Valentin Fuster, MD, PhD, Receives Prestigious Award from City of Barcelona, Spain
Mount Sinai Heart President given top honor for his extraordinary scientific achievements
The Barcelona City Council will honor Valentin Fuster, MD, PhD, President of Mount Sinai Heart and Physician-in-Chief of The Mount Sinai Hospital, this month with the Gold Medal for Scientific Merit.
Dr. Fuster will receive this award from the Mayor of Barcelona on Monday, January 23, at Barcelona Town Hall, surrounded by city leaders. This annual gold medal is the council’s highest level of recognition, acknowledging Dr. Fuster’s scientific trajectories, academic dedication, and social commitment.
“This is very emotional for me, as Barcelona is the city that I was born in,” says Dr. Fuster. “It is a great honor to be considered for my research in cardiovascular disease and in promoting health for people of all ages, both in Spain and across the world.”
Dr. Fuster is a pre-eminent leader in cardiovascular medicine. His contributions to the field, and to prevention and treatment of heart disease globally, are unparalleled. Dr. Fuster was named Director of the Cardiovascular Institute at Mount Sinai in 1994, became Director of Mount Sinai Heart at its establishment in 2006, and held that position until the end of 2022. He built Mount Sinai Heart into one of the world’s leading centers for cardiovascular care, cardiac surgery, and advanced research. Dr. Fuster is also General Director of the Spanish National Center for Cardiovascular Research (CNIC).
Dr. Fuster’s research has led the way in areas relating to the causes, prevention, and treatment of cardiovascular disease globally. It spans the full range from hard-core basic science and molecular biology, through clinical studies and large multinational trials, to population science and global medicine. His scientific contribution worldwide can be summarized by his H Index of 218 (Google Scholar), his 35 worldwide honoris causa degrees, and his status as the most highly cited Spanish research scientist of all times (Google Scholar).
Among his many achievements, it is noteworthy that Dr. Fuster is the only cardiologist to have received the highest awards for research from the four leading cardiovascular organizations: the American Heart Association (Gold Medal and Research Achievement Award), the American College of Cardiology (Living Legend and Life Achievement Award), the European Society of Cardiology (Gold Medal), and the Interamerican Society of Cardiology (Research Achievement Award). In addition, in May 2014, King Juan Carlos I of Spain granted Dr. Fuster the title of Marquis for his "outstanding and unceasing research efforts and his educational outreach work."
He recently received Thailand’s Prince Mahidol Award in the field of medicine, and last year, the American College of Cardiology established the “Valentin Fuster Award for Innovation in Science” in his honor, naming him the first recipient.
Mount Sinai Heart is one of the world’s top hospitals in Cardiology/Heart Surgery
Mount Sinai Heart is among the top 6 in the nation for cardiology and cardiac surgery, according to U.S. News & World Report. Newsweek’s “The World’s Best Specialized Hospitals” ranks Mount Sinai Heart as No. 1 in New York and No. 4 globally.
It is part of Mount Sinai Health System, which is New York City's largest academic medical system, encompassing eight hospitals, a leading medical school, and a vast network of ambulatory practices throughout the greater New York region. We advance medicine and health through unrivaled education and translational research and discovery to deliver care that is the safest, highest-quality, most accessible and equitable, and the best value of any health system in the nation. The Health System includes approximately 7,300 primary and specialty care physicians; 13 free-standing joint-venture centers; more than 410 ambulatory practices throughout the five boroughs of New York City, Westchester, and Long Island; and more than 30 affiliated community health centers. The Mount Sinai Hospital is ranked in U.S. News & World Report's "Honor Roll" of the top 20 U.S. hospitals and among the top in the nation by specialty: No. 1 in Geriatrics and top 20 in Cardiology/Heart Surgery, Diabetes/Endocrinology, Gastroenterology/GI Surgery, Neurology/Neurosurgery, Orthopedics, Pulmonology/Lung Surgery, Urology, and Rehabilitation.
For more information, visit https://www.mountsinai.org or find Mount Sinai on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
About the Mount Sinai Health System
Mount Sinai Health System is one of the largest academic medical systems in the New York metro area, with 48,000 employees working across eight hospitals, more than 400 outpatient practices, more than 600 research and clinical labs, a school of nursing, and a leading school of medicine and graduate education. Mount Sinai advances health for all people, everywhere, by taking on the most complex health care challenges of our time—discovering and applying new scientific learning and knowledge; developing safer, more effective treatments; educating the next generation of medical leaders and innovators; and supporting local communities by delivering high-quality care to all who need it.
Through the integration of its hospitals, labs, and schools, Mount Sinai offers comprehensive health care solutions from birth through geriatrics, leveraging innovative approaches such as artificial intelligence and informatics while keeping patients’ medical and emotional needs at the center of all treatment. The Health System includes approximately 9,000 primary and specialty care physicians and 11 free-standing joint-venture centers throughout the five boroughs of New York City, Westchester, Long Island, and Florida. Hospitals within the System are consistently ranked by Newsweek’s® “The World’s Best Smart Hospitals, Best in State Hospitals, World Best Hospitals and Best Specialty Hospitals” and by U.S. News & World Report's® “Best Hospitals” and “Best Children’s Hospitals.” The Mount Sinai Hospital is on the U.S. News & World Report® “Best Hospitals” Honor Roll for 2024-2025.
For more information, visit https://www.mountsinai.org or find Mount Sinai on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
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