We learned this morning that Dr. Elaine Demetroulis, a former interventional cardiologist in the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, passed away.
Dr. Demetroulis was associated with the University of Iowa for more than 25 years, starting with medical school at the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine. She completed her residency in Internal Medicine and a cardiology fellowship, in which she won the Paul Neuhauser Award for Outstanding Presentation by a Cardiology Fellow. She then completed another fellowship in interventional cardiology before joining our faculty. She was appointed as an Assistant Professor in Internal Medicine in the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine in 2004 and was promoted to Associate Professor in 2009. She practiced as an interventional cardiologist here and at the Iowa City VA, working in the cath lab, UIHC clinic, outreach clinic, and as an attending on the CVICU. She left UIHC in 2019 to practice as an interventional cardiologist in the Kansas City area.
While at UI Health Care, Dr. Demetroulis served in various administrative roles, including as the Medical Director of the PICC line service and Medical Director of the Cardiovascular Clinic. She was heavily involved in improving the Epic interface for faculty, serving as an Epic physician champion starting in 2006 and working through the implementation of the Epic EMR within UI Health Care. She also served on the UI Health Care utilization management subcommittee and the length-of-stay subcommittee.
She also developed the radial access program for the UI Health Care cath lab. Vice Chair for Clinical Services Kim Staffey, MD, tells me that she was very proud of this accomplishment. In 2008, she won the Excellence in Program Development Award for her efforts.
Dr. Demetroulis’s colleagues, including Division Director Barry London, MD, PhD, remember her passion for medicine and her constant drive to improve processes in the cath lab, clinic, and in the medical record. She was a kind, wonderful, and caring person and was greatly involved at St. John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church in Cedar Rapids. She loved teaching and was heavily involved in the fellowship, including winning the 2012 Lewis E. January Cardiovascular Medicine Fellowship Award for excellence in clinical teaching. She was very close with her parents and family and enjoyed cooking Greek cuisine with her mother. She was an outstanding athlete, playing Division I tennis for the University of Wisconsin before medical school, and was an avid golfer throughout her medical career.
Elaine passed away much too soon, and she will be greatly missed. Information on memorial services and a guestbook for others to sign are now available on the Park Lawn Funeral Home website.
