Public Biography
I am a Cleveland Clinic alumna and hold MD and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Zagreb School of Medicine. I believe that the greatest learning experiences come from working with a different group of people to achieve academic, professional, and spiritual growth. I have been involved in medical science, working at diverse institutions, such as Ruđer Bošković Institute, Zagreb (1986-1999); Patterson Institute for Cancer Research, Manchester, UK (1990); Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA (1993-1996); Cleveland Clinic (1999-2011), and King University (2014-present). I have been instrumental in the development of an academic program in Health Informatics and Information Management (2012) and led an interdisciplinary Health Informatics program at King University (2014 – present). In my career I have held several teaching appointments and am a member of numerous professional societies; published 27 peer-reviewed manuscripts, several book chapters/reviews, and presented over 50 abstracts at scientific meetings, and authored / co-authored 5 grants (1 AHA and 4 NIH). I am a recipient of awards and honors from major research institutions including the Alien of Extraordinary Ability & Outstanding Researcher Green Card Approval, US Immigration & Naturalization Service (2001); Oncology Research Faculty Development Program (NCI); the American Heart Scientist Development grant (2002-2006), and Cambridge Worldwide Who’s Who (2012). This year (2022) I was nominated by and a recipient of Marquis Professional Who’s Who and Professional Women Who’s Who. My interests are: Medical Science; Medical Research (translational & clinical); Education; Program development; Management; Leadership. I possess relevant human characteristics of reliability, loyalty, and a high level of personal and professional ethics; being a service-oriented professional who thrives on socially meaningful work. My main Motto: We should inspire others by genuine leadership and work ethic, while commitment to excellence is central to our success and inner development.