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2024 Quality Summit Awardees

Raymond Bahr Award For Excellence

  • The Bahr Award of Excellence named for Dr. Raymond Bahr, is presented annually to an individual who demonstrates extraordinary excellence, vision, and leadership in advancing health care.

  • Biykem Bozkurt MD, PhD, FHFSA, FAHA, FACC, FESC, FACP
  • Dr. Biykem Bozkurt is the Senior Dean of Faculty, the Mary and Gordon Cain Chair and Professor of Medicine; Director of Winters Center of Heart Failure; Associate Director of Cardiovascular Research Institute at Baylor College of Medicine, and the Medicine Chief at the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medicine in Houston TX.

    Throughout her career, Dr. Bozkurt has been recognized for excellence in clinical care, education, and research. She was the recipient of the VA career development grant and MERIT research awards, American College of Cardiology Proctor Harvey MD Young Teacher Award, American College of Cardiology Gifted Educator Award, Baylor College of Medicine presidential awards in Education, Lifetime Master Clinician, and Professionalism. She has been listed in Clarivate World’s Highly Cited Researchers (top 1% Web of Science) in 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2023. 

    Dr. Bozkurt is the Editor-in-Chief of JACC: Heart Failure. She served as the President of the Heart Failure Society of America in 2019-2020, led the Universal Definition and Classification of Heart Failure as the Chair in 2021, and is the Vice-Chair of the 2022 AHA/ACC Heart Failure Guidelines Writing Committee. She served as a Senior Associate Editor for Circulation; heart failure section editor for the Journal of American College of Cardiology. Dr. Bozkurt actively participates in clinical and translational research; provides advanced heart failure patient care; presents at national and international scientific sessions; teaches and mentors trainees and faculty.


Distinguished Excellence in Cardiovascular Health Care

  • The ACC Mission to transform cardiovascular care and improve heart health has been realized through the work completed by the cardiovascular team members that support the ACC NCDR and Accreditation Services at hospitals throughout the world. Each year we come together during the ACC Quality Summit for best practice sharing with the goals to advance quality, equity, and the value of cardiovascular care.  We are the “boots on the ground” professionals that support the ongoing data bases utilized to inform policy, guidelines, and practice changes.

    Established in 2022, the primary goal to establish the Healthcare of Quality Professional Award is to recognize and celebrate an individual cardiovascular team professional that has demonstrated remarkable contributions to the NCDR and Accreditation Services for the College.  

  • Sini Eapen, MSN, APRN, ACNPC-AG, AGACNP-BC, CCRN, CMC, AACC
  • This year’s winner was nominated by two members of her organization for her extraordinary contributions, leadership, and commitment to excellence. Sini Eapen, MSN, APRN, ACNPC-AG, AGACNP-BC, CCRN, CMC, AACC has over 20 years in cardiovascular care experience and is currently the Chest Pain Program Manager at Ben Taub Hospital, part of the Harris Health System in Houston, Texas.  

    Within her role, Sini has been instrumental in leading numerous quality improvement initiatives, including optimizing STEMI processes, enhancing First Medical Contact to balloon time, reducing AMI Readmission rates, and facilitating the transition to high-sensitivity troponin assays. Sini’s work has significantly impacted the local care environment and the larger cardiovascular professional community through the sharing of the improvement efforts during the annual ACC Quality Summits. Sini’s dedication, accomplishments, and her ability to inspire have made a lasting impact on Ben Taub Hospital’s patients and her colleagues.