Roderic Ivan Pettigrew, PhD, MD, is the Robert A. Welch Professor of Medicine and CEO of Engineering Health (EnHealth) at Texas A&M University, where he also served as the inaugural dean of the School of Engineering Medicine. He is now Vice Chancellor for Health & Strategic Initiatives for the TAMU System. Dr. Pettigrew previously led the US National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) as it’s founding Director, from 2002 to 2017, where he significantly advanced medical technologies and secured high returns on research investments. He was recruited to the NIH based on his prior career as a pioneer in cardiovascular 4D MRI having helped develop some of the earliest technologies. Dr. Pettigrew's current focus with EnHealth and ENMED integrates engineering into medical education to create innovative physician-engineers, or Physicianeers, who simultaneously earn MD and Master of Engineering Innovation in Medicine degrees in four years. Notably, ENMED students are also required to invent a solution to a healthcare challenge.
Dr. Pettigrew, an expert in health technologies and imaging, holds a PhD in Applied Radiation Physics from MIT and completed his medical training in Nuclear Medicine at UCSD. His work includes non-invasive cardiovascular imaging and research on coronary atheroma and strategies to expand diagnostic boundaries and prevention. He is an editor of the recent book Biomechanics of Coronary Atherosclerotic Plaque: From Model to Patient, the first comprehensive text on this topic. Elected memberships include the National Academy of Medicine, the National Academy of Engineering, the National Academy of Inventors, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the National Academy of Sciences, India. Awards include the Pierre Galletti Award (highest honor) of the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineering, the Inaugural Gold Medal of the Academy of Radiology Research, the Spirit of the Heart Award of the Association of Black Cardiologists, the Gold Medal of the Radiological Society of North America, the Arthur M. Bueche Award of the National Academy of Engineering, the Vannevar Bush Award (highest honor) of the US National Science Board, and the 2023 Boston Globe’s STATUSList as one of the nation’s Ultimate Leaders in Life Sciences.