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Cardiology · Beaumont and St. Joseph Mercy
About Dr. James Heinsimer - Cardiology

About Dr. James A. Heinsimer - Cardiology

Learn about Dr. Heinsimer


Dr. James Heinsimer is a non-invasive and preventive cardiologist and internist serving the Southeast Michigan area. He is affiliated with and admits to 2 of the best hospitals in the area - William Beaumont Hospital (Royal Oak) and St. Joseph Mercy Oakland (in Pontiac just north of Bloomfield Hills).


Dr. Heinsimer has been in practice since 1985. He sees patients in either of his 2 offices - in Waterford Michigan or at the William Beaumont Hospital Professional (medical office) building in Royal Oak.


Dr. Heinsimer accepts numerous types of health insurance as listed below. He specializes in Cardiovascular Medicine (Cardiology) as well as Internal Medicine. Dr. Heinsimer is board certified in both Cardiology and Internal Medicine.


Dr. Heinsimer currently holds a research and teaching position as a Consulting Professor of Internal Medicine (Cardiology) at Duke University. While at Duke as a fellow in training in cardiology, Dr. Heinsimer was mentored, learned from; and worked with Dr. Robert J. Lefkowitz who won the Nobel Prize in 2012. Dr. Heinsimer published numerous papers with Dr. Lefkowitz regarding adrenaline receptors (the site of action of a class of drugs used to treat heart disease called beta blockers). Dr. Heinsimer has published numerous papers, abstracts, and book chapters including articles in The Journal of the American College of Cardiology, the prestigious Journal of Clinical Investigation, Circulation, and the Journal of the American Medical Association among others. Dr. Heinsimer was Director of Research at St. Joseph Mercy Oakland Hospital for 14 years with involvement in many major clinical trials and investigations of new devices.


Dr. Heinsimer received his medical degree (MD) as well as a Master of Science degree (biochemistry) from the University of Illinois College of Medicine in Chicago, Illinois. He then did his Internal Medicine training with a 3 year medical internship and residency at the Dartmouth Hospitals in Hanover, New Hampshire. He did a 1st year of cardiology Fellowship at Dartmouth and then subsequently he did an additional 3 years of Cardiology Fellowship (specialized training in Cardiology) at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina.


After finishing his Fellowship in Cardiology at Duke, Dr. Heinsimer stayed on as a faculty member at Duke and was the Director of Echocardiography at the Duke VA Hospital. He was also a staff cardiologist involved with the Duke Cardiac Rehabilitation program and also had responsibility for a weekly teaching program for the Duke cardiology fellows.


Dr. Heinsimer is a Fellow of the American College of Cardiology, a Fellow of the American Heart Association and a Fellow of the American College of Physicians (Fellowship is a level of involvement beyond and recognition beyond simply being a member of a given society). He is a past president of the Michigan Society of Echocardiography. He has served on the Michigan Board of Directors of the American Heart Association and the Board of Directors of the Michigan Society of Echocardiography.


Dr. Heinsimer currently holds a position as a Consulting Professor of Internal Medicine (Cardiology) at Duke University Medical Center. He has been continuously involved in research and teaching at St. Joseph Mercy Oakland, Beaumont Hospital and Duke University Since coming to Michigan.


Dr. James A. Heinsimer's care philosophy is based on prevention and non-invasive medicine. He has established a base of the best doctors in the region for referrals. Patient must be willing to help themselves to improve health such as optimizing their weight, stop smoking, and being willing to check their own blood pressure, etc.


Dr. Heinsimer is able to provide care for a wide range of Internal Medical problems in addition to Cardiology. Patients can have a primary care provider (PCP) or not depending on the situation. For patients not wishing a separate PCP, Dr. Heinsimer will act as PCP.


  • Experienced Specialist
  • Remarkable Training
  • Sole Doctor to Patient
  • Extended Patient Time
  • See Patients at Hospitals
  • Beaumont Royal Oak
  • St. Joes Pontiac
  • Office in Waterford
  • Office in Royal Oak
  • Minimal Waiting Time
  • Preventive & Non-invasive

Dr. Heinsimer Practice Philosophy & Procedures


The first-thing you will notice is that, unlike most medical practices, Dr. Heinsimer doesn't have lots of staff. He has a billing service (Resolution Medical Billing), and others helping him. But most of them work off-site and you'll never see them. So when you call, you'll get Dr. James Heinsimer, and him alone. Many people really like that, but others don't. He believes this allows him to be more involved, on top of patient's problems, able to spend more time with patients. At lower cost and with fewer mistakes.


