Newly Recruited Pediatric Cardiology Team Treats Every Heart Condition 

NEW YORK CITY, NY (August 26, 2008) - The Children's Hospital at Montefiore (CHAM) is bringing the medical miracle of pediatric heart transplantation to the Bronx, following the recent approval of its transplant center application by the New York State Department of Health.  This important approval clears the way for specialists at CHAM, recently ranked among America's top children's hospitals, to treat any congenital or acquired heart abnormality in children and adolescents.

"By adding pediatric heart transplantation to the full range of care we offer our youngest patients, we better meet the significant health needs of our Bronx community," said Steven M. Safyer, MD, president and CEO, Montefiore Medical Center. "The long-standing impact of social, economic and access-to-healthcare issues means children in the Bronx suffer from a disproportionate number of congenital heart abnormalities and other serious conditions.  Now they have access to the high quality care they need right in their own community."

CHAM's heart surgery team and heart center program are already established as among the most active in the region treating congenital and acquired heart defects in children. Key to addition of the new pediatric heart transplant capabilities was the recruitment of nationally renowned pediatric cardiologist Daphne Hsu, MD, who joined CHAM as Division Chief of Pediatric Cardiology and Co-Director of the Pediatric Heart Center.  She was also appointed Professor of Pediatrics at Montefiore's affiliated medical school, Albert Einstein College of Medicine (Einstein). 

In addition to Dr. Hsu, several prominent specialists in pediatric cardiology have recently joined the Pediatric Heart Center team, including Jacqueline M. Lamour, MD, Director of Pediatric Advanced Cardiac Therapy; Robert H. Pass, MD, Director of Pediatric Electrophysiology and Director of Pediatric Interventional Cardiology; and, Leo Lopez, MD, Director of Pediatric Noninvasive Imaging.

"The new pediatric heart transplant program at CHAM and its acclaimed cardiology team are important milestones for both Montefiore and Einstein, " said Allen M. Spiegel, MD, The Marilyn and Stanley M. Katz Dean at Albert Einstein College of Medicine. "Dr. Daphne Hsu and her team are outstanding clinical investigators and national leaders in the study and treatment of pediatric heart disease and transplantation.  Their presence here is a tangible demonstration of our joint efforts to strengthen the links between Einstein research and Montefiore medicine."

"The pediatric heart transplant program and the addition of Dr. Hsu and her team greatly enhance our capabilities for treating any heart abnormality in children," said Philip Ozuah, MD, chairman of the Department of Pediatrics at Montefiore Medical Center and Einstein and physician-in-chief at CHAM.  "The Children's Hospital at Montefiore has become a hospital of choice for patients and families from around the world seeking excellence and innovation in specialty care. Building one of America's finest children's hospitals in the Bronx reinforces Montefiore's commitment to improving the health of its community by offering our patients access to the highest quality care and services available anywhere in the world."

A graduate of the Yale School of Medicine, Dr. Hsu was previously Associate Director of the Pediatric Heart Transplant Program at New York Presbyterian's Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital, and Professor of Clinical Pediatrics and Director of Clinical Research at Columbia University's College of Physicians and Surgeons.  

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