Dr. Steve Guidera’s Legacy

Surgeon in white coat and blue surgical attire standing in a hybrid operating room

Leading with Heart

During a transformative thirty-year career as an interventional cardiologist at Penn Medicine Doylestown Health, Steven Guidera, MD, performed thousands of lifesaving procedures. Upon learning of his plans to retire, grateful patients and friends of Dr. Guidera’s launched Leading with Heart, a $2 million fundraising initiative to support the future renovation and outfitting of the hospital’s first and oldest catheterization laboratory, Cath Lab 1. Upon completion, the state-of-the-art Cath Lab will be dedicated as the Steven A. Guidera, MD, Cath Lab in honor of his outstanding contributions to advance cardiac care at Doylestown Health and his unwavering commitment to patient care.

Doylestown Health Foundation recently spoke with the initiators of the Leading with Heart appeal and the clinical team about Dr. Guidera’s legacy and the ongoing impact of this special effort.

Five people standing together outside a hospital building entrance marked Cardiovascular and Critical Care Pavilion

Pictured left to right:

John W. Conway – Chairman, Crown Holdings, Inc. (retired); Member, Doylestown Health Foundation Ambassadors Circle
Patrick J. O’Neill, PhD – Vice President, Johnson & Johnson (retired)
Steven A. Guidera, MD – Interventional Cardiologist, Doylestown Hospital (retired)
Patricia F. Gorsky – Nurse, Doylestown Hospital (retired); Trustee, Doylestown Health Foundation; Member, Village Improvement Association of Doylestown (VIA)
Frank T. Shuman – Chief Executive Officer, Philadelphia Turf Company (retired)

How did the Leading with Heart initiative begin and why did you get involved?

FRANK SHUMAN: The way I got involved is quite simple. I was delivering my yearly donation to the hospital when I spoke with Laura Wortman, Vice President and Chief Advancement Officer. She shared Dr. Guidera’s plans to retire, and we talked about the opportunity to raise funds for the Cath Lab 1 renovation in his honor. I then reached out to friends and fellow Lookaway Golf Club members, starting with Pat O’Neill, to join the effort.

I’ve lived in Bucks County most of my life and have a lot of respect for Doylestown Hospital and the Heart program. My father, also named Frank, was an early supporter—donating to the $100 Heart Club started by Herman Silverman in 1978. I have continued to support the hospital, believing we are fortunate to have one of the best hospitals in our community thanks to doctors like Steve. He has successfully treated so many friends and neighbors in our community. I wasn’t surprised that people want to honor him by improving heart care in our community since that’s exactly what Steve has done for so many years.

What are some of the reasons that you and other community members joined in this special fundraising effort to recognize Dr. Guidera?

JOHN CONWAY: There are several reasons. My wife and I are grateful patients of Dr. Guidera, and we deeply appreciate the exceptional care we received from him and his team at the Woodall Center for Heart and Vascular Care. I’ve also gotten to know Steve as a fellow member of the Lookaway Golf Club, where I serve as treasurer. It’s remarkable how many of our members know him, whether as patients or from his reputation in our community.

I heard from Frank Shuman and Pat O’Neill about Steve’s retirement and the idea to raise funds in his honor. We reached out to fellow club members—many of whom are patients of Steve’s— and others. I thought it was a very nice idea, as well as an appropriate way to recognize Steve’s legacy of care by refurbishing the Cath Lab where he has saved many lives. Simply put, it’s the right thing to do, and I’m glad to be a part of continuing to support this outstanding program.

What differentiates the Heart and Vascular program at Penn Medicine Doylestown Health? How has Dr. Guidera had an impact on its growth and success?

PAT O’NEILL: Doylestown Hospital is an innovative, community-focused hospital. I’ve watched it grow since we moved here in 1976, and I’ve continued to be impressed with the excellent results from the Heart program. I spent part of my career in health care at Johnson & Johnson’s Interventional Cardiology and Radiology business as Group VP for Research and Development and Licensing & Acquisition. I’ve witnessed Steve’s influence on the growth and successful outcomes of the Heart program, and his leadership in bringing sophisticated cath lab technologies to Doylestown Hospital far sooner than expected. With cardiac catheterization, door-to-balloon time matters because time is muscle; the team dramatically improved the efficiency of the process. Steve was an early adopter of the Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement (TAVR) procedure—a breakthrough that allowed patients to undergo less-invasive aortic valve replacement. And Steve and his colleagues instituted leading-edge procedures for interventional treatment for acute ischemic stroke with outstanding results. Doylestown Hospital has always been committed to excellence and supporting clinical innovation that benefits patients. I think the response to the Leading with Heart effort speaks to Steve’s accomplishments and the impact he’s had on all of us. My fellow organizers knew this campaign was the right thing to do.

