Robertson appointed
AHA Chief Science Officer
Longtime Vanderbilt University Medical Center cardiologist, Dr. Rose M. Robertson, professor of Medicine, will be accepting a new challenge beginning in January.
The medical director of the Vanderbilt Women’s Heart Institute will take a one-year leave of absence to serve as the American Heart Association’s Chief Science Officer.
It’s a move she is familiar with.
In 2000, Robertson served as the president of the national organization — a responsibility that required months of travel and time away from her patients. She was the first Vanderbilt physician ever elected to the post.
“I very much enjoyed my interactions with the AHA,” Robertson said. “I have been a volunteer for nearly 25 years. The one thing that I found while serving as president was that there were many opportunities to foster collaborations or initiate activities that promised great benefit to the health of the public.
“But my schedule did not allow me to take full advantage of those opportunities, to follow up with all of them,” she said. “I am tremendously pleased that Vanderbilt is affording me the chance to do this. And, I am most fortunate to have colleagues to take care of my patients and continue my research efforts during this year.”
As Chief Science Officer, Robertson will be responsible for the multitude of AHA scientific and research endeavors nationwide. Essentially, it calls for her to help investigators throughout the country as they work to translate research information into clinical guidelines and program information for both the community at-large and hospital use.
“This allows me to work with the best minds in science and those devoted to improving the health of the public,” she said.
Robertson joined Vanderbilt in 1982. She was the first female cardiologist at VUMC. She received her bachelor’s from Manhattanville College in Purchase, N.Y. and her medical degree from Harvard Medical School. She trained in internal medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital and in cardiology at Johns Hopkins Hospital.