Dr Verdicchio is a clinician-researcher with extensive clinical, research and tertiary teaching experience in exercise physiology, cardiovascular disease, arrhythmias and heart failure. His research interests have focused on assessing cardiopulmonary exercise responses and exercise interventions in patients with atrial fibrillation, and the physiological mechanisms promoting cardiac arrhythmias in endurance athletes. He completed his PhD in Medicine at the University of Adelaide under the supervision of Prof Prash Sanders and was awarded Dean’s Commendation for Doctoral Thesis Excellence for his PhD titled ‘Exercise in Atrial Fibrillation’.

Dr Verdicchio was the Corporate Allied Health & Cardiac Rehabilitation Manager at Macquarie Health from 2021-2023 where he established and managed Australia’s largest private cardiac rehabilitation program across 10-hospitals in Sydney and Melbourne. He currently holds academic appointments at both the University of Adelaide and University of Sydney and continues with his research within cardiovascular disease. Dr Verdicchio is presently the European Society of Cardiology European Association of Preventive Cardiology Young Ambassador of Australia, and an Executive Member on the CSANZ Allied Health, Science and Technology Council.

Dr Verdicchio’s research has been accepted to present at the leading heart rhythm society, cardiology and exercise science conferences globally and nationally including the Heart Rhythm Society, Asia-Pacific Heart Rhythm Society, European Heart Rhythm Society, European Society of Cardiology and Cardiac Society of Australia. He has been selected as a finalist in the Young Investigator Award category at the 2018 ESSA Research to Practice, the 2019 and 2021 ESC Preventive Cardiology congresses, and selected as a finalist for the Early Career Researcher at the ESSA Research to Practice conference in 2021.

Dr Verdicchio brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in cardiology, governance and corporate management to now lead HSA as its CEO to ensure it continues with the important work to provide support to those heart disease patients living in regional Australia.