Page 18 - SFHN0219pagesFinalCF.qxp_Page layout

Profiles In Cardiology

BROWARD HEALTH IMPERIAL POINT BROWARD HEALTH CORAL SPRINGS

Mammen P. Zachariah, MD Michael Weinblatt, MD

Mammen P. Zachariah, M.D., FACC, PACP, FSCAI, is an Michael Weinblatt, M.D., is a board-certified cardiologist
interventional cardiologist and director of the Cardiac Lab at and board-certified internal medicine physician with more
Broward Health Imperial Point. Dr. Zachariah has been with than 35 years of experience in cardiology. Weinblatt is part
the Broward Health Physician Group for three years. He prac- of the Broward Health Physician Group.
tices clinical cardiology and performs cardiac catheterizations, Specializing in clinical and interventional cardiology at
coronary angioplasty and stents. He offers educational lectures Broward Health Coral Springs, Weinblatt both diagnoses
to the community to reinforce the importance of the patient’s cardiac disease and treats heart attacks through valve
role in preventing heart conditions through smoking cessa- replacement and opening blocked arteries. He performs
tion, stress management and healthy weight management. coronary angiography, coronary catheterization, permanent
Dr. Zachariah is certified with the American Board of Internal Medicine and the Sub- and temporary pacemaker implantation and noninvasive cardiac procedures, as well
Specialty Board of Cardiovascular Diseases. He received his medical degree from Medical as treats stenotic heart valves.
College in Warrangel, AP, India, and completed his residency in internal medicine at St. Weinblatt earned his medical degree from State University of New York (SUNY)
Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center in Patterson, NJ, where he also completed his fel- Upstate Medical University and completed his residency training at NYU Winthrop
lowship in cardiology. Hospital in Mineola, New York. Following his residency, Weinblatt received his cardio-
vascular fellowship training at St. Francis Hospital in Roslyn, New York. He is a fellow of
the American College of Cardiology, a diplomate of the National Board of Medical
BROWARD HEALTH MEDICAL CENTER Examiners and a diplomate certified in the subspecialty of cardiovascular disease.

Violeta Atanasoski-McCormack, MD BROWARD HEALTH NORTH

Violeta Atanasoski-McCormack, M.D., is the medical direc-
tor of interventional cardiology at Broward Health Medical Paul Rondino, MD
Center. She has been on staff for over 18 years and is a mem-
ber of the Broward Health Physician Group. She is board cer- Paul Rondino, M.D., is a board-certified cardiologist with
tified in cardiovascular disease, interventional cardiology and more than 20 years of experience treating patients with car-
internal medicine. Dr. McCormack has received various diovascular disease. He has been on staff at Broward Health
awards, including the Mentor of the Year Award for the North since November 1996, served as chief of staff from
Cardiology Class of 2018 from Broward Health, the 2004 Most 2009 to 2011 and is part of the Broward Health Physician
Valuable Physician Award from Broward Health Medical Group.
Center and the Harry Botwick Memorial Award for Cardiology Dr. Rondino specializes in non-interventional and clinical
Fellow of the Year. Dr. McCormack earned her medical degree cardiology, including exercise treadmill testing, echocardio-
from the University of Edward Kardali School of Medicine in Slovenia. She completed her graphy, stress echocardiography, transesophageal echocar-
residency and a cardiology fellowship at University Medical Center of Southern Nevada diography, cardiac rehabilitation, pacemaker programming
in Las Vegas, Nevada. She also completed an interventional cardiology fellowship at the and pharmacologic cardiac nuclear imaging.
University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. Dr. McCormack is currently an associate Dr. Rondino has participated as a sub-investigator in almost 50 research studies. He
clinical professor of medicine at the Nova Southeastern University and is affiliated with serves as a diplomate of the National Board of Medical Examiners and is board certi-
the American College of Cardiology and the American College of Physicians. fied with the American Board of Internal Medicine, the American College of
Cardiology and the American Society of Nuclear Cardiology.
Kenneth Herskowitz, MD He received his Doctor of Medicine from the University of Miami Miller School of
Medicine and completed his internship and residency at the Jackson Memorial
Kenneth Herskowitz, M.D., is medical director of cardiovas- Hospital. Dr. Rondino completed his fellowship in adult cardiology and was chief car-
cular and thoracic surgery at Broward Health Medical Center diology fellow at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He received his bachelor’s
and part of the Broward Health Physician Group. degree in biology from the University of Notre Dame.
Dr. Herskowitz has performed more than 10,000 cardiovas-
cular surgical procedures since 1986, and is an expert in the Faraaz Mushtaq, DO
field of minimally-invasive aortic and mitral valve surgery, as
well as beating heart surgery. He is the principal investigator Faraaz Mushtaq, D.O., is a board-certified cardiologist
on numerous research projects and has lectured and published and internal medicine physician. Dr. Mushtaq has been
extensively on heart and lung surgery. employed by Broward Health Physician Group since July
Dr. Herskowitz was honored in 2007 by the American Heart 2013 and has practiced at Broward Health North since May
Association for outstanding contributions to Cardiac Surgery in South Florida. He was 2017.
also voted Top Doctor in Gold Coast Magazine for three consecutive years, starting in Specializing in clinical cardiology, Dr. Mushtaq focuses
2010. Dr. Herskowitz received his medical degree from Baylor College of Medicine in on both diagnostic and preventative cardiology. He incorpo-
Houston, Texas, where he also completed his internship and residency in general surgery. rates testing and medication into his practice, as well as
He completed his fellowship in surgical metabolism at the University of Florida and advocating for patient lifestyle modifications to optimize
served as chief resident of cardiothoracic surgery at Jackson Memorial Hospital. cardiac health.
Dr. Mushtaq uses implantable loop recorders to detect cardiac arrhythmias, which
Jim LaFeir, DNP, RN, CCRN, CHFN can cause fainting, palpitations and hidden heart rhythms that can lead to stroke. The
newest generation of these devices are extremely small and non-obtrusive, smaller in
Jim LaFeir, DNP, RN, CCRN, CHFN, is a cardiac care nurse length and width than the pinky finger.
at Broward Health Medical Center with extensive experience A lifelong researcher, Dr. Mushtaq is currently working with Duke University to
in heart failure education and research. improve outcomes in patients with congestive heart failure. He is studying the effects
In his role, LaFeir presents the most up-to-date information of promoting positive behaviors in patients with congestive heart failure instead of
to his colleagues, sharing his knowledge and experience with treating them with new or experimental medications.
other nursing professionals through education, simulation Dr. Mushtaq received his medical degree from Nova Southeastern University and
and research. LaFeir helped the Coronary Bypass Surgery completed his internal medicine residency training at Palmetto General Hospital. He
Program achieve Advanced Certification from the Joint was chief cardiology fellow and fellow of the year at Broward Health Medical Center.
Commission. He is also co-chair of the Nursing Research and
Evidence Based Practice Committee at Broward Health Medical Center, and in 2014
founded the hospital’s Clinical Decision Unit, formerly known as the Chest Pain Decision
Unit. He subsequently received awards from the South Florida Nurses Consortium and
South Florida Nurses Association for his work. LaFeir is an active member of the
American Association of Heart Failure Nurses, a frequent collaborator on program and
research grants and an adjunct professor at Barry University.

18 February 2019 southfloridahospitalnews.com South Florida Hospital News