Philip Greenland, MD, FACP, FRCP, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Ischemic heart disease is the nation’s leading cause of death and Philip Greenland, MD, has dedicated his career of more than 35 years to changing that reality by pioneering evidence for cardiovascular prevention and shaping health policy to improve the health of all.
Known as “the voice of preventive cardiology,” Dr. Greenland is a prolific scholar whose research has shaped cardiovascular care guidelines around the globe. His work, which has been cited thousands of times, was among the first to reveal that women are more likely to die from heart attacks than men and illustrated that major risk factors almost always precede heart attacks. He has also contributed to enhanced diagnostic and preventive care, showing the importance of coronary calcium scanning for prediction of cardiovascular disease risk. He has been recognized as a Thomson Reuters Highly Cited Researcher, which means he is one of the 400 most highly cited scholars worldwide in all fields of clinical medicine.
His expertise has positioned him as a top advisor for national policy on cardiovascular issues. He has led and served on dozens of panels and committees to outline cardiovascular prevention and care policy and protocol, including panels through the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), including the Framingham Heart Study; National Institutes of Health (NIH); and American Heart Association (AHA). He also served as a consultant to the Office of Technology Assessment, preparing a report for Congress on the merits of cholesterol screening in the elderly. Dr. Greenland’s research is the foundation for the AHA’s Strategic Goal of Improving Cardiovascular Health by 2020, a paradigm for ideal cardiovascular health.
Today, Dr. Greenland is the Harry W. Dingman Professor of Cardiology and Professor of Preventive Medicine at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine (Feinberg), a senior editor for the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), and a highly sought-after advisor. One colleague writes, “He is very generous with his time and his expertise, especially [in] mentoring and nurturing of younger colleagues and investigators. Phil Greenland is a ‘good man.’ Perhaps that is his greatest accomplishment.”
Dr. Greenland received his bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Williams College and attended medical school at the University of Rochester, graduating from both schools with honors. He remained at the University of Rochester, completing a residency in internal medicine and serving as chief resident. After completing a cardiology fellowship at the University of Minnesota, Dr. Greenland returned to the University of Rochester as a faculty member, where he established both a Cardiac Rehabilitation Program and a Preventive Cardiology Program; the latter became one of the first programs of its kind in New York. In 1991, he left the University of Rochester to become professor and chair of the Department of Preventive Medicine at Feinberg. He has also served Feinberg as executive associate dean for clinical research, established Northwestern’s Clinical and Translational Science Program, and now heads Feinberg’s Center for Population Health Sciences.