Michelle A Albert, MD, MPH
Dr. Michelle A. Albert, MD MPH is the Walter A. Haas-Lucie Stern Endowed Chair in Cardiology and Professor in Medicine at the University of California at San Francisco (UCSF), Admissions Dean for UCSF Medical School and Director of the CeNter for the StUdy of AdveRsiTy and CardiovascUlaR DiseasE (NURTURE Center). Dr. Albert is a graduate of Haverford College, the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Harvard School of Public Health. She completed Internal Medicine Residency and served as Chief Medical Resident at Columbia University Medical Center in New York. Dr. Albert then completed Cardiovascular Clinical and Research Fellowship at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, where she rose in the ranks to an Associate Professor in Medicine. She was previously the Vivian Beaumont Allen Endowed Professor/Chair and Chief of Cardiology at Howard University.
Dr. Albert’s clinical expertise involves both taking care of the most critically ill heart disease patients and preventive cardiology at UCSF. As a physician-scientist-epidemiologist, Dr. Albert has had a longstanding commitment to health equity and is engaged in cutting-edge research that innovatively seeks to incorporate “biology” with social determinants of health to transform CVD science and healthcare of global populations, i.e “the biology of adversity”. Her research has followed a bold, non-traditional path for cardiovascular disease research. A central component of her current work focuses on developing innovative implementation strategies to curb adversity related CVD risk, particularly in women and diverse racial and ethnic populations with a focus on cumulative toxic stress. She is recipient of sustained research funding as principal investigator including NIH R01 funding, funding from Robert Wood Johnson (Harold Amos Scholar), Kellogg and Doris Duke Foundations. Dr. Albert is also a recipient of the American Heart Association (AHA) COVID-19 Rapid Track Grant. Additionally, she is one of two recipients nationally of the prestigious 2018 AHA Merit award for visionary research and is the first woman and under-represented racial/ethnic person to receive this award. Dr. Albert also received the 2020 AHA Population Science, 2023 National Distinguished AHA Leadership, 2023 AHA Distinguished Epidemiology Achievement Awards and 2024 American College of Cardiology (ACC) Distinguished Scientist Award.
Dr. Albert is an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine (NAM), the Association of University Cardiologists (AUC), the American Society of Clinical Investigation (ASCI) and the Association of American Physicians (AAP).
She is the 86th Immediate-Past President of the American Heart Association (AHA: 2022-2023), Immediate-Past President of the Association of Black Cardiologists, Inc (ABC: 2020-2022), the Past 60th President of the Association of University Cardiologists (AUC: 2021-2022). She is the first person in history to serve collectively and concurrently as President of these three of the most prestigious cardiovascular societies. Dr. Albert is the first woman of color and Black woman to serve as AHA President and AUC President.
Albert currently serves/ed as a member of the federal Advisory Committee to the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (ACD), NHLBI Board of External Experts (BEE), 2019 ACC/AHA Cardiovascular Prevention Guidelines committee and as a standing committee member of NIH study section - Mechanisms, Emotion, Sleep & Health (MESH).
Dr. Albert has also served/serves on multiple national AHA and ACC committees including on the Sarnoff Cardiovascular Medical Research Foundation Board of Directors.
Dr. Albert is a member of the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) Your Health Advisory Board and the Health/Cardiovascular Advisory Board for Women’s Day Magazine. Her research has been featured on national and international media outlets such as the BBC, Canada Broadcasting Corporation, TIME, CNN, Today Show, CBS, Associated Press, NPR, Boston Globe, San Francisco Chronicle and Washington Post. She is a sought-after interviewee/speaker on multiple news outlets including TV, digital and print media about especially about topics pertaining to research, cardiovascular health, maternal health and health equity.
Dr. Albert enjoys mentoring trainees at all levels across the United States. She was a nominee/finalist for the competitive 2011-2012 Excellence in Mentoring Award at Harvard Medical School and the recipient of the Women in Cardiology Mentoring Award from the AHA (2016). She received the ACC Heart of Women’s Health Credo Award (2012), Woman’s Day Magazine’s Red Dress Award (2014), the 2018 Daniel D. Savage Science Award (ABC’s highest honor) and the Haverford College Alumni Award (2015) -- given to an alumnus whose “work typifies the values of the college and is of outstanding service to humanity”.
Dr. Albert received an Honorary Doctorate in Science (DSc, Hon) from the University of Rochester in 2023, and also delivered the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry 2023 Commencement Address.
Dr. Albert has been named to Forbes 50 over 50 List for her Impact.