Dr. James Willerson Announces Plans to Assume Leadership
of the Texas Heart Institute
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| James T. Willerson, M.D. |
HOUSTON (September 26, 2007) James T. Willerson, M.D., today announced his plan to assume leadership of the Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital when he steps down from his role as president of The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.
Dr. Willerson, who was named president-elect of the Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke’s in November 2004, will begin working toward a leadership transition at the Texas Heart Institute, which annually is ranked among the best cardiovascular institutions in the nation.
“Today, I have asked The University of Texas System to begin a search for my successor as president of the UT Health Science Center at Houston,” Dr. Willerson said. “I have agreed to become the next president of the Texas Heart Institute, succeeding Dr. Denton Cooley. I shall step down from my position as president of the UT Health Science Center at Houston as soon as an appropriate successor is found and is in place at UT Houston.”
During his seven years as president, Dr. Willerson led the health science center into an unprecedented period of dynamic growth, development and discovery. An internationally distinguished cardiologist and medical educator, he also is pioneering one of the first FDA-approved clinical trials to treat patients with end-stage heart disease using their own bone marrow-derived stem cells.
Dr. Cooley and his successor have been close associates and good friends for many years. “I have known Jim Willerson since he was 14 years old,” Dr. Cooley said in a 2001 interview. “His mother and father were practicing physicians in San Antonio. I frequently went there during those early years for the development of our cardiovascular program in Houston, and I met the Drs. Willerson and Jim and his brother. Soon after his arrival in Houston, Jim assumed the responsibilities of medical director of the Texas Heart Institute and chief of Cardiology at St. Luke’s. Jim has considerable talents. His extraordinary commitment to research and education, and his unparalleled dedication bode well for our Heart Institute. I look to the future with a strong sense of optimism.”
At UT Houston, Dr. Willerson has personally spearheaded an ambitious effort to recruit and retain “world’s best scientists” in many disciplines, resulting in the appointments of internationally known new faculty members. In collaboration with UT Houston, the Texas Heart Institute this year was designated as one of five centers by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to study adult stem cell treatments for patients with cardiovascular disease.
“Jim Willerson is recognized internationally as a physician, scientist and educator in the field of cardiology. He is a consummate leader with impressive skills who brings innovative vision and tireless dedication to making advances in cardiovascular medicine. Dr. Cooley’s endorsement of Jim as his successor ensures that THI will continue its legacy as a world leader in the fight against heart disease,” said Meredith Long, chairman of the THI Board of Directors.
Dr. Willerson has served as the THI medical director since 1993. He served as Chief of Cardiology of St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital for ten years beginning in 1995.
“Dr. Willerson's world-renowned cardiovascular expertise, along with extraordinary personal energy and years of experience with St. Luke's and the Texas Heart Institute, make him the natural successor to THI founder Dr. Denton A. Cooley," said David Fine, president and chief executive officer of St. Luke’s Episcopal Health System. "Dr. Willerson will continue the tradition of strong leadership set by Dr. Cooley, and I look forward to working with him on our common mission of delivering unparalleled patient care and furthering our contributions to research and medical education.”
Dr. Willerson announced his plans before a gathering of family members, friends, colleagues and collaborators in the atrium of the Fayez S. Sarofim Research Building – the new $120-million home of the Brown Foundation Institute of Molecular Medicine for the Prevention of Human Diseases, a research center he led the way in creating and which he envisioned as “the cornerstone of the university, collaborating across all six UT Houston schools.”
In June, Dr. Willerson named Ferid Murad, M.D., Ph.D., the Texas Medical Center’s only Nobel laureate, as director emeritus of the Brown Foundation IMM, as well as Texas Nobel Scholar of the UT Health Science Center.
As Dr. Willerson begins the last phase of his presidency, the health science center already has:
- raised more than $700 million in philanthropic contributions, additional state funding, tuition revenue bonds (TRBs) and UT System financial support;
- appointed new deans of four of UT Houston’s six schools;
- increased research expenditures by 45 percent since 2000;
- received a $36-million Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) from the NIH – the first of only two CTSA grants in Texas;
- increased enrollment by 11 percent over the past five years, now teaching the largest total number of students (3,651) of any health-related institution in Texas;
- completed, started constructing or acquired five new buildings to expand the campus and offer more convenient patient care.
Dr. Willerson came to Houston in 1989 as chairman of the Department of Internal Medicine at the UT Medical School, the position he held until the UT Board of Regents appointed him the fourth president of the UT Health Science Center at Houston in 2001.
“Dr. Jim Willerson has been a remarkably effective, progressive leader of the UT Health Science Center at Houston,” said Richard E. Wainerdi, Ph.D., president of the 46-institution Texas Medical Center. “I am delighted that he will remain in the Texas Medical Center leading the Texas Heart Institute into the future, building on the strong foundations established by Dr. Denton Cooley with whom he will continue to work closely as the Texas Heart Institute moves to higher levels of excellence in cardiovascular research, education and patient care.”
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The Texas Heart Institute, founded by world-renowned cardiovascular surgeon Dr. Denton A. Cooley in 1962, is a nonprofit organization dedicated to reducing the devastating toll of cardiovascular disease through innovative and progressive programs in research, education and improved patient care. Together with its clinical partner, St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital, it has been ranked among the top ten cardiovascular centers in the United States by U.S. News & World Report’s annual guide to “America’s Best Hospitals” for the past 17 years. The Texas Heart Institute is also affiliated with the University of Texas (UT) System, which promotes collaboration in cardiovascular research and education among UT and THI faculty at the Texas Heart Institute and other UT components. For more information about the Institute, please visit www.texasheart.org.
St. Luke’s Episcopal Health System comprises the flagship St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital in the Texas Medical Center, founded in 1954 by the Episcopal Diocese of Texas; St. Luke’s Community Medical Center–The Woodlands, opened in 2003; St. Luke’s Episcopal Health Charities, a charity devoted to assessing and enhancing community health, especially among the underserved; and Kelsey-Seybold Management, LLP, overseeing 21 area clinic locations. St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital is home to the Texas Heart Institute, founded in 1962 by Denton A. Cooley, MD, and is consistently ranked among the top 10 cardiology and heart surgery centers in the nation by U.S. News & World Report. Affiliated with several nursing schools and two medical schools, St. Luke’s serves as the primary adult teaching hospital for Baylor College of Medicine. St. Luke’s was the first hospital in Texas named a Magnet hospital for nursing excellence, and the Health System has been recognized by FORTUNE as among “100 Best Companies to Work For” and by Houston Business Journal as a top employer in Houston. For more information about St. Luke’s, please visit www.stlukestexas.com.
