Researcher in the lab looking at a petri dish.

Mission Driven: Education, Research, Patient Care, and Community Partnership

A New Chapter for Duke Health: A Conversation with Drs. Klotman and Zaas

Duke Health is entering an exciting new chapter. In this candid conversation, Dr. Mary E. Klotman, executive vice president for health affairs of Duke University, dean of the Duke University School of Medicine, and chief academic officer of Duke Health, sits down with Dr. David W. Zaas, chief executive officer of Duke University Health System, to talk about what's ahead.

CPR World Record Attempt - RACE-CARS Trial

More than 350,000 people experience sudden cardiac arrest in the U.S. annually, and 90% of cases are fatal. Cardiac arrest victims who receive CPR immediately have double to triple the survival rates of those who do not. 
On February 25, 2026, North Carolinians took a shot at making history. Duke University School of Medicine led a statewide effort to break the world record for the most people trained in hands-only CPR in a single day. While falling short of the 30,000 person goal, almost 20 thousand participants learned CPR – a benchmark day for trainings in the United States.

What if preventing Alzheimer's was possible right now?

Heather Whitson’s life purpose came into focus when her love of science was linked to helping her grandmother confront Alzheimer’s Disease. Through her work at Duke, Dr. Whitson has found that Alzheimer's and dementia are diseases of aging that can be prevented decades before initial symptoms set in.