Aurora Health Care Receives $2 Million Donation to Support Cardiovascular Aging Research
His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad Al Thani has donated $2 million to advance cardiovascular research conducted at Aurora St. Luke’s Medical Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The donation will support Aurora’s Center for Integrative Research on Cardiovascular Aging (CIRCA). The center is being renamed as Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad Al Thani Center for Integrative Research on Cardiovascular Aging in his honor of His Highness.
“We are extremely grateful for the generosity of His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad Al Thani,” said Nick Turkal, MD, president and CEO of Aurora Health Care. “This gift will go a long way in furthering the important work of Drs. A. Jamil Tajik and Arshad Jahangir and their cardiovascular aging research teams at Aurora Health Care.”
“Receiving this generous gift from across the globe to further advance the science of cardiovascular health validates the importance and the international reach of the work we do at Aurora,” said A. Jamil Tajik, MD, FACC, FAHA, president of cardiovascular services at Aurora Health Care and personal cardiologist to His Highness.
Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death among men and women of all racial and ethnic groups in Wisconsin and is a prevalent condition among the elderly. In addition, Wisconsin’s aging population is growing—increasing by 10.6 percent since 2000 per recent U.S. Census reports.
Aurora’s Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad Al Thani Center for Integrative Research on Cardiovascular Aging is one of the few research centers in the country devoted entirely to study the effect of aging on the cardiovascular system. Its mission is to support and conduct clinical and basic research on the biology of aging and to develop diagnostic, predictive and therapeutic interventions to preserve wellness, prevent age-related cardiovascular dysfunction and improve the quality of life of older people.
“This gift will help us continue this important research to improve the quality of life of seniors in our communities and around the world,” said Arshad Jahangir, MD, FACC, FAHA, FHRS, program director at Aurora Health Care.
Aurora Health Care is a leader in the treatment of complex heart conditions, offering a multidisciplinary, coordinated approach to cardiovascular care throughout its 15 hospitals and 159 clinics in eastern Wisconsin and northeastern Illinois. Aurora’s cardiovascular program includes world-renowned heart and vascular physicians, with expertise in several cardiac specialties, including: mechanical circulatory support for advanced heart failure; cardiac transplant; regenerative cardiology; structural /valvular heart disease; advanced catheter-based therapies, including catheter-based valve repair/replacement; advanced electrophysiology procedures; congenital/hypertrophic cardiomyopathy; as well as prevention and innovation led by the Aurora Research Institute.
For more information about research in cardiovascular aging, visit aurora.org/CIRCA. To learn more aboutAurora’s cardiovascular programs, visit aurora.org/services/cardiovascular.
His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad Al Thani reigned as Emir of Qatar from 1972 until 1995. During his time as Qatar’s leader, Sheikh Khalifa was responsible for beginning Qatar’s process of modernization and is known for creating a benevolent state.
Aurora Health Care is a not-for-profit Wisconsin health care provider and a national leader in efforts to improve health care quality. Aurora offers services at sites in more than 90 communities throughout eastern Wisconsin and northern Illinois. Aurora is Wisconsin’s most comprehensive health care provider and the state’s largest private employer. Aurora serves more than 1.2 million patients every year via a comprehensive network of facilities, services and providers, including 15 hospitals, 159 clinics, and 70 pharmacies. As evidenced by more than 400 active clinical trials, Aurora is dedicated to delivering innovations to provide the best possible care today, and to define the best care for tomorrow.
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Contact:
Mo Moorman
414-299-1688
mo.moorman@aurora.org
