DHR Health

Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship Program

Welcome Message from the Program Director

On behalf of the Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship Program at DHR Health, it is with great pride and enthusiasm that I welcome you as members of our inaugural fellowship class. You are joining us at a defining moment, as we build a program grounded in clinical excellence, academic rigor, and a deep commitment to the community we serve.

The Rio Grande Valley of Texas offers a rich and distinctive clinical environment, marked by diverse patient populations and a high burden of cardiovascular disease. This setting provides exceptional opportunities for hands-on learning and meaningful impact. Fellows will gain extensive experience managing both common and complex conditions, developing strong clinical judgment, technical proficiency, and appreciation for culturally responsive care. Our program is structured to deliver comprehensive training across all areas of cardiovascular medicine while encouraging intellectual curiosity, teamwork, and professional growth.

Sincerely,

Wady Aude, MD, FCCP, FACC, FSCAI
Program Director, Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship

Our Program

Mission and Program Aims

Mission Statement:

DHR Health operates within the socio-political context of the South Texas Rio Grande Valley (RGV). This context significantly influences its mission, operations, and priorities. DHR Health was established in 1997 by a group of local physicians who serve on our governing board and are all faculty in our GME programs. They came together to address limited healthcare access challenges in the RGV, a region lacking adequate public and county hospitals. The region is characterized by a high poverty rate (33%) and a large uninsured population (35%), making healthcare accessibility a critical issue. Our fellows will be held to high standards which align with our Sponsoring Institution's (DHR Health) mission to improve the well-being of those we serve with a commitment to excellence: every patient, every encounter, every time. DHR's vision is to create a world-class health system to advance medicine and increase access for the communities we serve by empowering caregivers to heal through compassion, knowledge, innovation, integrated care, and excellence. DHR CARES defines our values which include Compassion, Accountability, Responsibility, Excellence through Knowledge, Safety and Social Conscience. The DHR Health Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship Program will be dedicated to training inclusive, comprehensive fellows characterized as clinicians, scholars, educators, and future leaders. Our supportive and socioeconomically diverse environment fosters academic and personal growth, as well as compassionate, high quality, patient-centered care. We are committed to serving our community, especially the underserved, by delivering excellent care always - without exception. Our mission is to provide fellows with a well-rounded education and clinical experience in an educational environment beyond just the practice of medicine, such as quality improvement, patient experience, informatics, education, leadership, and advocacy. We pride ourselves on our excellent, world-class patient care as well as our family-oriented residency and fellowship programs.

Program Aims:

To train our fellows to become a referral source to all populations of patients and generalist physicians – in rural, under-represented and other special environments – for difficult or undifferentiated patient problems, or in areas of cardiovascular disease focused care.
To create an educational environment that fosters scholarly activities with an emphasis on quality improvement, research, and community health to not only benefit the program but also the community and hospital system.
To promote a nurturing and collaborative atmosphere that encourages fellow well-being, personal growth, and camaraderie.
To recruit and develop exemplary faculty and fellows who have a passion for teaching, service and commitment to continuous improvement.
To promote the health and well-being of our multicultural and socioeconomically diverse community, with an emphasis on the under-served.

Application and Interview Process

The Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship Program at DHR Health (1414814005) uses an online, internal application found at: dhr.link/FellowshipApplication

Documentation submitted with the online application must include:

Completed Application Form
Recent Photograph
CV and Personal Statement
Dean's Letter / Medical School Performance Evaluation (MSPE)
Medical School Transcript
Three Letters of Recommendation
Results of USMLE/COMLEX examinations (Steps 1, 2, and 3)
Certificate of completion from an ACGME-accredited Internal Medicine residency program
For PGY3 applicants, letter of good standing from program director verifying June 30, 2026 graduation

Criteria for all medical school graduates:

Passing of USMLE/COMLEX examinations on the first attempt
Graduation from medical school within the last 5 years
Graduates of medical schools outside of the U.S. and Canada must hold a current valid certificate from the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG)
Meet requirements for J-1 Visa sponsorship (if applicable)

Contact Us

Monica L. Gonzalez

Program Coordinator

1000 E. Dove

McAllen, TX 78504

[email protected]

(956) 362-2424

Faculty

Our Curriculum

Learn more regarding our Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship Program below.

Learn More

Benefits & Stipend

Vacation and Sick Leave – ALL Residents receive fifteen (15) days of paid vacation and twelve (12) days of sick leave per year. Vacation and sick days do not carry over from year to year. All residents are eligible for up to twelve (12) weeks of leave for birth or adoption of a child, personal illness, or that of a qualified family member. In accordance with the ACGME Institutional Requirements (IV.H.1.a) the first 6 weeks of the first approved leave will be paid at 100% of their salary and will ensure the continuation of health and disability insurance benefits for residents/fellows and their eligible dependents during any approved medical, parental or caregiver leave(s) of absence. Residents will be provided with a minimum of one week of paid time off reserved for use outside of the first six weeks of the first approved medical, parental, or caregiver leave(s) of absence taken.

Orientation Stipends: Incoming residents will receive $150 per day for estimated 10 days before July 1st for orientation.

