2025 MENTORSHIP AWARDS
Investing in mentorship
Mentorship is consistently identified as a key factor in career success for women cardiologists. This is why, working with our industry partners, we bring women together in mutually beneficial pairings to support their career advancement.
The three funded and supported mentorship pairings each have a unique focus and match an experienced physician (10+ years of practical experience) with a physician in specialty/fellowship training. These cross-institutional pairs will work together to create a collaborative project that will contribute to the scientific knowledge base. Each award is focused on a specific clinical topic area and is sponsored by a partner organization. By supporting these unique mentorship awards, these organizations have showcased their commitment to a diverse medical workforce and creating new professional opportunities for women cardiologists.
The Awards
Each award creates one mentorship pairing, with the award year running for 12 months from May 1, 2025 until April 30, 2026. Mentors will receive $15,000 and Mentees $10,000 toward completing their project.
Mentorship Pairing #1: Addressing Disparities in Transthyretin Amyloidosis
Sponsored by 
Topic: Transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTR) is significantly underdiagnosed, often diagnosed late due to non-specific symptoms, and exhibits notable disparities across specific populations. This is particularly true for patients presenting with a mixed phenotype, such as cardiomyopathy and polyneuropathy, where diagnosis can be further complicated by overlapping symptoms. This mentorship pairing will focus on identifying and addressing these disparities in clinical presentation, diagnostic challenges, disease progression, and treatment outcomes within underserved populations. The ultimate goal is to facilitate earlier diagnosis and improved patient outcomes for all, contributing to a more equitable standard of care.
Open to: Global cardiologists with demonstrated clinical interest in ATTR amyloidosis research, diagnosis, and treatment, with a specific interest in health equity and addressing disparities and treatment.
Meet the awardees
Mentee: Yi Hsin Hung, MD
National Taiwan University Hospital, Taiwan
Learn more about Dr. Yi Hsin Hung
Yi-Hsin Hung, MD, is a final-year cardiology fellow at National Taiwan University Hospital. Dr. Hung focuses her clinical and research efforts on ATTR cardiac amyloidosis and cardio-oncology, with an emphasis on reducing diagnostic delays, enhancing treatment monitoring, and advancing equity-driven precision care.
Mentor: Samuela Carigi, MD
Rimini Hospital, Italy
Learn more about Dr. Samuela Carigi
In 2001, Dr. Samuela Carigi qualified as a Medical Doctor at the University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy, and in 2005, she completed her specialization in Cardiology at the same institution.
Since 2007, she has served as a Consultant in the Department of Cardiology at Rimini Hospital, Romagna, Italy, in a permanent role as Dirigente Medico di I livello a tempo indeterminato, as defined by Italian law. Currently, she holds the position of Company Manager in the field of Cardiomyopathies within USL Romagna. She is also the Co-Chair of the Coordinator Area of the Heart Failure Board within the Italian Association of Cardiologists (ANMCO).
Since 2022, she has served as a Professor at the Cardiology School of the University of Ferrara, Italy.
At Rimini Hospital, she follows the Cardiomyopathy Outpatient and Heart Failure Clinic. Her clinical expertise includes performing cardiac magnetic resonance imaging, transesophageal echocardiography, and stress echocardiography, with a particular focus on patients with cardiomyopathies. She also provides coverage for the intensive care unit and cardiologic emergency department.
In addition to her clinical work, she is actively involved in clinical research and has published numerous studies in the fields of heart failure and cardiomyopathies.
Mentorship Pairing #2: Transthyretin Amyloid Cardiomyopathy
Sponsored by 
Topic: Recipients of this award will develop a project based on one of the following topics within Transthyretin Amyloid Cardiomyopathy:
- The role of TTR and/or T119M mutation
- Using markers to improve the progressor index
- Predictive factors for higher risk of progression or non-response to treatment
- The role of imaging in diagnosis and monitoring
- Clinical Management of ATTR
- Importance and impact of early diagnosis of ATTR-CM
Open to: Cardiologists of any subspecialty with a demonstrated clinical interest in the treatment of ATTR-CM who are currently practicing within the United States of America.
Meet the awardees
Mentee: Pooja Prasad, MD
University of California San Francisco, United States of America
Learn more about Dr. Pooja Prasad
Dr. Pooja Prasad is an Advanced Heart Failure and Transplant cardiologist with clinical and research interests in cardiac amyloidosis, pulmonary hypertension and heart failure with preserved fraction. She earned her medical degree from the University of Rochester School of Medicine. She completed a residency in Internal Medicine at the University of California, Davis, followed by a fellowship in cardiology at Oregon Health and Science University and a fellowship in Advanced Heart Failure and Transplant Cardiology at UCSF. Dr. Prasad serves as an Assistant Clinical Professor at University of California, San Francisco and Principal Investigator on clinical trials investigating novel drugs for the treatment of HFpEF.
