Educational innovation in cardiovascular care - Developing a curriculum for women's cardiovascular health

Sep 29, 2026

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death among women in the United States, with major knowledge gaps in sex-specific care among providers. To close these gaps, a structured, multidisciplinary women’s cardiovascular health (CVH) curriculum was created and implemented within the University of Virginia cardiovascular fellowship program. The curriculum covers women-specific topics including cardio-obstetrics, spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD), and coronary microvascular disease (CMD), using didactic lectures and experiential learning through clinical work, research, and community outreach. Ongoing curriculum development is important to reduce CVD disparities in morbidity and mortality.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages5

Reading Time13 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Knowledge gaps and sex-specific training needs

Maternal mortality and education gaps

Article details

Keywords and abbreviations

Curriculum description

American Heart Journal Plus: Cardiology Research and Practice 61 (2026) 100693 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect American Heart Journal Plus: Cardiology Research and Practice journal [homepage:](homepage: www.sciencedirect.com/journal/)[ www.sciencedirect.com/journal/](homepage: www.sciencedirect.com/journal/)[ ](homepage: www.sciencedirect.com/journal/)american-heart-journal-plus-cardiology-research-and-practice | Educational innovation in cardiovascular care: Developing a curriculum for women's cardiovascular health☆
Giorgia Borgarellia, Cristiane C. Singulaneb, Paul Montana b, Lucie Lefbom c, Hakinya Karrac, Kelsey Watts d, Kara Harrison c, Jennifer M. Choffelb, Christopher S. Ennene,
Aditya M. Sharma b, Kelly E. Wingerter b, Victor Soukoulisb, Patricia F. Rodriguez-Lozanob,f,*
a Department of Family Medicine, University of Virginia Health, Charlottesville, VA, USA
b Department of Medicine, Cardiovascular Division, University of Virginia Health, Charlottesville, VA, USAc Department of Medicine, University of Virginia Health, Charlottesville, VA, USA
d Center for Public Health Genomics, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, VA, USA e Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, VA, USAf Department of Radiology and Medical Imaging, University of Virginia Health, Charlottesville, VA, USA | | | | --- | --- | --- | | A R T I C L E I N F O | | A B S T R A C T | | Keywords:
Women's Health
Multidisciplinary Care
Cardio-obstetrics
Innovation on education
Health disparities | | Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death among women in the United States, with significant knowledge gaps in sex-specific care among providers. To address this, we developed and implemented a structured, multidisciplinary women's cardiovascular health (CVH) curriculum within the cardiovascular fellowship program at the University of Virginia. The curriculum focused on women-specific cardiovascular health, including cardio-obstetrics, spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) and coronary microvascular disease (CMD), and encompassed didactic lectures and unique experiential learning through clinical work, research, and community outreach. This multidisciplinary approach enhances individualized care and prepares trainees to recognize and treat the unique cardiovascular needs of women. Continued development of such curricula is crucial for reducing morbidity and mortality disparities in CVD. | 1. Introduction Cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains the leading cause of death among women in the United States, accounting for over 400,000 deaths per year. Despite efforts, there has been a lower reduction in mortality over time in women compared to men (1). Alarming trends show more young women hospitalized with myocardial infarction (MI), yet they are less likely to receive guideline-based treatment (2). It is now recognized that women have a unique phenotype of heart disease with differences in symptoms, sex-specific risk factors, and underlying conditions (3). Moreover, the United States has the highest maternal mortality in the developed world, with CVD as the leading cause of pregnancy-related death (4). Although awareness and research on women's cardiovascular health (CVH) have improved in recent years, significant knowledge gaps persist among cardiovascular professionals. Current physician trainees endorse a lack of and a need for comprehensive clinical training in Sex and Gender Medicine (5). A contributing factor to this issue is the lack of standardized sex and gender-specific medicine curricula offered to medical trainees. Emerging formal programs show promising improvement in Abbreviation: CAD, coronary artery disease; CMD, coronary microvascular disease; CMR, cardiac magnetic resonance; CT, computed tomography; CVD, cardiovascular disease; CVH, cardiovascular health; FITs, fellows in training; FMD, f

FAQs

Why was a women’s cardiovascular health curriculum developed?

The article reports significant knowledge gaps in sex-specific cardiovascular care among providers and notes trainees lack comprehensive clinical training in Sex and Gender Medicine.

What topics does the curriculum include?

It focuses on women-specific cardiovascular health, including cardio-obstetrics, spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD), and coronary microvascular disease (CMD).

How is the curriculum taught and how does it improve care?

It combines didactic lectures with experiential learning through clinical work, research, and community outreach, helping trainees recognize and treat unique cardiovascular needs of women and supporting individualized care.

Sep 29, 2026

Uploaded by Olivia Brown