The 20 Best Heart Transplant Doctors Near Me

Find the Experts and Specialists who perform Heart Transplant

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Michael D. Puchalski
Experienced in Heart Transplant

Dr. Michael D. Puchalski

Pediatric Cardiology
Johns Hopkins Medicine
Johns Hopkins All Children's - Bayfront Bayboro Building
Saint Petersburg, FL 
Offers Telehealth

Experienced in Heart Transplant
Johns Hopkins Medicine
Johns Hopkins All Children's - Bayfront Bayboro Building
Saint Petersburg, FL 
OverviewInsuranceLocationsClinical ResearchSimilar Doctors

Overview

Dr. Puchalski is co-director of the Heart Institute and medical director of cardiology at Johns Hopkins All Children’s. He joined the hospital staff in 2020. He was previously associate director of the Division of Pediatric Cardiology in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. He also served as director of noninvasive imaging for cardiology after building the Fetal Heart Center and starting the cardiovascular MRI program. He was director of quality improvement for the Heart Center at Primary Children’s Hospital in Salt Lake City and medical director of outpatient services at Primary Children’s Medical Center in Riverton, Utah. Dr. Puchalski has published more than 50 peer-reviewed articles, authored numerous book chapters and given many talks both nationally and internationally. He is a fellow of the American Society of Echocardiography, the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology and Board member of the Fetal Heart Society. He is also a reviewer for numerous medical journals. He earned his medical degree from Wayne State University in Detroit. He completed an internship and residency in pediatrics at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin. He then completed a fellowship in pediatric cardiology at University of California San Francisco.

Dr. Puchalski is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in Heart Transplant. His top areas of expertise are Ebstein's Anomaly, Congenital Heart Disease (CHD), Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome (HLHS), Tetralogy of Fallot, and Heart Transplant.

His clinical research consists of co-authoring 45 peer reviewed articles. MediFind looks at clinical research from the past 15 years. In particular, he has co-authored 4 articles in the study of Heart Transplant.

Residency
Medical College of Wisconsin, Pediatrics, 1997
Specialties
Pediatric Cardiology
Licenses
Pediatric Cardiology in UT
Board Certifications
American Board Of Pediatrics
Fellowships
University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine, Pediatric Cardiology, 2001
Languages Spoken
English
Gender
Male

Insurance

Accepted insurance can change. Please verify directly with the provider.

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Accepted insurance plans:

Aetna
  • EPO
  • HMO
  • POS
  • PPO
AvMed
  • HMO
  • POS
Blue Cross Blue Shield
  • EPO
  • HMO
  • POS
  • PPO
Cigna
  • EPO
  • HMO
  • PPO
Florida Blue
  • EPO
  • PPO
Health Options
  • HMO
  • POS
  • PPO
Humana
  • HMO
  • INDEMNITY
  • POS
  • PPO
Johns Hopkins Healthcare
  • HMO
  • MANAGED MEDICAID PLAN
  • MEDICARE MAPD
  • MEDICARE-MEDICAID PLAN
Medicare
  • INSURANCE PLAN
  • MANAGED MEDICAID PLAN
  • MEDICARE MAPD
  • MEDICARE PDP
  • MEDICARE SNP
  • MEDICARE-MEDICAID PLAN
  • OTHER MEDICARE PART D
Simply Healthcare
  • MANAGED MEDICAID PLAN
  • MEDICARE MAPD
  • OTHER MEDICARE PART D
Sunshine Health
  • EPO
  • HMO
UnitedHealthcare
  • EPO
  • HMO
  • POS
  • PPO
View 7 Less Insurance Carriers -

Locations

Johns Hopkins All Children's - Bayfront Bayboro Building
Suite 310, Saint Petersburg, FL 33701
Call: 727-767-3333

Clinical Research

Clinical research consists of overseeing clinical studies of patients undergoing new treatments and therapies, and publishing articles in peer reviewed medical journals. Providers who actively participate in clinical research are generally at the forefront of the fields and aware of the most up-to-date advances in treatments for their patients.


45 Total Publications

Practice Patterns in Pediatric Cardiothoracic Presurgical Conferences: A Multicenter Survey Study.
Practice Patterns in Pediatric Cardiothoracic Presurgical Conferences: A Multicenter Survey Study.
Journal: Pediatric cardiology
Published: July 23, 2025
View All 45 Publications
Similar Doctors
Alfred Asante
Distinguished in Heart Transplant
Dr. Alfred Asante
Pediatric Cardiology
Distinguished in Heart Transplant
Dr. Alfred Asante
Pediatric Cardiology

Johns Hopkins All Children's Outpatient Care, St. Petersburg

601 5th Street South, Suite 260, Suite 260, 
Saint Petersburg, FL 
 (0.7 miles away)
727-767-3333
Languages Spoken:
English
See accepted insurances

Alfred Asante-Korang, M.D., F.A.C.C., pediatric cardiologist with the Johns Hopkins All Children’s Heart Institute, has been working with heart transplant patients for more than 20 years. Dr. Asante-Korang was named Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital best consulting physician in the 2023 Johns Hopkins Medicine Clinical Awards. Dr. Asante-Korang graduated from the University of Ghana Medical School, where he also completed an internship in pediatrics. He completed pediatric residencies at the University of Liverpool and the University of Chicago, as well as fellowships in pediatric cardiology at the IWK Children’s Hospital in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada and the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. Dr. Asante is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in Heart Transplant. His top areas of expertise are Infantile Neutropenia, Heart Failure, Cardiomyopathy Due to Anthracyclines, Cardiomyopathy, and Heart Transplant.

