Tuesday, March 05, 2024
The Corewell Health Foundation Southeast Michigan recently announced plans to raise funds for the creation of the David E. Haines, M.D. Endowed Chair in Cardiac Electrophysiology. Dr. Haines was widely known for his compassion, mentorship and innovative pursuits in the heart rhythm field, particularly in cardiac ablation technology. He passed away suddenly in early February, just before the launch of a new cardiac procedure he helped develop.
To honor Dr. Haines’s memory and support the work that meant so much to him, the heart and vascular team is working with the Corewell Health Foundation Southeast Michigan to establish the David E. Haines, M.D. Endowed Chair in Cardiac Electrophysiology. Fundraising for the effort has just begun and gifts can be made by clicking here.
As medical director of cardiac electrophysiology at Corewell Health William Beaumont University Hospital, Dr. Haines was recognized locally and throughout the world for his academic pursuits and advances in his field to improve patient care over the course of a 44-year career. In addition to his work within the Heart Rhythm Center at Royal Oak, he also led the hospital’s Electrophysiology Lab, directed the atrial fibrillation clinic in the Max & Debra Ernst Heart Center and was a valued member of the Academic Heart & Vascular Group.
Beyond his work in patient care, Dr. Haines was a dedicated educator and taught at the Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine. For nine years, he served as an Embark research mentor at the university.
Dr. Haines also was known around the world for his extraordinary work as a researcher, advancing such innovations as radiofrequency ablation treatments and the revolutionary new Pulse Field Ablation system as a treatment for atrial fibrillation.
Dr. Haines was also active in community health initiatives that educated people about heart disease and was a founding physician of the Student Heart Check program, which has screened thousands of students in southeastern Michigan to improve safety for student athletes. His passing was commemorated by many, including the Royal Oak City Council.
In an email to Corewell Health East team members, Darryl Elmouchi, M.D., interim president, Corewell Health East, called Dr. Haines, “a true pioneer in the field… a compassionate and highly skilled clinician… and a friend and mentor to so many.”