Dr. Heinsimer attempts to spend more time with patients. Many doctors spend 10-15 minutes per patient. He usually spends more to get the complete picture.


Dr. Heinsimer's schedule is based around one patient at a time. He also attempts to be on time where possible. He is not a fan of the waiting room full of people waiting for an hour or two approach. He realizes that your time is as valuable as his. The corollary is that he hopes & expect patients will keep track of appointments and will be on time.


Dr. Heinsimer uses the computer a lot to help his daily schedule. He believe that it makes him more efficient. This allows him to provide prescriptions and orders that are written clearly. It helps him to be organized and avoid losing track of issues that need follow-up. It also allows him to capture the notes of a given visit, so he can give a copy to patients. This gives patients a record of their visit when they leave to refer back to subsequently. Also, this lets him give written notes to referring doctors immediately.


The most important difference in Dr. Heinsimer's practice is that he expects that his patients and their families to be active participants in their care. He views the patient relationship as a partnership. Specifically if you do your part, then Dr. Heinsimer will do a great job for you. He asks his patients to learn their medicines; to take their blood pressures if they have high blood pressure, and check their blood sugars if they have diabetes. He asks them to work to be healthy, by getting to ideal weight, ceasing smoking, taking their medicines, and calling promptly if they are having problems. In return, Dr. Heinsimer will try to give patients extra special care with more attention and more concern than many medical practices are willing, or able to give.


This partnership strategy seems to work well for some people, but not everyone. Dr. Heinsimer finds that his patients have fewer procedures and tend to have a better quality of life. Than other patients get more control of their health by being active participants in their own care. He believes in prevention and it tends to pay off.


He recognizes that for some people, his style of practice will not work. For those people who treat health care like they are going into a store, expecting to buy something, but not having to do anything themselves, other than fork over some money, this practice may not be the best choice. Dr. Heinsimer tends to be demanding of himself, and also demanding of his patients. In terms of helping themselves, and helping him to help them. Ultimately he tries to give patients the kind of care that he would want for himself, or for his own family or friends.


Dr. Heinsimer is comfortable with the idea that he can help some patients but not all patients, because the style of this practice is somewhat different than most. Please let him know if there are things he can do better for you. That is why they call it "practicing medicine" and talk about "the art of medicine" -- because he is always learning and trying to do things better.


Insurance Accepted through Dr. Heinsimer


  • Aetna POS, PPO
  • CIGNA POS, PPO
  • First Health PPO
  • Multiplan PPO
  • United Healthcare POS, PPO
  • BCBS PPO, POS
  • Humana PPO
  • Medicare Original
  • Most POS (Point of Service)
  • Medicare Advantage
  • Most PPO (Preferred Provider)

Not Accepted - Medicaid, HMO, Plans with a "Gatekeeper"


Procedures Performed by Dr. Heinsimer


Should you need Cardiac Catheterization, Angiography, Stent, pacemaker placement or open heart surgery, Dr. Heinsimer has a carefully chosen set of colleagues with whom he collaborates. Dr. Heinsimer will care for you before, during and after the procedures are done by this excellent set of interventional doctors.


As a non-invasive cardiologist, Dr. Heinsimer does EKGs and Echocardiography in the office. He also does pacemaker or ICD checks in the office. Furthermore, he can order stress tests, nuclear heart imaging, PET, CT or MRI scans at either St. Joseph Mercy - Oakland or Beaumont, or any other hospital, as needed. Should you have heart rhythm disorders, Dr. Heinsimer uses state-of-the-art equipment to monitor your specific situation for days or weeks, as needed.


Conditions Treated through Dr. Heinsimer


  • Arrhythmias (Palpitations)
  • Atrial Fibrillation
  • Endocarditis (Heart Valve Infection)
  • Hypertension
  • Syncope (Passing Out)
  • Angina (Chest Pain)
  • Cardiomegaly & Cardiomyopathy
  • Congenital Heart Disease (Septal Defects)
  • Coronary Artery Disease (CAD)
  • Heart Attack (Acute Myocardial Infarction)
  • Valve Disease
  • Aortic Aneurysm, or Aortic Ectasia
  • Carotid Artery Disease
  • Congestive Heart Failure
  • Hyperlipidemia (High Cholesterol)
  • Pericardial Disease


Download: New Patient Form (.DOC)

Download: New Patient Form (.PDF)

Download: Dr. Heinsimer Practice Philosophy Information (.DOC)

Download: Blood Pressure Record (.DOC)

Download: Blood Pressure Information (.DOC)

Call Dr. James Heinsimer (248)-551-0066 Please leave voice message with full name, phone number, and nature of your call.