Vikas Dharnidharka Named Chair Of Pediatrics At Rutgers
India-West Staff Reporter
NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ — Vikas Dharnidharka, a board-certified pediatric nephrologist and transplant specialist recognized nationally and internationally for his clinical expertise and research, will join Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School as the Henry Rutgers Professor and chair of the Department of Pediatrics. He will also serve as physician-in-chief of the Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital.
Previously, Dharnidharka was the Alexis F. Hartmann Sr., MD Endowed Professor of Pediatrics at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, where he co-led the NIH-funded Pediatric Center of Excellence in Nephrology. “Dr. Dharnidharka is a nationally recognized leader in nephrology, pediatrics, and transplantation, and we are thrilled to welcome him,” said Amy P. Murtha, dean of Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.
Dharnidharka expressed enthusiasm about the potential impact of Rutgers Health and RWJBarnabas Health’s evolving academic health system. “I am honored to direct the RWJMS Pediatrics Department and look forward to working with the team at BMSCH to advance children’s healthcare across the state,” he said.
Dharnidharka has transformed clinical, research, and educational activities in previous roles, earning strong educational ratings from pediatric residents. His clinical practice focuses on kidney disease and transplantation, including advising on complications such as post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorders and viral infections. His research, consistently funded by the NIH, has led to novel insights into BK polyoma virus nephropathy, PTLD, and the complications of over-immunosuppression after organ transplantation.
Author of numerous peer-reviewed articles and book chapters, Dharnidharka has received multiple awards for his contributions to transplantation and nephrology. He serves on the Governing Council for the International Pediatric Transplant Association and has held leadership positions within the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Society of Pediatric Nephrology.
Dharnidharka received his medical degree from Topiwala National Medical College, Bombay University, and further training in public health, pediatrics, and pediatric nephrology in the US with fellowship training in pediatric nephrology at Children’s Hospital (Boston) and Harvard Medical School.
