February is National Heart Month and Orlando Health Watson Clinic Lakeland Highlands Hospital is Announcing its Cardiology Team

LAKELAND (Feb. 27, 2026) –– February is National Heart Month and Orlando Health Watson Clinic Lakeland Highlands Hospital is announcing its cardiology team in anticipation of the hospital’s opening, scheduled for early summer.

“Cardiology is going to be one of the main focuses of the hospital,” said Mark Mines, MD, Orlando Health Watson Clinic Lakeland Highlands Hospital chief medical officer and longtime Lakeland cardiologist. “We will have four heart catheterizations labs with the most advanced equipment available. Each of our cardiologists deeply cares about our patients and is highly skilled to treat them.”

The labs will be used for:                                                                                                            

• Interventional Cardiology –– for diagnostic catheterization and stents
• Electrophysiology –– procedures include ablations and placement of pacemakers
• Interventional Radiology –– imaging techniques to perform minimally invasive procedures for diagnosis and treatment, which minimizes risk and offers faster recovery
• Interventional Neurology –– for stroke patients. It uses minimally invasive, image-guided techniques to diagnose and treat complex brain, spinal, and vascular conditions

Dr. Mines is one of 10 cardiologists who will be available to treat patients at the new facilities, located at Lakeland Highlands Road and the Polk Parkway. Many of the names will sound familiar to Polk County residents, as they are longtime doctors at Watson Clinic.

Interventional Cardiology

Mark H. Mines, MD, FACC

• Medical School: University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, MD
• Residency: University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, Internal Medicine
• Fellowship: University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, Adult Cardiology and Interventional Cardiology
• Board-certified: Internal Medicine, Cardiovascular Diseases and Interventional Cardiology
• Fellow: American College of Cardiology
• Member: American Medical Association, American College of Physicians, American Heart Association

Douglas G. Ebersole, MD, FACC

• Medical School: University of Miami, Miami, FL, MD
• Residency: Brooke Army Medical Center, San Antonio, TX, Internal Medicine
• Fellowship: Brooke Army Medical Center, San Antonio, TX, Cardiology
• Board-certified: Internal Medicine
• Fellow: American College of Physicians, American College of Cardiology
• Member: American Heart Association San Antonio Division Speaker's Bureau, Teleparty Committee, Program Committee Member and Board of Directors

Zia Rab, MD, FACC

• Medical School: Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, MD
• Residency: Montefiore Medical Center, Bronx, NY, Internal Medicine
• Fellowships: Hofstra University Northwell School of Medicine, Manhasset, NY, Cardiovascular Disease; Westchester Medical Center, Valhalla, NY, Interventional Cardiology
• Member: Registered Physician in Vascular Interpretation (RPVI)

Shivangi Patel, MD

• Medical School: University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine
• Internship and Residency: Orlando Health- Orlando Regional Medical Center, Internal Medicine Residency; Doctor of Medicine; Chief Resident
• Fellowship: Chief Fellow; Senior Fellow of the Year Award; Junior Fellow of the Year Award; Best Resident Award; Resident Educator of the Year 2020-2021, Interventional Cardiology Fellowship at Orlando Health - Orlando Regional Medical Center 2025-2026, Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship - Orlando Health - Orlando Regional Medical Center 2022-2025
• Board-certified: Interventional Cardiology Certification, Cardiovascular Disease Certification, Examination of Special Competence in Adult Echocardiography, Board of Nuclear Cardiology, Board of Cardiac Computed Tomography American Board of Internal Medicine
• Memberships: American College of Cardiology, Society of Critical Care Medicine, Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions, American College of Physicians

Cardiology EP

Neal G. Kavesh, MD, FACC

• Medical School: New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, MD
• Internship and Residency: Washington University, Barnes Hospital, St. Louis, MO, Internal Medicine
• Fellowship: Washington University, Barnes Hospital, St. Louis, MO, Cardiology and Electrophysiology
• Board-certified: Internal Medicine, Cardiovascular Diseases and Cardiac Electrophysiology
• Fellow: American College of Cardiology
• Member: North American Society of Pacing and Electrophysiology. American Heart Association Council on Clinical Cardiology, American College of Physicians, American Medical Association

