Cedars-Sinai has appointed Michael E. Farkouh, MD, MSc, as associate dean for Research and Clinical Trials and professor of Cardiology, effective March 1, 2023. A clinical cardiologist and epidemiologist, Farkouh is internationally known for his academic leadership and distinguished record of diabetes and cardiovascular disease clinical trials.

“We look forward to Dr. Farkouh joining Cedars-Sinai and leading the continued expansion of our fast-growing academic programs,” said Jeffrey Golden, MD, vice dean of Research and Graduate Education and director of the Burns and Allen Research Institute at Cedars-Sinai. “As associate dean for Research and Clinical Trials, Dr. Farkouh will support our academic enterprise with a particular focus on expanding clinical trials in all disciplines.”

Farkouh will be responsible for evaluating and recommending new strategic growth opportunities and ensuring optimal infrastructure for our research laboratories and facilities. He will lead strategic planning, oversight and evaluation for all clinical trials across the health system.

Farkouh currently holds the Peter Munk Chair in Multinational Clinical Trials at the Peter Munk Cardiac Centre of the University Health Network in Toronto, where he directs the Cardiovascular Clinical Trials and Translation Unit. He serves in dual leadership roles at the University of Toronto—as director of the Heart and Stroke/Richard Lewar Centre of Excellence in Cardiovascular Research and as professor and vice chair of Research in the Department of Medicine. He also chairs the Committee on Diabetes and Heart Disease at the university’s Banting and Best Diabetes Centre.

Prior to his current appointments, Farkouh served as director of Clinical Trials at the Cardiovascular Research Institute at Mount Sinai Health System in New York.

“We are excited to have Dr. Farkouh in this new position that will elevate the stature and quality of our already impressive clinical research enterprise,” said Shlomo Melmed, MB, ChB, Cedars-Sinai's executive vice president of Academic Affairs and dean of the Medical Faculty.

Farkouh earned his medical degree from the University of Western Ontario. He completed his residency in internal medicine at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, followed by cardiology fellowships at McMaster University in Ontario and at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Farkouh earned his master’s degree in clinical epidemiology from McMaster University.

Farkouh has served as a principal investigator and medical project officer for multiple trials sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), including the landmark FREEDOM and TAILOR-PCI trials, and he has collaborated on multiple large NIH-sponsored initiatives in cardiovascular diseases and diabetes. He founded the Worldwide Network for Innovation in Clinical Education and Research (WNICER), an international clinical trials network that advances multidisciplinary research. He is the section editor for diabetes and metabolism at the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

“I’m excited to join one of the best academic medical centers in the nation,” Farkouh said. “I look forward to building on the foundation of an already impressive academic enterprise and develop plans for the future expansion of major research programs.”

Read more on the Cedars-Sinai Blog: Why Diversity Matters in Clinical Trials