Since 1965
“Our cardiology and subspecialty fellowships have been meticulously stewarded for over 50 years by stalwart clinical educators who take tremendous pride in creating a uniquely diverse learning matrix for our doctors in training. While the teaching faculty provide the matrix, the fellows are the real glue that holds the system together. Their curiosity and drive elevate the caliber of our program and, in turn, patient care in this complex healthcare ecosystem." - Stephanie Coulter, MD Cardiology Fellowship Program Director
Trainees Every Year
The world-renowned research and educational center dedicated to the prevention and care of heart disease – announced the 13 men and women who will comprise the prestigious THI Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship at Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center, sponsored by Baylor College of Medicine, for the 2020-21 academic year. The program dates back to 1965 and has attracted some of the brightest clinical minds from the very best medical residencies in the country.
The new class of fellows entering the program included six first-year students who will embark upon the prestigious three-year Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) General Cardiology fellowship. The 13 fellows accepted into the highly competitive program were selected out of more than 750 worthy applicants.
“The pool of applicants is more competitive every year. Our faculty truly embraces their responsibility to provide an intellectually stimulating environment for clinical learning that includes experiences beyond the clinic, such as research, education, and outreach,” noted Dr. Stephanie Coulter, THI Fellowship Program Director.
Graduates of the three-year THI/Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center General Cardiology fellowship are subsequently invited to continue studies at Texas Heart Institute as part of an advanced subspecialty fellowship in either electrophysiology, interventional cardiology, advanced heart failure, or cardiac imaging. This year, six graduates of the program accepted invitations to pursue additional subspecialty training. In addition to these six, THI is honored to welcome Giancarlo Acosta, who comes to THI for subspecialty training after completing a cardiology fellowship at the Joan Edwards School of Medicine at Marshall University.
These fellows stay an additional one to two years, expanding their clinical training and engaging in progressive research and education programs related to their subspecialty. Specifically, four fourth-year students will study Interventional Cardiology, two fourth-year students will study Clinical Cardiac Electrophysiology, and the aforementioned fifth-year student Giancarlo Acosta is studying Advanced Heart Failure.
Meet the new THI Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship at Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center
General Cardiology Fellows
Anish Badjatiya
Medical School: Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
Residency: Duke University
Isabel Balachandran
Medical School: University of Connecticut School of Medicine
Residency: Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Adam Brouillard
Medical School: Jacobs School of Medical and Biomedical Sciences at University of Buffalo
Residency: Washington University in St. Louis/Barnes-Jewish Hospital
Milad El Hajj
Medical School: Louisiana State University, New Orleans
Internship: Medical University of South Carolina
Jordan Gales
Medical School: Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
Residency: Duke University
Patrick Marcus
Medical School: Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine
Residency: University of Washington
Interventional Cardiology Fellows
Aaron Bush
Justin Maxfield
Michael Millard
Agam Patel
Clinical Cardiac Electrophysiology Fellows
Austin Howard
Grant Heberton
Advanced Heart Failure
Giancarlo Acosta
Since 1955
More than 1,000 anesthesiologists have received a portion of their training in the THI program of anesthesia for cardiovascular surgery.
Cardiovascular anesthesiology training at the Texas Heart Institute (THI) originated with the association of Drs. Arthur S. Keats and Denton Cooley in 1955 prior to the founding of THI by Dr. Cooley in 1962. Since then, the anesthesiologists of THI have cared for over 150,000 adult and pediatric patients undergoing cardiovascular surgery at Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center.
Today, anesthesiologists provide critical perioperative care to thousands of patients undergoing coronary revascularization (including off-pump cardiac surgery, transmyocardial laser revascularization, robotic and minimally invasive cardiac surgery), cardiac transplantation, valvular surgery, mechanical assist device placement, and electrophysiological surgery annually at BSLMC. Additionally, approximately 1000 thoracic and vascular cases (aortic aneurysm repair, aorta-femoral bypass, carotid endarterectomy, and A-V access grafts) are performed each year at the THI and Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center.
Integrity | Respect | Discovery | Innovation
The Texas Heart Institute/Baylor College of Medicine Thoracic Surgery Residency Program core values are integrity, respect for the individual, continuous commitment to excellence, dedication to discovery/innovation, and fostering leadership through education and teaching.
The Texas Heart Institute/Baylor College of Medicine Thoracic Surgery Residency Program is a three-year program that accepts four residents annually. These values are expressed through a program providing comprehensive training in adult and pediatric thoracic and cardiac surgery in an environment that stresses clinical excellence, clinical and basic research, and teaching as long-term goals for graduates.
The program emphasizes the central role of the residents in the management of thoracic surgical patients. It strives to impart core values as lifelong goals for the residents and seeks to help them become educators for life. Residents obtain a large and diverse clinical experience of decision-making and hands-on operative experience at renowned institutions including M. D. Anderson Cancer Center; Harris County Hospital District/Ben Taub General Hospital; Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Administration Hospital; and Texas Heart Institute at Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center. A large and growing program in congenital heart surgery at Texas Children’s Hospital also provides thoracic residents significant experience treating congenital heart disease
