ASNC Names Dr. David Wolinsky as President for 2015

January 22, 2015

ASNC Names Dr. David Wolinsky as President for 2015

Dr. Wolinsky assumed presidency of the American Society of Nuclear Cardiology as of January 1, 2015.
Dr. Wolinsky, Section head of Nuclear Cardiology at Cleveland Clinic Florida, is a leader in nuclear cardiology. He is a founding member of the American Society of Nuclear Cardiology (ASNC) and he is a member of ASNC's Board of Directors and ASNC's Quality Assurance Committee. He is an active teacher and lectures at both regional and national meetings. He is actively involved in clinical nuclear cardiology research. He is the founder of the Nuclear Cardiology department at Albany Associates in Cardiology. Dr. Wolinsky is a champion for community education for heart disease. He lectured frequently on cardiovascular risk reduction and heart failure as part of his role as director of Cardiac Rehab and Wellness at Cleveland Clinic Florida.

With more than 4,500 members worldwide, ASNC is the only society dedicated solely to advocacy issues that impact the field of nuclear cardiology and the Society is working with success to influence regulations to fight onerous private health plan policies. ASNC's members represent the top experts in the field, and as a result, ASNC consistently serves as the leading voice in education, research, quality standards and guidelines, and advocacy in cardiovascular imaging. ASNC's members are comprised of cardiologists, radiologists, physicians, scientists, technologists, imaging specialists, and other professionals committed to the science and practice of nuclear cardiology.

During his tenure as President, Dr. Wolinsky will focus on appropriate use criteria, as well as, maximizing the value of nuclear cardiology testing to provide high quality, cost-effective cardiac care. His mission is to engage and educate the cardiovascular imaging community, which includes referring physicians, and help them better understand ASNC's commitment to using data to prove value and its effect on patient outcomes. Another important focus under the leadership of Dr. Wolinsky will be the launch of ASNC's ImageGuide Registry, the nation's first cardiovascular nuclear imaging data registry. The ImageGuide Registry has been meticulously designed to assist nuclear cardiology laboratories and interpreting physicians ensure and improve the quality of nuclear cardiology studies. It is the first registry that has been developed for non-invasive cardiac imaging. The goals of the ImageGuide Registry include improving laboratory quality and efficiency, optimizing patient radiation exposure, downstream cost minimization and improving patient care and safety.

Nuclear cardiology plays an important role in the diagnosis and treatment of heart disease. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the US. Heart disease, or coronary artery disease, results from narrowing, or constriction, of the blood vessels that supply blood to the heart. The blood vessels become narrow when fatty deposits build up inside the arterial wall. As the arteries become clogged, and diseased, the blood flow to the heart muscle is impaired and a heart attack can occur. Nuclear imaging studies use noninvasive techniques to assess blood flow, evaluate the pumping function of the heart, as well as, pinpoint the blockage area. Once a blockage is identified by these noninvasive studies, medical intervention can be used to treat the patient, with precision and accuracy from reading the nuclear imaging results. Therefore, physicians can identify patients at risk before a cardiac event occurs.

"ASNC has begun to review the needs of our community and has developed an action plan to keep the field alive, viable, and growing based on quality, safety, education, and advocacy. We believe nuclear cardiology remains an important tool for management of patients with known or suspected coronary disease," says Dr. Wolinsky. "As incoming president, I am committed to ensure that ASNC meets the challenges ahead. In subsequent issues of the Journal of Nuclear Cardiology, I will delve into these specific topics in more detail, informing our members of what has been accomplished and what still needs to be done. ASNC members must be active participants in these efforts to survive. The paradigm must be shifted from volume to value. If we do the right thing, we will succeed."

Nuclear cardiology studies continue to play an increasingly important role in the new millennium, in the noninvasive diagnosis of coronary artery disease, the assessment of the pumping function of the heart and in the prediction of outcomes in patients with heart disease.