CCS Member Profile: Dr. Sarah Ramer 

The power of consistent effort, music, and bettering communities by helping patients thrive.

Dr. Sarah Ramer hails originally from the Kingston, Ontario area, and completed her Bachelor of Science at Queen’s University in 1997. She attended the University of Calgary for medical school, and then made the journey east for her residency in Internal Medicine and Cardiology at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

After finishing her cardiology training, Dr. Ramer completed an echocardiography fellowship with a focus on exercise stress echocardiography at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto. She returned to work at the QEII Health Sciences Centre in Halifax in November 2007.

Dr. Ramer served as Program Director for the adult cardiology residency training program from 2012 to 2019, and is now Education Director for the division of cardiology at Dalhousie University.

She is a prior member of the Board of Directors of the Canadian Society of Echocardiography, and currently serves as the Atlantic Canada representative on the Canadian Cardiovascular Society’s Board of Directors.

Why do you think CCS membership is important?

The goal of every cardiovascular specialist ought to be to improving the cardiovascular health of patients in the communities that they serve. I can think of no better way to do this than to be involved with the CCS.

What are you most proud of in your career?

I am an educator and when I reflect back on what I’m most proud of, it would have to be the trainees who I have taught over the years and the great impacts that they are having on the patients in their communities. 

What is a surprising hobby or skill that most people wouldn’t know you have?

I minored in music in my undergraduate degree, and I have been a professional cellist since I was a teenager; first with the Kingston Symphony Orchestra, and later with Symphony New Brunswick and the PEI Symphony Orchestra (PEISO). I still play with the PEISO. 

What motivates you every day?

I’d recommend that everybody read a great book called ‘The Slight Edge’ by Jeff Olson.  What motivates me is knowing that doing little things every day consistently over time is what pays of in the end.  Success isn’t about dramatic life moves – success is about consistent effort. 

What drew you to this line of work?

I come from a long line of engineers, and the heart appealed to me in its simplicity – it’s a pump with electrical wiring and plumbing and the whole thing is easy to wrap your brain around. That, in addition to the many ways in which we can actually help our patients get better, makes cardiology a very satisfying career.