The cardiovascular fellowship program at CPMC was founded in 1959 at a time when Presbyterian Medical Center had emerged as a major center of innovation in the treatment of cardiovascular disease. The first open heart surgery on the West Coast was performed here in 1954. In fact, from the time the institution was originally founded as Cooper Medical College in the late 1800s, and as Stanford University School of Medicine in the early 1900s, there has been a strong tradition of medical education and clinical training. CPMC was established as a merger of four of the oldest medical centers in San Francisco, and the institution continues to be one of the busiest cardiovascular centers in the Bay Area. As the largest medical center within the Sutter Health system, CPMC is a tertiary referral center for complex cardiac services from throughout Northern California. Drawing patients regionally, nationally, and internationally, CPMC is an exceptional institution for cardiovascular training.

From its inception, the fellowship program has been closely integrated into the Division of Cardiology, and fellows train in an intimate setting, working side-by-side throughout the day with faculty cardiologists and cardiovascular surgeons. A collegial environment is constantly fostered that encourages fellows to participate in patient care as junior attendings. Fellows are also an integral part of the quality improvement processes for both the Division as well as the fellowship program. All fellows attend the monthly institutional cardiovascular process improvement meetings as members of specific workgroups that work on projects throughout the year. In regular group meetings with the program director (weekly, during pandemic), fellows have the opportunity to give immediate feedback regarding rotations and curricula, and collectively play an active role in the direction of this responsive and adaptive program.

In the newly opened Van Ness and Mission Bernal campuses, our nine fellows have the opportunity to train, teach and care for patients in state-of-the-art facilities with the latest healthcare delivery innovations and technologies. Through a Technology-in-Cardiology curriculum, fellows are able to utilize and evaluate the newest technology trends, such as wearable ECG monitors and electronic stethoscopes. In a program without subspecialty interventional or electrophysiology fellows, our fellows are directly involved in the most advanced levels of cardiovascular care delivery, including cutting-edge coronary and structural interventions, complex catheter ablations, and pacemaker and ICD implantations and extractions. As the center that performed the nation’s first heart transplant outside of a university research setting in 1984, CPMC has continued to pioneer the field of heart failure management and has long provided a uniquely advanced training experience for our general cardiology fellows. In 2021, CPMC is excited to welcome our first fellow into the newly ACGME-accredited Advanced Heart Failure and Transplant Cardiology subspecialty fellowship program.

Through two decades of support from the William E. & Aenid R. Weisgerber Foundation the program has created a rigorous didactic curriculum to accompany its busy clinical rotations, including a weekly cardiology grand rounds series that features national and international experts. The recent generous endowment from Jan Shrem and Maria Manetti Shrem will allow expansion of other lecture series, as well as continued support for fellows attending cardiovascular conferences and review courses for subspecialty certifications. While many graduates go on to further subspecialty training, most find positions in group and foundation practices in the Bay Area. Wealth of advanced clinical experience, coupled with resources for expansive learning opportunities, have allowed CPMC to provide training for a new generation of cardiologists that leave the program as exceptional clinicians, well-versed in the forefront of cardiovascular care, and confidently prepared for board examinations as well as for clinical practice in a region known for superior cardiovascular care.