Heart and Mind

Robert Allan, PhD, is a clinical assistant professor of psychology in medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College. In 983, with cardiologist Stephen S. Scheidt, MD, he cofounded the Coronary Risk Reduction Program at New York amp ndash Presbyterian Hospital. Since then, Dr. Allan has taught twice-weekly classes on the Step-Down Cardiac Care Unit, educating well over , patients and their family members. In addition, he leads the stress management programs at New York amp ndash Presbyterian Hospital's cardiac health centers.

Dr. Allan's practice specialty is the psychological treatment of cardiac patients he has treated hundreds of cardiac patients in individual therapy and has conducted more than 2,5 support groups. In 99 , with coeditor Stephen S. Scheidt, he edited the first edition of Heart and Mind: The Practice of Cardiac Psychology. He has written many journal articles and book chapters on cardiac psychology, including contributions to Braunwald's Heart Disease series. Dr. Allan is also the author of Getting Control of Your Anger he had an extensive interview about anger with Diane Sawyer on Good Morning America.

In 982, Dr. Allan established the first stress reduction-support group for cardiac patients in the New York metropolitan area, at the Nassau County chapter of the American Heart Association. Subsequently, he led the first stress management program for officers and wives at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. He also is a fellow of the New York Academy of Medicine.

Dr. Allan earned his BA from Queens College of the City University of New York and his PhD in clinical psychology from New York University, after which he took a position playing keyboards in a band at the Concord Hotel in the Catskill Mountains of New York. Subsequently, he studied music at the Juilliard School and has performed popular music around the United States and in Europe and Morocco. He is actively involved in music as a pianist, electric keyboardist, and composer and is currently completing a recording project with a number of celebrated jazz and classical musicians. His website is http://robertallanphd.com.

Jeffrey Fisher, MD, is clinical professor of medicine (cardiology) at the Weill Cornell Medical College and an attending physician at New York amp ndash Presbyterian Hospital. He graduated with an AB with amp quot distinction in all subjects amp quot from Cornell University (College of Arts and Science) in 972. He double majored in biology (neurobiology and behavior) and psychology (physiological psychology) and was an undergraduate teaching assistant for Professor James Maas's famous amp quot Introduction to Psychology amp ndash Psych , amp quot Professor William Lambert's amp quot Theories of Personality, amp quot and Professor Parker Marden's amp quot Sociology of Medicine. amp quot

Anticipating a career as a psychiatrist, he attended the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, where he became enamored with internal medicine, specifically cardiology. He deferred graduating from Einstein after 3 years to spend a year doing laboratory research with Drs. Edmund Sonnenblick and Edward Kirk, presenting his research at the American Heart Association meeting in 975. After graduating with honors, he completed his internship and residency at Einstein and did his cardiovascular fellowship training at Johns Hopkins University Hospital.

Dr. Fisher joined the faculty of Cornell Medical College in 98 as an invasive cardiologist and began private practice in 989. He has continued to teach and write, and he has authored and/or coauthored original articles and reviews on cardiovascular anatomy and physiology coronary, valvular, and congenital heart disease pulmonary hypertension cardiogenic shock cardiac tumors metabolic cardiopulmonary disease cardiac psychology and medical history. He has served as a cardiologist to both the New York City fire and police departments.

Dr. Fisher has been the recipient of numerous academic scholarships, awards, and honors. His coediting of this book, and cowriting Chapter 3 ( amp quot Psychocardiac Disorders amp quot ) has taken him full circle to his long-standing interest in how the psyche affects the soma.