Chief, Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation
NYC Health + Hospitals/Carter

Motivated by Her Patients

Dr. Yelena Suler joined NYC Health + Hospitals in 2000 when she was recruited for the Cardiac Rehabilitation program at Coler-Goldwater Memorial Hospital. She was quickly recognized for her expertise, compassion and putting the needs of patients first.

Her responsibilities expanded over time to include clinical oversight of the Rehabilitation Medicine program, and in 2013 she was chosen to help staff the new Henry J. Carter Specialty Hospital and Nursing Facility, where she is involved in the care of nearly every patient. Her clinical contributions, combined with her leadership skills, have made Dr. Suler “indispensable” to Carter. In recent years she has served as President of the Medical Staff and has assisted with clinical oversight of surgical specialty services, all while maintaining a full consultative case load.

Born and raised in Moscow, Russia, Dr. Suler credits her mother, “a very respected doctor in a local clinic,” with inspiring her to pursue a medical career. “Her ability to help people in life-threatening situations made medicine a very attractive field to me,” Dr. Suler says. “I wanted to have the same power, the same ability to save someone’s life.”

Dr. Suler graduated from Moscow State University of Medicine and Dentistry with a medical degree and worked for 11 years at the Moscow Center for Emergency Medical Care. She married and had two sons and eventually migrated to the United States, where she gained a specialty in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. She started at Coler-Goldwater in 2000 as a physiatrist, and moved up from Attending Physician to Chief of the Department, then moved to Carter.

“My biggest motivation,” says Dr. Suler, “is the success of my patients. The ability to restore someone’s life gives me the highest professional satisfaction.”

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