UniHealth Foundation is excited to announce the most recent addition to our Board of Directors: Karol E. Watson, MD, PhD, FACC, FAHA. Dr. Watson is an attending cardiologist and Professor of Medicine/Cardiology at the David Geffen School of Medicine. She is Director of the UCLA Women’s Cardiovascular Health Center, the UCLA-Barbra Streisand Women’s Heart Health Program, and the UCLA Cardiology Fellowship Program. Additionally, Dr. Watson holds the John Mazziotta, MD, PhD Chair in Medicine and serves as Co-Director of the UCLA Program in Preventive Cardiology.

Through her decades-long leadership in the field of cardiovascular health, Dr. Watson has remained committed to equipping the next generation of experts in cardiology. She mentors medical students and residents while also guiding and training fellows in the UCLA Cardiology Fellowship Program’s clinical track. “Joining the UniHealth Foundation Board is an incredible opportunity,” Dr. Watson shares. “Healthy communities are built on access to exceptional care and a strong pipeline of skilled, compassionate providers. I am excited to work alongside this esteemed Board to advance the critical work of local hospitals and clinics, universities, and community-based organizations.”

She earned her undergraduate degree at Stanford University; her medical degree, magna cum laude, at Harvard Medical School; and her PhD in Physiology from UCLA. Dr. Watson completed a residency in Internal Medicine and a fellowship in Cardiology at UCLA, later continuing in the UCLA Specialty Training and Academic Research program and as Chief Fellow in Cardiology. Currently, Dr. Watson is a fellow at the American College of Cardiology, which named her Cardiologist of the Year in 2017; the American Heart Association; the American Board of Clinical Lipidology; and the American Society of Preventive Cardiology.