heart Failure Pre-Heart Transplant Coordinator
Val Cannon
Val is the coordinator for the Heart Failure/Pre-Heart Transplant and Cardiomyopathy Center at Stanford Hospital & Clinics. She is the contact for all new heart failure consultations and transplant evaluations.
She works closely with referring physicians, nursing staff, cardiologists and cardiothoracic surgeons, facilitating necessary testing, procedures and work up for optimal clinical or surgical management in the Cardiomyopathy Center.
Val came to Stanford as a patient care coordinator in 1987. She has worked in the past in Hematology and with the Multi-Organ Transplant Center. She joined the Heart Failure team in 1997.