Dr Arun K Chopra has been working for the last 20 years in the same hospital, and have been Director Cardiology, Fortis Escorts Hospital, Amritsar since 2012. Here, he set up the interventional cardiology and electrophysiology-radiofrequency ablation programs in 2003 with his colleagues, which was the first full-time electrophysiology program in Punjab (in fact, in North India, outside Delhi). Earlier, he has worked as a Research Associate, DM Senior Resident, Senior Research Associate (Pool officer), and Assistant Professor in Cardiology at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi for 7 years. He then briefly joined the Patiala Heart Institute, a tertiary care cardiac center at Patiala as Senior Consultant Interventional Cardiologist, where he set up the first interventional cardiology program in the city. He is highly experienced in the performance of coronary and noncoronary diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. He has performed over 50,000 catheterizations including over 16,000 coronary angioplasties (including stents and other newer devices, (including live cases in national and international conferences, and live Case-in-the-box at NIC), over 2000 balloon valvuloplasties (mitral, aortic, pulmonary, tricuspid, multivalvar including in pregnant patients), peripheral, renal and carotid angioplasty /stenting. He has experienced of performing structural interventions in patients with congenital and acquired heart diseases like valvuloplasties, device closures, coil embolisation of aorto-pulmonary collaterals and recently, TAVRs and recently, the first TMVR in upper North India. He is equally experienced in electrophysiology (EP) and radiofrequency ablations. These include all types of supraventricular and ventricular arrhythmias in subjects with normal heart as well as those with complex structural heart diseases in pediatric and adult age groups. His experience spans both conventional EP systems as well as newer mapping systems like the CARTO system (He worked at the first such system in India at the AIIMS). A special interest is in device implants, and has also implanted over 5000 permanent pacemakers / ICD / CRT devices. As teaching is one of his passions, He regularly conduct teaching programs and workshops. These include an APHRS approved workshop for CRT training at our hospital including live implants and virtual simulation, being one of the most experienced implanters of CRT devices for heart failure in the country. Other teaching programs include complex PCI workshops (Bifurcation, left main disease and CTOs) and sessions on device programming and follow-up. He established these programs including the intervention and the EP program at the Fortis Escorts Hospital, Amritsar, making this the only comprehensive cardiology department in this region today. He also headed the academic programs of our department (DNB Cardiology and PGDCC-Post-graduate diploma in clinical cardiology). Over the past 20 years, He has been involved in training the staff and the residents in the finer aspects of critical care, including invasive monitoring, inserting lines, temporary pacing and emergency arrhythmia management. He has also established a regular primary angioplasty program (angioplasty in acute MI), and frequently do supported angioplasties in extremely high-risk patients including in pulmonary oedema and cardiogenic shock. A recent addition is the Structural therapy program-including TAVR and TMVR.

Overall 6th position in all 3 professionals (MBBS)., Honours and 2nd position in Obstetrics and Gynaecology., Certificate of merit in pre-university (8th in Punjab University, Chandigarh)., Certificate of merit in pre-medical (10th in Punjabi University, Patiala)., Certificate of merit in class X (AISSE) for ranking 34th in India, 1983., Second prize in All India Declamation contest on Space and Mankind, 1982.