Educational / Travel Allowance: In addition to basic salary, each resident is entitled to reimbursement for items that support and advance their education and training, including travel when presenting at a conference or meeting. All reimbursements must be approved by the Program Director and DIO.
PGY1 residents receive a $1,000 allowance for approved expenses.
PGY2 to PGY6 residents receive a $2,000 allowance per year for approved expenses.

Examples of Approved Items

Medical Textbooks (paper or electronic)
Journal Subscriptions (paper or electronic)
Conference Registration
Question Banks
Medical apps (individual use only)
Medical Society Memberships outside of House Staff Benefits
Board Prep Materials
Travel Expenses

Examples of NON-Approved Items

Reimbursement of full licensure
Step 3 exam fees
Device or Equipment
Operating Systems

USMLE Step 3: Each resident is eligible for reimbursement for their USLME Step 3 exam if taken and passed in their PGY-1 year or first year of residency at Company.

Texas Physician-in-Training Permit (PIT): Incoming residents will be reimbursed for their PIT License application fee.

Lab Coats and Scrubs: Residents/Fellows are issued two lab coats and two sets of scrubs during their first year of training unless otherwise specified by the training program. One additional lab coat and one set of scrubs will be given to each resident at the beginning of the second year unless otherwise specified by the training program.

Professional Membership Dues: Membership Dues for all residents in the Texas Medical Association and Hidalgo/Cameron County Medical Society are provided. Additional membership may be specified by your training program.

Certification: Residents will receive reimbursement for required certifications, such as BLS, ACS, and ATLS.

Additional Resident Benefits Include:

Medical Insurance and Prescription Drug Coverage: Company offers each resident medical insurance coverage. Residents have the option to add their spouse and/or children. Residents will be responsible for deductibles and co-pays.
Dental and Vision Insurance: Dental and vision insurance is available for both residents and their families. This is an optional coverage and each resident is responsible for the cost.
Health Care and Dependent Care FSA: Residents may enroll in the flexible spending accounts (FSAs). FSAs allow you to set money aside from your earnings before taxes are withheld to put into an account used to pay out-of-pocket health care expenses with the Health Care Reimbursement Account (HCRA) or qualifying dependent daycare expenses.
Basic Group Term Life (GTL): Residents are provided Basic GTL in the amount of 1x their salary at no cost and without Evidence of Insurability (EOI). Additional Voluntary GTL insurance is available with or without Basic GTL.
Disability Insurance: Residents are offered long-term disability insurance at no cost. Short-term disability can be purchased as an optional insurance.
Professional Liability Insurance: Residents are covered under the Company professional liability policy at no cost.
Voluntary Accidental Death and Dismemberment: Basic accidental death and dismemberment insurance (AD&D) is part of the Company’s benefit package at no cost. Residents may choose to enroll themselves and eligible dependents in optional Voluntary AD&D Insurance.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

DHR Health is an Equal Opportunity Employer (EOE) that embraces diversity, equity and inclusion. We know that diverse and inclusive teams have a positive impact, by generating varied perspectives and in turn better ideas to solve complex problems. We are committed to building a team with a variety of backgrounds, skills and views, by ensuring fair treatment, access, opportunity, and advancement for all residents, faculty, and staff. We strive to identify and eliminate barriers that have prevented the full participation of some groups, due to race, ethnicity, language, culture, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, socioeconomic status, physical or mental disability, and others.

We appreciate the unique abilities and perspectives of our diverse workforce and community. By creating an environment where faculty, physicians, residents, fellows, and staff can be their true selves at work without fear of judgment, we aim to foster creativity, raise productivity, and improve organizational performance. We believe that all our faculty, physicians, residents/fellows, and staff play the critical role in the overall success of the organization and the vision we have for our community. We create a sense of belonging at the workplace, where employees are appreciated for their unique contributions, recognized for their accomplishments, supported in their career goals, and have a sense of connection to how they are positively impacting their community.

Through community partnerships, we generate transformation within our institution as a means of advocating for better care for our patients, creating a more diverse physician workforce, and serving our community. We strive to promote social justice by advocating for equitable health care, without regard to race, gender, sexual orientation, social status, or ability to pay. We are committed to an organizational culture that will connect our residents and fellows to the organization; encourage collaboration, flexibility and fairness; and leverage diversity throughout the organization, so that all residents and fellows will be able to participate and contribute to their full potential.

DHR Health recruits resident/fellow applicants underrepresented in medicine (UIM) for advancement of diversity, equity, and inclusion. The DHR Health GME Diversity Committee is included in all planning phases of faculty and resident/fellow recruitment, selection, and retention and includes hospital leaders, GME representatives, and residents/fellows.

Fellow Life

Our Commitment to Wellness

Counseling services provided to residents and faculty are available Monday-Friday from 8am - 8pm and on weekends from 9am - 6pm. Call 956-362-2732 to set up an appointment.

Resources:

GME Resident and Fellow Confidential Reporting Portal

Our Community

The Rio Grande Valley is a region in deep South Texas, beautifully rich in culture.

Housing Options

The Village at Renaissance Apartments