The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) College of Medicine has named Jorge Saucedo, M.D., MBA, as chair of the Department of Internal Medicine, effective Nov. 1.
Saucedo was recruited from the Medical College of Wisconsin, where he is a professor and division chief of Cardiovascular Medicine and director of the heart and vascular service lines at Froedtert Health System in Milwaukee. Saucedo’s appointment marks a return to UAMS, where he started his career in 1998 as an assistant professor of Internal Medicine.
“Dr. Saucedo is a highly regarded cardiologist who brings over 25 years of leadership experience to his new role at UAMS,” said Dean and Executive Vice Chancellor Steven Webber, M.D. “As an accomplished physician, experienced clinician-investigator and seasoned administrator, he will provide strong vision and leadership for our Internal Medicine faculty, staff and trainees.”
Saucedo will serve additionally as chief of Clinical Medicine for UAMS Health. He also will be appointed to the Nolan Family Distinguished Chair in Internal Medicine upon the retirement of Edward Yeh, M.D., who has chaired the department since 2020.
Saucedo has served as chief of Cardiovascular Medicine in the Medical College of Wisconsin and director of the heart and vascular service lines at Froedtert Health System in Milwaukee since 2018. Prior to this, he held academic and clinical leadership posts at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center and subsequently at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine and NorthShore Health System.
Saucedo received his medical degree with honors from the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico in 1987. He completed his residency in internal medicine and fellowship in cardiovascular medicine at the National Institute of Medical Sciences in Mexico City. He continued his training with fellowships in interventional cardiology at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and Washington Hospital Center in Washington, D.C.
Saucedo joined UAMS in January 1998 as director of the cardiac catheterization laboratories at the Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System John L. McClellan VA Memorial Hospital and was shortly appointed to serve additionally as medical director of the catheterization lab at UAMS. He served at UAMS for nearly five years while also earning a Master of Business Administration from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock College of Business.
In 2002, Saucedo was recruited to the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, where he served as vice-chief of clinical affairs in the Division of Cardiology and director of the cardiac catheterization laboratories. While in Oklahoma, he was promoted from associate professor to professor. He was recruited to Northshore University Health System as chief of cardiology and co-director of the Cardiovascular Institute in 2013 and became program director of the Interventional Cardiology Fellowship a few years later. He also became a clinical professor of medicine at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine. In these roles, he oversaw substantial expansion of cardiovascular clinical care and clinical training programs.
Since his recruitment to the Medical College of Wisconsin & Froedtert in 2018, Saucedo has led the transformation and growth of the cardiovascular program into one of the highest-quality destinations for care in the Midwest. The division has introduced and expanded state-of-the-art tertiary and quaternary programs including cardio-oncology, lead management, and complex coronary intervention, supported by the recruitment of over 40 cardiologists. The heart transplant program has grown tenfold during Saucedo’s tenure, and the cardiovascular program has been ranked in the Top 20 in the country by Premier Inc. for three consecutive years. In 2024, Saucedo received the Engstrom Award for Clinical Contribution from the Department of Medicine for his outstanding work as a champion for clinical quality and collaborative team practice.
Saucedo also has directed the division’s academic and research strategy, including the development of the Cardiovascular Academic Initiative, which connects the clinical research program with the basic science team at the Cardiovascular Research Center to enhance translational cardiovascular research. He has served as the director of cardiovascular clinical trials since 2022, overseeing a program that has doubled the number of clinical trials over the past five years. Saucedo also has been instrumental in expanding and enhancing the division’s general and subspecialty cardiology fellowship programs.
Saucedo is board certified in cardiovascular disease. He is a fellow of the American College of Cardiology (FACC), the American Heart Association (FAHA) and the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (FSCAI). He has been an active member of the American Heart Association serving on numerous committees and in local, regional and national leadership roles including the AHA Board of Directors in 2021-2025. He is a member of various academic organizations including the Association of University Cardiologists (AUC).
Saucedo has served as principal investigator or site principal investigator for numerous industry-sponsored and federally funded clinical trials throughout his career. He has authored or co-authored more than 150 peer-reviewed articles, books, chapters and reviews.