President's Message

October 2020

Hello Pennsylvania ACC!

My name is Katie Berlacher.  I’m an Assistant Professor at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, the Program Director of the UPMC Cardiovascular Fellowship and Director of the Magee Women’s Heart Program, part of the UPMC Heart Vascular Institute (Want more details on me?  Check out my fun facts here.  I am the western PA Governor with my colleague Dr. Andy Waxler, the eastern PA Governor, and am now the President of our Chapter for the next 18 months.  As you know, Andy has been a champion at the state and national levels for many years, relentlessly advocating for our patients and our community.  I want to thank him for a stellar job this past year and a half, leading us through unchartered territories with COVID-19 while also continuing to work on many other legislative issues affecting our state and nation.  We are lucky to have his energy and insight.  Rest assured, he will remain at the helm with me as we move forward. 

This is a busy fall and vital time of year for both our patients and our nation so I will be brief in my message this month. 

First, I’d like to remind everyone to VOTE.  Vote in the national election, in the state and in the local elections.

Second, get your flu shot and tell patients to get theirs too!  All of us are responsible for protecting ourselves, our colleagues and our patients.  Now is the time to get your flu shot.  Don’t wait.  I’ve made it a point to end every single office and video visit with a message about flu shots.  It takes 15 seconds and will save lives.  Remember, people who have heart disease have a 10x higher risk of heart attack within 3 days of getting the flu and are more likely to have a heart attack even weeks after the flu.  Check out resources at ACC’s terrific patient resource website, CardioSmart, for updated infographics and material.

I’m so excited to meet and work with you all.  Please contact me any time if you have thoughts, ideas or questions: president@pcacc.org.

Katie Berlacher, MD, FACC

President, PaACC

Governor, ACC, representing western PA

July 2020 - Kinan Kassar, MD 

Humans of Cardiology is an opportunity for PaACC members to share motivating stories about their personal and professional lives and was inspired by the wildly popular Humans of New York series. Submit your story and view past posts here.