Dedicating the Cath Lab in Steve’s honor is a way to recognize all he has done for the community and to improve patient care for years to come. You couldn’t ask for a more caring, compassionate individual, devoted father, and family man. I’m extremely fortunate to have met Steve and to call him a friend.

With your longstanding affiliation with Doylestown Hospital—from your tenure as a nurse in the Doylestown Hospital Cath Lab to serving as a trustee and steadfast supporter, along with your husband, Alex—why did you choose to invest in Leading with Heart?

PAT GORSKY: My connection to supporting this campaign revolves around the six years I spent working as an RN in Cath Lab 1. That lab was operational starting in 1993, when we were doing interventional work without cardiac surgery backup. It was an exciting time at Doylestown Hospital working with a very progressive team of cardiologists. When I compare how we used to do procedures to today, it’s now much more technical and precise. The cardiac program has such amazing outcomes and I’m proud of the Cath Lab team and what they’ve accomplished for patients. Having an ultra-modern facility and more advanced equipment will provide even more accurate cardiac care for our entire community.

Alex and I are members of the Lookaway Golf Club and can attest that Dr. Guidera is a truly special person and physician. He’s down to earth and able to put people at ease. He is a fabulous representative for the profession and the standard of excellence we’ve come to expect from Doylestown Health. It’s a real joy for us to give support to the new Cath Lab and especially linking it to honor Steve and his retirement. I’m so pleased at the outpouring of support, particularly from the members of the club. It says a lot about them as citizens of our community and speaks to how much we all appreciate the outstanding health care we have right here in Doylestown.

How will this funding support patient care and the Cath Lab team at Penn Medicine Doylestown Health’s Woodall Center for Heart and Vascular Care? In what ways will the new space strengthen Dr. Guidera’s legacy of patient care excellence?

MICHELE CLUGSTON, CVT, RCIS, DIRECTOR, CATH/EP/VASCULAR/ AND RECOVERY: With the opening of the Hybrid OR and the capacity we have with other cath labs in the Gorsky Heart & Vascular Suite, we have been able to take Cath Lab 1 offline for renovations. The generosity of donors will allow us to create a new physical footprint with state-of-the-art technology. Today’s equipment integrates larger viewing monitors and X-ray systems that will reduce the radiation exposure for patients, surgeons, and staff. The new Cath Lab will also be more efficient, as we will have a larger space to accommodate multiple modalities. For example, interventional cardiologists and heart surgeons can work together allowing specialized technical procedures to be done such as TAVR, Mitra-clip (minimally invasive treatment for patients with mitral regurgitation), and Patent Foramen Ovale transcatheter repair (PFO) procedures.

Our entire team benefited from Dr. Guidera’s mentorship and leadership. He is a respected physician with a tremendous work ethic and a caring colleague. He always puts the patient first and is a compassionate communicator with them and their families. Dr. Guidera’s patients think highly of him, and our team has referred many of their own family members to him. The good news is that Dr. Guidera is a member of our community, and even though he’s retired, he will always be a part of this team. It’s fitting to have his name as a part of the future of heart care at Penn Medicine Doylestown Health.

As you reflect on your three decades here and the Leading with Heart initiative, what stands out the most about Penn Medicine Doylestown Health and the generosity of the community?

DR. STEVEN GUIDERA: Joining Doylestown Health thirty years ago was the best professional decision I have ever made. I remember the early days of working with retired Doylestown Hospital President and CEO Rich Reif and our colleagues to establish the heart program. When we approached him about acquiring new equipment and technology, his first question was, “Is it the best thing for our patients and community?” rather than “How much will it cost?” This patient-first philosophy remains true today, and I believe it will be a key factor in making Doylestown Health even stronger now that it is part of Penn Medicine.

Interventional cardiology has been profoundly and positively impacted by technology, and the pace of advancements in our field continues to accelerate. It was easier to make the decision to retire knowing that our program is in the hands of such highly trained and collegial interventional cardiologists. I’m confident that Doylestown Health will continue to attract top surgical talent. We have a gem of a hospital with the best nursing care out there. When I learned about the idea of naming Cath Lab 1 in honor of my retirement, I hesitated because I’m not comfortable with the attention. Since this effort will ultimately benefit the patients in our community and the clinical teams, I am in favor of it. I’m truly grateful to all the donors who have contributed to this, and especially thankful to Frank, Pat O’Neill, John, and Pat Gorsky for leading the way. It’s a humbling feeling to know that people want to give in my honor. When I reflect on my career, I have truly gotten more than I have given.

To learn more, please visit DoylestownHealthFoundation.org/Guidera

Article appears in the 2025 Philanthropy Report

About Doylestown Health Foundation

As the philanthropic arm of Penn Medicine Doylestown Health, the Doylestown Health Foundation raises funds to safeguard the future of excellence in patient care and to improve the quality of life for all members of our Central Bucks County community and beyond.