Kristin M. Burkart, MD, MSc

Critical Care Medicine
Pulmonology
More specialties
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Overview

Kristin M Burkart, MD, MSc is a Pulmonary and Critical Care Physician and a Professor of Medicine at Columbia University Medical Center. She is the Director of the Pulmonary and Critical Care Fellowship Training Program, the Medical Director of the Chest Clinic and the Course Director of the Pulmonary Section in The Body in Health and in Disease Medical School. 

Dr. Burkart cares for a diverse population of patients including patients from the surrounding Washington Heights neighborhood as well as tertiary and quaternary referrals for critical care management.  She attends in the medical intensive care unit, the pulmonary consultative service, the critical care consultative service, and the chronic ventilator management service and is an active member on the Ethics Committee.  Dr. Burkart’s clinical interests encompass hypoxemic respiratory failure including the use of Extra-Corporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO), sepsis and medical ethics. 

Dr. Burkart is a leader in fellowship training and medical education with several current and past national leadership positions. She is a Past President and currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Association of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine Program Directors (APCCMPD), an organization whose mission is to provide leadership and support for fellowship training programs across the country.  Dr. Burkart is the Chair of the American Thoracic Society (ATS) Training Committee, Chair of the APCCMPD Education Committee and a Deputy Editor for ATS Scholar.  Dr. Burkart is dedicated to providing an inclusive, equitable and diverse educational and research environment for her fellows that fosters their development into compassionate and exceptional clinical physicians, clinician-educators, and physician-investigators.  

Dr. Burkart graduated AOA from Albany Medical College, completed her residency and chief residency at the University of Colorado and completed her fellowship in Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at Boston University School of Medicine.  She has a Master of Science in Epidemiology from Boston University School of Public Health.

Areas of Expertise / Conditions Treated

  • Critical Care
  • Emphysema
  • General Pulmonology
  • Intensive Care
  • Mechanical Ventilation
  • Pulmonary Critical Care Medicine
  • Pulmonary Disease
  • Pulmonary Embolism
  • Pulmonary Hypertension
  • Pulmonary Medicine
  • Respiratory Failure
  • Sepsis

Academic Appointments

  • Professor of Medicine at CUMC

Administrative Titles

  • Director, Pulmonary and Critical Care Fellowship Program
  • Medical Director, Chest Clinic
  • Course Director, Pulmonary Section of The Body in Health and in Disease Medical School Course
  • Co-Director, Columbia-Salzburg Internal Medicine Seminar

Hospital Affiliations

  • NewYork-Presbyterian / Columbia University Irving Medical Center

Gender

  • Female

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Credentials & Experience

Education & Training

  • Villanova University
  • MD, Albany Medical College
  • Residency: University of Colorado Health & Science Center
  • Fellowship: Boston University Medical Center

Board Certifications

  • Pulmonary Disease Medicine
  • Critical Care Medicine
  • Internal Medicine

Honors & Awards

  • Deputy Editor of ATS Scholar
  • Secretary-Treasurer and Past President of the Association of 
  • Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine Program Directors 
  • Chair of the American Thoracic Society Training Committee
  • Chair of the Association of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine Program Directors Education Committee
  • Ewig Clinical Scholar
  • Alpha Omega Alpha

Research

Dr. Burkart’s research focuses on the genetics of COPD and emphysema. She is involved in two genome-wide association studies of lung function among European-American and African-American participants in a large consortium of NHLBI cohorts. Additional areas of interest include the epidemiology of COPD/emphysema, and pulmonary vascular disease associated with COPD/emphysema. Dr. Burkart works with Graham Barr on the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) investigating associations between candidate genes related to vascular endothelial pathways and COPD/emphysema as well as genetic and epidemiologic investigations of lung function and CT percent emphysema in MESA.

Research Interests

  • ECMO for hypercapneic respiratory failure
  • Genetics of COPD & emphysema
  • Outcomes in patients on ECMO for hypoxemic respiratory failure
  • Pulmonary vascular disease associated with COPD & emphysema

Selected Publications

  1. Sharp M, Burkart KM. Trainee Wellness: Why It Matters and How to Promote It. Ann Am Thorac Soc 2017; 14(4):505-512. PMID: 28165295
  2. Brady, AK, Spitzer CR, Latifi M, Kelm D, Brosnahan S, Burkart KM. Pulmonary Critical Care Fellows’ Use of and Self-reported Barriers to Bedside Ultrasound. CHEST 2021 PMID 33539836
  3. Sharp, M; Burkart KM; Adelman M, Ashton R, Biddison L,  Bosslet G, Doyle S, Eckmann T,  Khan M, Lenz P, McCallister J,  O'Toole J,  Rand C,  Riekert K, Soffler M,  Winter G, Zaeh S,  Eakin M.  Burnout and Depression Among Fellows Training in Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine: A Special Report by the Association of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine Program Directors. CHEST 2021; 159(2):733-742. PMID: 32956717
  4. Ashton RW, Burkart KM, Lenz PH, Kumar S, McCallister JW. Strategies for Success in Fellowship. CHEST 2018;153(1):233-237. PMID: 29307416
  5. Bosslet GT, Burkart KM, Miles MC, Lenz PH, Huebert CA, McCallister JW. Preparing for Fellowship in Internal Medicine: Steps for Success with a Focus on Pulmonary and/or Critical Care Programs. Ann Am Thorac Soc 2015;12(4):567-573.PMID:25742296 
  6. Hinkle, L, Carlos WG, Burkart KM, McAllister JW, Bosslet G. What Do Program Directors Value in Personal Statements? A Qualitative Survey Evaluation of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine Program Directors.
  7. ATS Scholar 2020; 1(1):44-54 PMID: 33870268
  8. Burkart KM, Sofer T, London SJ, Manichaikul A, Hartwig FP, Yan Q, Soler Artigas M, Avila L, Chen W, Thomas SD, Diaz AA, Hall IP, Horta BL, Kaplan RC, Laurie CC, Menezes AM, Morrison JV, Oelsner EC, Rastogi D, Rich SS, Soto-Quiros M, Stilp AM, Tobin MD, Wain LV, Celedón JC, Barr RG. A Genome-Wide Association Study in Hispanics / Latinos Identifies Novel Signals for Lung Function. The Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos. Am J Respir Crit Care Med 2018;198(2):208-219. PMID: 29394082