Anupam Kumar, MD, Class of 2016

Assistant Professor of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary & Critical Care, Spectrum Health-Michigan State University College of Human Medicine

Cleveland Clinic was my first choice for pursuing fellowship in pulmonary & critical care. The training at Cleveland Clinic exposed me to patients with the highest level of complexity in the field. As a fellow, I was in the forefront of caring for patients with a wide array of problems (both in pulmonary medicine & critical care), with a high level of independence and autonomy. Easy access to program faculty who excel in specific areas in the field and opportunities to have them as mentors enabled me to plan a focused career. The program distinguishes itself from others in its design that allows fellows to follow a career track. The fellowship is also inherent with flexibility that allows a trainee to shape a career according to one’s desire. I was also able to develop leadership and administrative skills in my capacity as the chief fellow by working closely with eminent faculty leaders in the program.

During my training, I developed an affinity for interstitial lung disease, sarcoidosis, rare lung disorders and lung transplantation. I was able to customize the latter part of my fellowship to pursue clinical and research interests in these areas. In my current position as Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Division of Pulmonary & Critical Care (Spectrum Health-Michigan State University), I have been able to establish a career in my areas of clinical interest. Undoubtedly, the fellowship prepared me extremely well to shape a career of my choice.

Notable career accomplishments during and after fellowship:

  • 2014, 2015: Winner of "Chest Challenge", a competition in the field of Pulmonary & Critical Care Medicine with participants from all fellowship programs in the country. Organized by the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP)
  • 2015: Recipient of the Excellence in Teaching, awarded by Graduate Medial Education (GME), Cleveland Clinic
  • 2016: Recipient of travel grant from Foundation of Sarcoidosis Research (FSR) at the American Thoracic Society meeting
  • 2016: Author of "Approach to cystic lung diseases in adults", co-authored by Dr. Robert Kotloff
  • 2019: Core faculty for Internal Medicine residency and fellowship in Pulmonary & Critical Care, Spectrum Health-MSU College of Human Medicine, Grand Rapids MI

Amit Banga, MD, Class of 2014

Assistant Professor of Medicine – UT Southwestern Medical Center
Medical Director of the Ex Vivo Lung Perfusion after Circulatory Death Programs

During my interview at Cleveland Clinic, I was introduced to the concept of a ‘track system.’ Although I had been interested in lung transplantation, for the first time I was compelled to look beyond my training and consider my long term career interests. In my first year, I made the decision to pursue lung transplantation as a career specialization. A ‘front loaded’ schedule with opportunities to rotate across multiple areas of specialization aided me in this process. My core rotations permitted me to interact and work with several faculty members in the division and to identify my ‘track’ mentor early on. It also gave me insights that were valuable as my program director, mentor and I customized the latter half of my fellowship schedule. During this process, I was able to start planning my research projects before the end of my first year of fellowship and was presenting papers at conferences and submitting manuscripts for publications by the end of second year, all of which helped me immensely during the job interviews during my final year. The breadth of clinical training and experience gained during the fellowship also ensured that I was prepared to successfully lead a clinical program from early on in my career.

Many fellowship programs associated with academic medical centers are replete with rich clinical and research opportunities for trainees. What differentiates the program at Cleveland Clinic from others is the ability to customize the fellowship training to help achieve individual objectives while still providing excellent training in all aspects of pulmonary and critical care medicine.

Notable career accomplishments during and after fellowship:

  • 2012: Travel Award - Assembly of Environmental and Occupational Health, American Thoracic Society , New York NY
  • 2013: Abstract Scholarship- Assembly of Allergy, Immunology, and Inflammation, American Thoracic Society, New York NY
  • 2013: Young Investigator Award - American College of Chest Physicians, Chicago IL
  • 2014: $25,000 intramural grant - Research Program Committees, Cleveland Clinic Foundation: Role of mast cell in allograft dysfunction after lung transplantation
  • 2014: Leading a robust outcomes research program in the field of lung transplantation at UTSW
  • 2016: Joint lead in the team at UTSW to conduct the first ever lung transplant in Texas using the EVLP technology
  • 2016-2018: Multiple industry funded trials with >$1 million in funding as the Principal Investigator

Roberto Machado, MD, Class of 2003

Dr. Calvin H. English Professor of Medicine
Chief, Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, Sleep and Occupational Medicine, Indiana University

I received outstanding training at Cleveland Clinic. The breadth of clinical training opportunities in pulmonary and critical care medicine is unparalleled. In addition, the ability to engage in scholarly activities ranging from teaching, basic, translational and clinical research prepares fellows to excel in academic medicine. I am extremely grateful to my fellowship mentors who were equally passionate about delivering exceptional patient care while conducting high impact research in pulmonary and critical care medicine. These experiences prepared me extremely well to pursue a career as a physician scientist.

Notable Career Accomplishments During and After Fellowship:

  • Three Bench to Bedside Awards from National Institutes of Health in 2005, 2007, 2008
  • Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research Areas of Excellence Research Award, University of Illinois Chicago in 2012
  • Invited speaker at multiple national and international conferences
  • Chair positions and membership on multiple committees within the American Thoracic Society, National Institutes of Health, American Heart Association, Pulmonary Hypertension Association
  • Member of the Task Force for the Clinical Classification of Pulmonary Hypertension, 5th World Symposium on Pulmonary Hypertension in Nice, France 2013
  • Executive committee, steering committee, and data safety and monitoring board positions for multiple device and drug trials
  • Member of the Institutional Review Board and Campus Research Board at University of Illinois at Chicago
  • Study Section member for NHLBI Respiratory Integrative Biology and Translational Research
  • Multiple NIH and Industry Grants including an R0-1 focused on vascular-targeted genomic and genetic strategies for acute chest syndrome and K-23 focused on carbon monoxide therapy for severe pulmonary arterial hypertension
  • Elected to membership in the American Society for Clinical Investigation
  • Appointed Chief of the Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, Sleep, and Occupational Medicine in 2017

Gustavo Heresi, MD, MS, Class of 2008

Assistant Professor of Medicine, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine, Case Western Reserve
Medical Director, Pulmonary Vascular and CTEPH Programs

What makes the Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine Fellowship at Cleveland Clinic special is the endless opportunities available to develop your career into whatever it is that you prefer. The variety and complexity of clinical care is impressive. You will have at least one world expert for almost any particular area of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine available to answer any question you may have. This environment allowed me to build a strong set of clinical skills and to currently lead a complex clinical program. The research activities and infrastructure are cutting-edge and readily available to you. Midway through my fellowship I started working in clinical and translational projects under superb mentorship. These efforts lead me to successfully apply for an NIH K23 award. I have focused my research efforts on my specialty interests, including risk prediction and non-invasive biomarkers of pulmonary arterial hypertension, treatment of pulmonary hypertension, pulmonary embolism and right ventricular failure in the ICU, and diagnosis and treatment of chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension.

Notable Career Accomplishments During and After Fellowship:

  • Gilead Sciences Research Scholars Program Award in Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension in 2009
  • 2011: $25,000 intramural grant from the Cleveland Clinic Research Program Committee in 2011 focused on Insulin Resistance in Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension
  • Young Investigator Award from the American College of Chest Physicians in 2012
  • Teacher of the Year Award for the Cleveland Clinic Pulmonary/Critical Care Fellowship Program in 2014
  • NIH/NHLBI K23 award in 2014 focused on Insulin Resistance in Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension