About | Cardiovascular Disease Nonprofit

Fundacion Araucaria Board of Directors

Carlos Akel, MD

Cardiologist
Graduated at University of Chile
Fellow, American College of Physicians
Associate Professor of Medicine, University of Chile
Past President, Chilean Society of Cardiology and Cardiovascular Surgery

Luis F. Avendaño, MD

Pediatrician and Virologist
Professor, School of Medicine, University of Chile
Past Chief, Department of Microbiology and Parasitology, University of Chile
Honorary Member, Chilean Academy of Medicine

Jorge Bianchi, MD

Ophthalmologist, School of Medicine, University of Chile
Former Chief Department of Glaucoma and Faculty, University of Chile School of Medicine, Barros-Luco Trudeau Hospital

Cale Bradford

White Oak Capital LLC, Chief Government Relations Officer, Elara Caring
Board Member, Thompson Foundation for Autism
Board Member, Central Bank of St. Louis

Camila X. Romero, MD, MPH

Certified, American Board of Lifestyle Medicine
ABPM, Specialist in Public Health and General Preventive Medicine
Assistant Clinical Professor, University of California, San Diego, Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health & Human Longevity Science

Tomás Romero, MD

Founder and President, Fundacion Araucaria Foundation
See below for further information

About Our Founder

Tomás Romero, MD

Dr. Romero was born in Chile and completed his training in internal medicine and cardiology in his country and the United States. He also held a cardiology fellowship at the University of California, San Diego from 1970-1972.

In 1977, after serving as a faculty member at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, he returned to San Diego, where he continued his career as a cardiologist.

Professional Associations

Dr. Romero is certified by the American Boards of Internal Medicine, Cardiovascular Diseases, and Interventional Cardiology.

He is also a fellow with the following:

American College of Physicians
American College of Cardiology (Emeritus)
American Heart Association (Emeritus)
Society of Cardiac Angiography and Interventions

Institutional Associations and Activities

Dr. Romero has worked with several institutions in San Diego. These include Scripps Health Care, Sharp Health Care, and the University of California, San Diego.

It is here where he has been a faculty member, involved in teaching until recently. He was also the Chief of Cardiology and Director of the Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory at Sharp Chula Vista Medical Center from 1987 to 2007. He most recently served as a member of the Sharp Health Care Institutional Review Board from 2012 until 2022.

In 1994, Dr. Romero founded Fundacion Araucaria Foundation in San Diego, California, a non-profit organization to support research and education in prevention of heart disease.

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Get in touch with us today if you require resources and information about cardiovascular disease prevention, or if you are interested in the services of our organization.

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