Mount Sinai Renames Top-Ranked Heart Hospital to Honor Valentin Fuster, MD, PhD, and His Legacy of Excellence

Mount Sinai Health System announced today that “Mount Sinai Fuster Heart Hospital” is the new name for its top-ranked heart service, formerly known as Mount Sinai Heart. The renaming honors Valentin Fuster, MD, PhD, Physician-in-Chief of The Mount Sinai Hospital and President of the Fuster Heart Hospital, for the immeasurable impact that he has made and will continue to make on the field of cardiology and his leadership at Mount Sinai.

Over the last 25 years, Dr. Fuster has transformed Mount Sinai’s heart service into a world-leading center for cardiovascular disease, providing exceptional and compassionate care for cardiac patients, new and innovative therapies for cardiovascular disease, and local and global health programs to combat heart disease. His legacy continues at the Mount Sinai Fuster Heart Hospital.

“I am grateful for this honor, and proud of my life’s work at Mount Sinai,” says Dr. Fuster. “I can think of nothing more fulfilling than contributing to the understanding, prevention, and treatment of cardiovascular disease, the No. 1 killer worldwide.”

“Our faculty has made great strides in these efforts but we have more work to do to address the challenge of creating a global ‘culture of health’ that ends deadly cardiovascular disease,” Dr. Fuster adds. “We must accelerate the momentum we have already established in this endeavor to advance knowledge and practice for current and future generations of clinicians and researchers. I am proud of what Mount Sinai Heart has achieved, and it is poised to contribute even greater accomplishments, so I am excited for what the future holds.”

The Mount Sinai Fuster Heart Hospital will continue to drive innovation in basic, clinical, and translational cardiovascular research, prioritize patient experience, recruit leading physician-scientists in cardiology, and educate the next generation of physicians to advance levels of cardiac patient care.

It will also continue and expand Dr. Fuster’s decades-long research into the biological, socioeconomic, and environmental mechanisms that affect heart disease. He is pioneering a specialized health education initiative in schools in Harlem and elsewhere in New York City to study the most effective ways to instill healthy habits in children starting at an early age and thereby reduce preventable heart disease and risk factors for the next generation.

Dr. Fuster also helped to create and develop a cardiovascular “polypill”—a single pill that includes three medications typically taken separately—that is effective in preventing secondary adverse cardiovascular events in people who have previously had a heart attack. Dr. Fuster and his team showed that the polypill reduces cardiovascular mortality by 33 percent in this population. This medication was recently included by the World Health Organization (WHO) in its List of Essential Medicines and is pending Food and Drug Administration approval in the United States.

Under Dr. Fuster’s leadership, The Mount Sinai Hospital ranks No. 1 in New York and No. 4 globally on Newsweek’s list of “The World’s Best Specialized Hospitals.” The Mount Sinai Hospital is also No. 1 in New York for cardiology, cardiac surgery, and vascular surgery, according to U.S. News & World Report®.  

His research into the origin of cardiovascular events, which has contributed to improved treatment of heart attack patients, was recognized in 1996 by the Prince of Asturias Award for Technical and Scientific Research (the highest international award given by Spain, Dr. Fuster’s native country). In June 2011 he was awarded the Grand Prix Scientifique of the Institute of France for his translational research into atherothrombotic disease. Recently, he was named a Prince Mahidol Award Laureate in Thailand for his lifelong contribution to the field of medicine, and in 2022, the American College of Cardiology instituted the “Valentin Fuster Award in Science and Innovation,” that will be given to a single physician annually for the next 15 years.

Dr. Fuster has also 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 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.”

“Dr. Valentin Fuster is a humanitarian and global champion of cardiovascular health of the first order. His commitment to excellence in research education and to fostering an environment of unparalleled clinical distinction embodies everything for which we strive at Mount Sinai, and as health care providers,” says Kenneth L. Davis, MD, Chief Executive Officer of the Mount Sinai Health System.

“Dr. Fuster’s dedication to interdisciplinary translational research has defined Mount Sinai’s world-leading reputation in cardiovascular care. His groundbreaking contributions to the field have transformed the nature of care for patients well beyond the walls of Mount Sinai. His legacy is one to sustain and emulate at any innovative institution. It is our privilege to have him as our premier ambassador, now and forever.”

Mount Sinai Fuster Heart Hospital is one of the world’s top four hospitals in Cardiology/Heart Surgery

Mount Sinai Fuster Heart Hospital ranks No. 1 in New York and No. 4 globally according to Newsweek’s “The World’s Best Specialized Hospitals.” The Mount Sinai Hospital is also No. 1 in New York for cardiology, cardiac surgery, and vascular surgery, according to U.S. News & World Report®.  

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 7,400 primary and specialty care physicians; 13 joint-venture outpatient surgery centers throughout the five boroughs of New York City, Westchester, Long Island, and Florida; and more than 30 affiliated community health centers. Hospitals within the System are consistently ranked by Newsweek’s® “The World’s Best Smart 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‘s® “Best Hospitals” Honor Roll for 2023-2024. For more information, visit https://www.mountsinai.org or find Mount Sinai on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.