Dr. Snehal R. Patel

Cardiologist Snehal R. Patel, MD, joined Northwell Health in July 2025 as system director, heart failure and co-director of the Center for Heart Failure, Transplantation and Mechanical Circulatory Support at the Northwell Transplant Institute. He's also an associate professor at the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell.

Dr. Patel was drawn to his specialty from the start, as he was attending medical school at Boston University. Heart failure was particularly compelling, because he found the pathophysiology of heart disease intriguing. Mainly, he says, a focus on heart failure seemed to offer the most promise for improving the lives of his patients.

After both a residency and fellowship at St. Vincent's Catholic Medical Center in Manhattan, Dr. Patel did a fellowship at Montefiore Medical Center, where he became medical director of the heart transplant program. He decided to join Northwell for the same reason he chose advanced heart failure as a specialty area: because Northwell offered him an opportunity to impact a large number of patients, given Northwell's geographic footprint and extensive resources.

What I appreciate here is the collaboration among specialties in caring for patients, he says. It's clear that the patient is always at the center of what we're doing, which is how it should be. Also, there's a vision for innovation and growth that will allow for expansion into how heart failure should be diagnosed and treated.

The goal for Northwell is to continue to fortify our reputation as one of the premier heart failure programs in the country, he says, and that includes maintaining a standard of excellence in providing heart transplants. Dr. Patel has also done significant clinical research into the topic of heart transplantation, including post-transplant therapy, and he plans to continue that work at Northwell as a way to advance the field.

In all these approaches, Dr. Patel focuses individual patients' needs. When I talk to patients and their families, I want them to feel like someone is taking responsibility for their health care journey, says Dr. Patel. They should leave my office feeling like I didn't just listen, but also that I care very deeply about what happens next for them.

Dr. Patel is highly rated in 3 conditions, according to our data. His top areas of expertise are Heart Failure, Pulmonary Edema, Cardiogenic Shock, Heart Transplant, and Endoscopy.