Dr. Janki Shah, medical director at UCLA Health Division of Cardiology in Thousand Oaks, moderated a panel of heart health specialists for the American Heart Association’s Ventura County Go Red for Women event on Feb. 21. The event, which was held at the Four Seasons Hotel Westlake Village, is one of many for AHA that aims to spread awareness about heart health for women, specifically when it comes to cutting down on misdiagnoses. “Women are unfortunately very undertreated and underdiagnosed; they’re not treated fairly when it comes to heart disease,” Shah told the Business Journal. “The sad thing is 80 percent of heart disease is preventable if we do the right things. I think it’s wonderful that we have this program to get that information to save lives.” Fortunately, UCLA physicians, including Shah, can treat patients right in the Valley region. UCLA Health began its expansion into the Valley eight years ago, Shah said. It now has 19 satellite offices in the area and more than 150 locations ranging from Orange County to San Luis Obispo. “We’ve been extremely successful here in the Valley to the point that our doctors are actually very saturated. We’re hiring a lot of new physicians and opening more offices, a second one in Westlake Village,” said Shah. “What really differentiates us from the small private practices is our integrated medical record system. Patients appreciate that when they come to see me as a cardiologist, I have access to all of their labs, all of their imaging, all of their other reports from their other specialists.” Panelists at the event included Dr. Holly Middlekauff, UCLA Health Department of Cardiology; Dr. Adam Darby, UCLA Health Department of Neurology; and Dr. Alexis Peraino, internal medicine at the California Health and Longevity Institute. Some sponsors included Thousand Oaks biotech giant Amgen Inc., Adventist Health Simi Valley, Dignity Health and Los Robles Health System in Thousand Oaks.
