Joan L Thomas, MD

Joan L. Thomas, MD, is a Rochester cardiologist whose route into medicine was distinctive: before earning her MD from SUNY Upstate Medical University, she trained and worked as a registered nurse and later as a nurse practitioner in cardiology. She went on to complete her internal medicine residency and cardiology fellowship at the University of Rochester Medical Center, was identified as an attending cardiologist in Unity Health System’s Division of Cardiology in a peer-reviewed case report, and in 2008 was appointed chief of cardiology at Unity Hospital. Thomas has also been active in physician leadership, earning the Certified Physician Executive credential and writing about leadership and equity for women in cardiology.