Mentor: Hanna Gaggin, MD
Massachusetts General Hospital, United States of America
Learn more about Dr. Hanna Gaggin
Dr. Hanna K. Gaggin is a cardiologist, clinical investigator, and educator at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Harvard Medical School. She founded and directs the multidisciplinary MGH Amyloidosis Program, which provides both comprehensive care and research opportunities for patients with amyloidosis. With a focus on cardiac amyloidosis and heart failure, Dr. Gaggin leads and participates in single- and multi-center clinical trials, utilizing traditional clinical research approaches as well as emerging methods in machine learning and biomarker development.
After earning her medical degree from Eastern Virginia Medical School, Dr. Gaggin completed her Internal Medicine residency at the University of Virginia Health System. She then received an MPH in Quantitative Methods from the Harvard School of Public Health, followed by fellowships in cardiology at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and in clinical research at MGH. She joined the MGH and Harvard Medical School faculty in 2012. Dr. Gaggin is currently an Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School.
Beyond her research, Dr. Gaggin is dedicated to educating and supporting the next generation of physicians. She serves as the Cardiology Subspecialty Core Educator for the MGH Internal Medicine residency and is the founder and co-editor of the MGH Cardiology Board Review books. In 2022, she was selected for the American College of Cardiology’s Emerging Faculty Leadership Academy and as an inaugural HeartShare fellow focused on data sciences. She also founded and directs the Junior Faculty Club Series at MGH, providing junior faculty with practical skills and guidance to grow their careers.
Mentorship Pairing #3: NSTEMI Presentation and Management Flow within US Health Systems
Sponsored by 
Topic: The mentorship pair created by this award will work together to explore one of the following topics within acute NSTEMI presentation:
- Flow of referral practices, hospital care and discharge patterns with an eye on evolving landscape and guideline direction for shorter durations of within hospital care.
- Assessment of distinct factors that may influence access to care for women and underserved populations with acute Type 1 NSTEMI presentation.
Open to: Interventional cardiologists with a demonstrated clinical interest in the treatment of patients with NSTEMI who are currently practicing within the United States of America.
Meet the awardees
Mentee: Preet Ayoub Shaikh, MD, MBBS
Washington University School of Medicine, United States of America
Learn more about Dr. Preet Ayoub Shaikh
Dr Shaikh is a Cardiology fellow at Washington University School of Medicine in Saint Louis. She was born and raised in Pakistan where her early medical education cemented an interest in the care of the underserved. She is passionate about studying disparities in cardiovascular care delivery with particular focus on rural health outcomes. Her other interests lie in the fields of heart failure, interventional cardiology and medical education.
Mentor: Celina Yong, MD, MPH, MBA
Stanford University and VA Palo Alto Healthcare System, United States of America
Learn more about Dr. Celina Yong
Celina M. Yong, MD, MBA, MSc, FACC, FAHA, FSCAI is an Associate Professor at Stanford University School of Medicine and Director of Interventional Cardiology at the VA Palo Alto Healthcare System. She leads an active health services research lab focused on using innovative approaches and scalable technologies to improve cardiovascular outcomes among all patients. She is Founder and Director of the VA-Cardiovascular Trials Consortium (VA-CTC). She serves as an Associate Editor for the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. She has also co-authored national scientific and expert consensus statements, including the ACC/AHA/SCAI Coronary Artery Revascularization Guidelines.
Frequently Asked Questions
What mentorship and networking benefits are part of the Awards?
Winners benefit from meeting renowned expert physicians and clinical researchers. Award recipients can form new connections during these meetings and receive valuable project feedback and suggestions and career advice. Furthermore, our support of award winners does not end with the award cycle. We are committed to amplifying the work of our Award recipients throughout their careers.
How are Award winners selected?
Applicants are reviewed by a committee of experts determined by Women As One. The committee will choose a short list of finalists who may participate in video interviews before the award winners are selected.
Can pre-formed pairs apply for the Mentorship Award?
No, in order to create new connections through the Awards, we pair Mentor and Mentee applicants from complimentary subspecialties.
Who is eligible to apply for the Mentorship Award?
Each Award typically has a specific clinical focus and is therefore open to physicians within specific subspecialties. These specialties will vary by year but are typically within cardiology and related subspecialties. Mentees should be current Fellows, and mentors should have over ten years of practical experience.
What makes Women As One's Awards different from others in medicine?
Our Awards are uniquely targeted at identifying and proactively resourcing a select group of high-potential women physicians. Through the awards, we advance more women in their careers and ultimately into leadership positions, effectively breaking the cycle of underrepresentation for future generations.
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Latest from our community
Announcing the 2025 Women As One Mentorship Award Winners
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