“Dr. Dela Cruz is an alumnus of our PST program and an internationally recognized investigator in Pulmonary, Critical Care & Sleep Medicine,” said Mark D. Siegel, program director of the Traditional Internal Medicine Residency. “Charles is already well-known to our residents as a popular MICU attending and co-leader of our Investigator Distinction. The PST program couldn’t be in better hands, and we look forward to many years of partnership,” Siegel added.
Dela Cruz also was recently named vice chief for research for Yale-PCCSM. “Charles’ leadership has been a key asset to our section’s success in developing a new cadre of outstanding, diverse and innovative physician-scientists,” said Yale-PCCSM Section Chief Naftali Kaminski. “The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated to all of us the value of outstanding physician-scientists like Charles. Their ability to integrate clinical observation with scientific innovation to impact patient diagnosis and management is unparalleled. In his new role, Charles will make sure our department will recruit and train the best of them,” Kaminski added.
Charles Dela Cruz, MD, PhD Bio:
Charles S. Dela Cruz, M.D., Ph.D. grew up in Toronto, Canada, where he completed his undergraduate studies. He completed his medical and research training through the MD/PhD program in immunobiology and virology from University of Toronto, and later finished his MD degree at Yale School of Medicine. He received training in internal medicine and specialization in pulmonary and critical care medicine at Yale University, and became a graduate of the Yale ABIM Physician Scientist Track.
He is currently an associate professor at Yale University in the departments of Internal Medicine (Section of Pulmonary, Critical Care & Sleep Medicine) and Microbial Pathogenesis. He is the founding director for the Center for Pulmonary Infection Research and Treatment (CPIRT). He is currently the vice chief of Basic and Translational Research for Yale-PCCSM. His clinical expertise is in lung infections, pneumonia, sepsis, and chronic lung diseases such as COPD. His research program is focused on studying the role of respiratory infections (including COVID-19) in the pathogenesis of acute and chronic lung diseases. He has been active as a thought leader in the field of lung infection and pneumonia through his work and advocacy at the American Thoracic Society, American Lung Association, and the NIH.
Dela Cruz has been a strong advocate for the training of future physician-scientist leaders, and has participated actively in the MD/PhD Program, co-leading the Investigation Distinction Program for the Internal Medicine Residency, leading the Mentored Research Conference for pulmonary and critical care fellows and instructors, and mentoring many trainees in his research group at Yale. In his spare time, he enjoys skiing, playing squash, and traveling.
The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated to all of us the value of outstanding physician-scientists like Charles.
Naftali Kaminski, MD
The Section of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine is one of the eleven sections within YSM’s Department of Internal Medicine. To learn more about Yale-PCCSM, visit PCCSM’s website, or follow them on Facebook and Twitter.