John Kiene Forrest MD, FACC, FSCAI

John K. Forrest, MD, is a cardiologist at Yale Medicine, where he serves as Director of both Interventional Cardiology and of the Structural Heart Disease Program. Dr. Forrest received his medical degree from the Yale University School of Medicine in 2005 and remained at Yale for his residency and fellowship training. During his fellowship, he trained with Michael Cleman, MD and Craig Thompson, MD, both interventional cardiologists, and John Elefteriades, MD, a cardiothoracic surgeon at Yale Medicine. As a group, they were the first physicians in Connecticut to perform a new minimally invasive procedure to replace heart valves without the need for open-heart surgery. Since that time, Dr. Forrest has focused on advancing research and development in the field of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) leading national and international studies in this area.

Dr. Forrest was named the Director of Structural Heart Disease in 2014 and subsequently Director of Interventional Cardiology in 2017. As the director for both these programs, Dr. Forrest’s goal is to ensure patients receive the best care possible through a patient-centered approach using cutting-edge technologies. “This is a field that’s rapidly developing. By providing patients with therapies they otherwise wouldn’t be able to access, we can help improve not only their survival but also their quality of life,” he says.

When he first meets a patient, Dr. Forrest and the structural heart team at Yale Medicine have an in-depth conversation with them to understand who they are as an individual, including their values, lifestyle, and co-existing conditions. These factors help them tailor individualized options for each patient. He then explains the various treatment options and possible scenarios to them. “I think the role of the physician is to inform the patients about their options, explain to them what is likely to happen, and then let them make informed decisions,” he says.