Jessica A. Laks
Experienced in Heart Transplant
Dr. Jessica A. Laks
Pediatric Cardiology
Experienced in Heart Transplant
Dr. Jessica A. Laks
Pediatric Cardiology

Johns Hopkins All Children's Outpatient Care, St. Petersburg

601 5th Street South, Suite 260, Suite 260, 
Saint Petersburg, FL 
 (0.7 miles away)
727-767-3333
Languages Spoken:
English
See accepted insurances
Offers Telehealth

Dr. Laks is a pediatric cardiologist who specializes in heart failure and transplantation. She sees patients as part of the Heart Transplant Program at the Johns Hopkins All Children’s Heart Institute. She joined the hospital staff in 2021. She was previously a pediatric cardiologist at Credit Valley Hospital in Mississauga, Ontario. Dr. Laks earned her medical degree from the University of Ottawa in Ottawa, Ontario. She completed a residency in pediatrics at University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Manitoba, where she also served as pediatric co-chief resident. She completed a pediatric cardiology fellowship, where she served as chief pediatric cardiology fellow, followed by additional training in a pediatric heart function and transplant fellowship both at the University of Toronto and The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto. She earned her Master of Science in Community Health with a specialization in Health Practitioner Teacher Education from the University of Toronto. She has a special interest in medical education. Dr. Laks is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in Heart Transplant. Her top areas of expertise are Marfan Syndrome, Congenital Coronary Artery Malformation, Cardiomyopathy, and Heart Transplant.

Jamie A. Decker
Experienced in Heart Transplant
Dr. Jamie A. Decker
Pediatric Cardiology
Experienced in Heart Transplant
Dr. Jamie A. Decker
Pediatric Cardiology

Johns Hopkins All Children's Outpatient Care, St. Petersburg

601 5th Street South, Suite 260, Suite 260, 
Saint Petersburg, FL 
 (0.7 miles away)
727-767-3333
Languages Spoken:
English
See accepted insurances

Dr. Decker is a pediatric cardiologist specializing in electrophysiology, cardiac arrhythmias, cardiomyopathies and heart failure. He offers innovative and minimally invasive techniques to benefit patients at the Johns Hopkins All Children’s Heart Institute. He was named the 2023 William A. Baumgartner Physician of the Year for Johns Hopkins All Children's in the Johns Hopkins Medicine Clinical Awards. Before joining All Children’s, Dr. Decker was an assistant professor of pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston, where he completed a fellowship in pediatric cardiology, an advanced fellowship in heart failure/transplantation, and an advanced fellowship in pediatric electrophysiology at Baylor College of Medicine. A graduate of Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in Camden, New Jersey, Dr. Decker did his pediatric residency training at Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, D.C. Dr. Decker is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in Heart Transplant. His top areas of expertise are Arrhythmias, Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS), Cardiomyopathy, Heart Failure, and Heart Transplant.

VIEW MORE HEART TRANSPLANT DOCTORS

Areas of Expertise

MediFind evaluates expertise by pulling from factors such as number of articles a doctor has published in medical journals, participation in clinical trials, speaking at industry conferences, prescribing and referral patterns, and strength of connections with other experts in their field.

Learn more about MediFind’s expert tiers

Find Dr. Puchalski's expertise for a condition
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    • Distinguished
    • Congenital Heart Disease (CHD)
      Dr. Puchalski is
      Distinguished
      . Learn about Congenital Heart Disease (CHD).
      See more Congenital Heart Disease (CHD) experts
    • Ebstein's Anomaly
      Dr. Puchalski is
      Distinguished
      . Learn about Ebstein's Anomaly.
      See more Ebstein's Anomaly experts
    • Advanced
    • Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome (HLHS)
      Dr. Puchalski is
      Advanced
      . Learn about Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome (HLHS).
      See more Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome (HLHS) experts
    • Tetralogy of Fallot
      Dr. Puchalski is
      Advanced
      . Learn about Tetralogy of Fallot.
      See more Tetralogy of Fallot experts
    • Experienced
    • Alpha Thalassemia
      Dr. Puchalski is
      Experienced
      . Learn about Alpha Thalassemia.
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    • Becker Muscular Dystrophy
      Dr. Puchalski is
      Experienced
      . Learn about Becker Muscular Dystrophy.
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    • Bicuspid Aortic Valve
      Dr. Puchalski is
      Experienced
      . Learn about Bicuspid Aortic Valve.
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    • Cardiomyopathy
      Dr. Puchalski is
      Experienced
      . Learn about Cardiomyopathy.
      See more Cardiomyopathy experts
    • Coarctation of the Aorta
      Dr. Puchalski is
      Experienced
      . Learn about Coarctation of the Aorta.
      See more Coarctation of the Aorta experts
    • Congenital Mitral Stenosis
      Dr. Puchalski is
      Experienced
      . Learn about Congenital Mitral Stenosis.
      See more Congenital Mitral Stenosis experts
    View All 16 Experienced Conditions
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