Raymond G. Cutro Jr., MD

• Director Cardiac Catheterization Lab, James A Haley VA Hospital Tampa, FL
• Chief, Cardiac Arrhythmia Service, James A Haley VA Hospital Tampa, FL
• Assistant Professor of Medicine, University of South Florida College of Medicine, Tampa
• Physician Advisor - University of South Florida Veterans Health Profession Group
• Medical School: University of Florida College of Medicine
• Internship and Residency: University of Florida, Internal Medicine; University of Florida College of Medicine, Jacksonville, Emergency Medicine
• Board-certified: American Board of Internal Medicine; ABIM Board Certified Clinical Cardiac Electrophysiology; ABIM Board Certified General Cardiology; Board Certified Clinical Cardiac Device Specialist (IBHRE/NASPE); Board Certified Internal Medicine
• Fellow: University of South Florida, Cardiovascular Disease; Mass General Brigham/Brigham and Women's Hospital, Clinical Cardiac Electrophysiology

General Cardiology

John G. Canto, MD, FACC, MSPH

• Medical School: University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, MD
• Internship and Residency: University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, Internal Medicine
• Fellowship: University of Alabama, Birmingham, AL, Cardiology
• Board-certified: Internal Medicine, Cardiovascular Diseases, Echocardiography, Lipidology and Nuclear Cardiology
• Fellow: American College of Cardiology, American Heart Association, American College of Physicians Board-certified, Internal Medicine, Cardiovascular Diseases, Echocardiography and Nuclear Cardiology

Joseph Coffman, MD

Medical School: University of South Alabama College of Medicine, Mobile, AL, MD

Residency: University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine, Tampa, FL, Internal Medicine

Fellowship: University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine, Tampa, FL, Cardiology

Board-certified: Internal Medicine and Cardiovascular Disease

George Ghareeb, DO

Medical School: Liberty University College of Osteopathic Medicine, Lynchburg, VA, DO

Residency: McLaren Greater Lansing Hospital – Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, Internal Medicine

Fellowship: McLaren Greater Lansing Hospital – Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, Cardiology

Board-certified: Internal Medicine, Cardiology and Echocardiography

Member: American College of Internal Medicine, American College of Physicians, American College of Cardiology

Michael Mankbadi, MD

• Medical School: University of Central Florida College of Medicine
• Residency: Yale New Haven Hospital, Internal Medicine Residency, Clinician Educator Distinction Track
• Fellowship: University of Massachusetts Cardiology Fellowship, Chief Fellow
• Board-certified: American Board of Internal Medicine, Adult Echocardiography
• Member: American Academy of Family Physicians, American College of Cardiology, American College of Physicians, American Medical Student Association, American Society of Echocardiography, American Society of Clinical Oncology, Florida Medical Association, North American Society for Cardiovascular Imaging, International Team of Educators to Advance Cardiovascular Health
• Teaching experience, including at the University of Massachusetts, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Yale University.

Peter Wang, MD

Medical School: University at Buffalo Jacob’s School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences

Residency: Yale University Traditional Internal Medicine Residency

Fellowship: Cardiology Fellowship Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center

Board Certified: American Board of Internal Medicine

Member: American Medical Association, American College of Cardiology, American Society of Echocardiography, American Society of Nuclear Cardiology

About Orlando Health

 Orlando Health is a private not-for-profit, integrated academic healthcare system with $14 billion of assets under management, that serves the southeastern United States – including Florida and Alabama – and Puerto Rico. With corporate offices in Orlando, Florida the system provides a complete continuum of care across a network of medical centers and institutes, community and specialty hospitals, physician practices, urgent care facilities, skilled nursing facilities, home healthcare, and long-term and behavioral health care services. Founded more than 100 years ago, Orlando Health’s mission is to improve the health and the quality of life of the individuals and communities we serve. The system provided nearly $2 billion in community impact in the form of community benefit programs and services, Medicare shortfalls, bad debt, community-building activities and capital investments in FY 24, the most recent period for which the information is available. For more information, visit orlandohealth.com, or follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and X.

About Watson Clinic

 As one of the largest multispecialty medical clinics in the southeast, Watson Clinic provides comprehensive healthcare services to residents of Lakeland and surrounding communities.  First established in 1941, Watson Clinic has grown to include over 200 board-certified physicians representing more than 40 medical and surgical specialties.  The Clinic is proud to deliver quality healthcare to every generation from our Main Clinic location at 1600 Lakeland Hills Boulevard in Lakeland, as well as 19 additional convenient locations throughout Polk, Pasco and Hillsborough counties. More information is available at  www.WatsonClinic.com, or follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and X.