Saima Aftab, MD

Dr. Saima Aftab is a neonatologist and serves as vice president of Business Development and Chief Strategy Officer for Nicklaus Children’s Health System. In this role, Dr. Aftab oversees the planning and development of programs aligned to the strategic and tactical vision of the 307-bed Nicklaus Children’s Hospital and its network of pediatric outpatient centers situated in Miami-Dade, Broward, Martin and Palm Beach counties. She leads business development initiatives, identifies new growth areas and assesses strategic partnerships and market opportunities to move Nicklaus Children’s forward. Additionally, Dr. Aftab provides leadership to Nicklaus Children’s Hospital’s Global Health Initiative. 

 

Since joining Nicklaus Children’s Health System in 2017, Dr. Aftab has served in varying capacities, including as vice president of Nicklaus Children’s Pediatric Specialists (NCPS), the health system’s physician group practice, as well as medical director of fetal care services. Most recently, she was vice president of Organizational Initiatives for Nicklaus Children’s Health System and the Nicklaus Children’s Pediatric Specialists (NCPS) chief for the Section of Neonatology. Prior to joining Nicklaus Children’s Health System, Dr. Aftab served as director of education in the Department of Pediatric Newborn Medicine and assistant director of the STRATUS Center for medical simulation at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. She has held academic appointments at Harvard Medical School, Tufts University School of Medicine and the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine. 

 

Dr. Aftab earned her medical degree from King Edward Medical University in Lahore, Pakistan. She then pursued a residency in pediatrics, as well as a fellowship in neonatal perinatal medicine, at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia in Pennsylvania. She also holds a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Miami Herbert Business School. Her clinical and research interests are focused on delivery room resuscitation and incorporating high-fidelity simulation in practice to ensure the highest quality of care in code situations. 

 

Dr. Aftab is board certified in general pediatrics and neonatology. She is a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives and the American Academy of Pediatrics. Her work has been published in peer-reviewed journals and she has presented at national and international conferences on the topics of delivery room resuscitation and incorporating high-fidelity simulation in practice to ensure the highest quality of care in code situations. She is frequently sought out as a subject-matter expert by the media.