Dr. Lara Shekerdemian named chair of Department of Pediatrics

Dr. Lara Shekerdemian has been named chair of the Department of Pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine after serving as interim chair since April. Shekerdemian is a professor of pediatrics in the division of critical care at Baylor and pediatrician-in-chief at Texas Children’s Hospital. 

“Dr. Shekerdemian is an excellent clinician who worked on the frontlines during the COVID-19 pandemic to serve children in our community,” said Dr. Paul Klotman, president, CEO and executive dean of Baylor College of Medicine. “We look forward to her leadership as chair of the Department of Pediatrics.”

Shekerdemian earned her medical degree from the University of Birmingham Medical School in the United Kingdom and trained in pediatrics, pediatric cardiology and pediatric and adult intensive care in the U.K. and Toronto. She obtained her research doctorate in pediatric cardiac intensive care from the University of Birmingham in 1997 and earned a Master of Health Administration from La Trobe University in Melbourne in 2009. She is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics, a fellow of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health in the U.K. and a fellow of the College of Intensive Care Medicine in Australia.

She previously served as executive vice chair and vice chair of clinical affairs in the Department of Pediatrics at Baylor and as chief of critical care at Texas Children’s. Her research interests include cardiovascular physiology, mechanical cardiopulmonary support and long-term outcomes after critical care admission, particularly after surgery for heart disease. She is a co-principal investigator for Baylor and Texas Children’s for the National Institutes of Health Pediatric Heart Network, where she also chairs the PHN Scholars’ study section.

“Today’s children face new threats and challenges that if not addressed will adversely affect their health and well-being,” Shekerdemian said. “I am honored to work with our faculty and staff in the Department of Pediatrics in addressing these threats and challenges in order to make children’s lives better wherever they live. I am excited to partner with leaders across Baylor College of Medicine to achieve our goals.”