Dr. Ward serves as the faculty lead for current and future School of Medicine faculty development programs including Leadership Development for Researchers (LEADER); Academic Leadership, Innovation, and Collaborative Engagement (ALICE); and the Duke Clinical Leadership Program (DCLP). Dr. Ward will partner with leaders in the Offices of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion; Research Mentoring; APT; Professionalism; and others to maintain and grow a robust portfolio of programs that meet evolving faculty needs. She also oversees the selection process for numerous School of Medicine faculty awards and the annual awards celebration to recognize and highlight the outstanding accomplishments of our faculty. Dr. Ward will report to the Vice Dean for Faculty.
Dr. Ward is an adult congenital and structural heart disease specialist, and serves as the Program Director for the Adult Congenital Heart Disease Fellowship and the Director of the Cardio-Obstetrics Program. She received her MD from the University of Virginia, completed internal medicine residency at the University of Texas at Southwestern in Dallas, and was a cardiology fellow at Duke before joining the faculty in 2007. For the past 8 years, she has led professional development activities for the Department of Medicine, first as Director of Credentialing and more recently as the Associate Vice Chair for Provider Experience and Development. She is the director of the ALICE leadership development program for mid-career women faculty and has served as the Director of the Duke Clinical Leadership Program since 2018. Dr. Ward is a 2022 recipient of the Leonard Palumbo Jr., MD Faculty Achievement Award, recognizing faculty who display dedication to compassionate patient care and excellence in the teaching and mentoring of young physicians.