Rachel J. Weller, MD

Description

From a young age, I knew I wanted to become a pediatrician. I was led to cardiology during my pediatrics residency at Babies Hospital—now NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital—where I witnessed the deep bond that pediatric cardiologists develop with their patients who have congenital heart disease. In my own practice, it has been a privilege to have such close relationships with my patients and their families. It is a joy to watch as children with even the most complex heart problems develop into thriving young adults, thanks to continuous innovations in cardiac surgery, interventional catheterization, and arrhythmia management. In addition to patients with congenital heart disease, I see children and teenagers with symptoms such as fainting, chest pain, and heart murmurs, as well as children with other anomalies that may be associated with heart problems. Their issues may differ from those of my more complex cardiac patients, but families' concerns about their children's health are the same no matter what the problem is, and they receive the same compassionate care and consideration. My office on West 86th Street is one of Columbia's pediatric subspecialty practices. I see patients there four days a week with appointments available early morning to late afternoon. It is a full-service office including ECG and echocardiogram machines. I also see patients at Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital once a week, and I spend several weeks a year caring for patients in the neonatal cardiac intensive care unit (NCICU). I also teach pediatric cardiology fellows and other trainees, both on hospital rounds and in my role as director of the pediatric cardiology fellows clinic. I very much enjoy being a faculty mentor for Columbia medical students as well. Most recently, I have been involved in both research and care of children who develop MIS-C (multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children) related to a COVID-19 infection.