Detailed Biography:

Dr. Thomas Klitzner Dr. Thomas Klitzner is the Jack H. Skirball Professor and the former chief of the Division of Pediatric Cardiology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. He currently serves as Director of the Pediatric Medical Home Program at UCLA, Vice Chair for Academic Affairs in the Department of Pediatrics and Director of California Children's Services (CCS) Programs at Mattel Children's Hospital at UCLA. Under Dr. Klitzner's direction, the UCLA's division of pediatric cardiology provides comprehensive cardiac care for children suffering from a wide variety of congenital and acquired heart disease at the Mattel Children's Hospital at UCLA. Children from the around the world travel to Mattel Children's Hospital at UCLA to receive medical care provided by the division's highly accomplished pediatric cardiologists. Clinically, Dr. Klitzner's interests include general pediatric cardiology with an emphasis on arrhythmias or irregular heart beats in children. Dr. Klitzner is also a strong advocate at the local, state and national levels for enhanced healthcare for children with special health care needs. In addition, he is Director of the Medical Home Project at UCLA, a program designed to provide comprehensive, family centered, culturally competent services to the most disadvantaged children with special needs. Dr. Klitzner has been honored with numerous awards for his research and commitment to professional organizations. He is a past recipient of the prestigious American Academy of Pediatrics Award for Excellence in Pediatric Research and currently holds a Healthy Tomorrows Partnership for Children Grant from the Maternal Child Health Branch of the Federal Health Resources and Services Administration to support his work on the Medical Home. His extensive list of professional activities includes serving as chair of the Executive Committee of the American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery, Member of the Joint Council on Congenital Heart Disease and past chair of the program committee for the "Every Child Deserves a Medical Home Training Program,". In addition, Dr. Klitzner is a past president of the American Heart Association's (AHA) Western States Affiliate. Dr. Klitzner holds a Ph.D. in Physiology from the University of Pennsylvania, an M.D. from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, an M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and an A.B. in Physics from Harvard University.