Cincinnati Children's acquires Louisville-based cardiology practice
Cincinnati Children's is expanding its heart services into the Louisville and West-Central Kentucky region with the purchase of a physician practice that serves children and adults with congenital heart disease.
Effective Dec. 1, Cincinnati Children's acquired Children's Heart Specialists, which offers services in clinics in Louisville, Elizabethtown, Danville, Bardstown and Shelbyville, KY.
"This acquisition is intended to ensure that Kentucky residents continue to receive top-ranked care close to home," said Andrew Redington, MD, co-director of the Heart Institute at Cincinnati Children's.
Cincinnati Children's is second in the nation among all Honor Roll hospitals in U.S. News & World Report's 2018-2019 Best Children's Hospitals ranking. In addition, its Heart Institute ranks among the top-10 pediatric cardiology and heart surgery programs in the nation, according to U.S. News.
Children's Heart Specialists is led by Juan Villafañe, MD, who has been practicing in Kentucky since 1986. His practice is noted for being bilingual. He and his seven-person staff speak fluent Spanish to better serve families in the Hispanic community, who make up a large portion of his practice. All staff members will continue to provide the same high-level service at the current practice locations with the goal of expanding clinics in the spring of 2019.
"Our goal is to provide the highest quality of care with compassion and respect to our patients and their families," said Villafañe. "We remain committed to providing comprehensive cardiac services to infants, children and adults with congenital heart disease as we join the Cincinnati Children's family."
Villafañe is board-certified in pediatrics, pediatric cardiology and adult congenital heart disease. He has received numerous awards, including the American Academy of Pediatrics Special Achievement Award for distinguished service and dedication to the mission and goals of the AAP. He has written or co-written more than 40 publications and more than 50 abstracts in the medical literature. He also has given hundreds of scientific presentations and lectures, not just in the United States but also internationally.
Next spring, Cincinnati Children's will expand practice capacity and accessibility by adding Andrea Beaton, MD, to the staff. Beaton joined Cincinnati Children's in 2018 and currently works at the Heart Institute. A native of Georgetown, KY, Beaton earned a medical degree at the University of Louisville School of Medicine. She completed her medical residency at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York and fellowships in cardiology, and in advanced imaging and research, at Children's National Medical Center in Washington, DC.
