Joseph J. Sposato, DO, FACC
Bayview Cardiovascular Associates; CAPT, U.S. Navy Medical Corps (Ret.)
Thanks largely to the U.S. Navy, Dr. Joseph Sposato has learned to welcome new challenges in his life and career.
From two years embedded with a Marine unit, to deployments to the Mediterranean, Kuwait, Haiti and Norway, to 11 years at Naval Medical Center Portsmouth, Dr. Sposato’s 21-year military career taught him skills that he uses daily at his Chesapeake practice.
“You’re put into roles where you have to demonstrate leadership abilities,” he says. “You have to be well-organized, think on your feet, work in teams, and handle whatever comes your way. All of that is critical in managing complex cardiology conditions.”
As Medical Director of Cardiovascular Services for the Western Tidewater Region for Bayview Physicians Group, Dr. Sposato specializes in non-invasive cardiology. That role includes caring for patients and recruiting physicians to the growing practice.
“I love what I do,” he says, “and I love this community.”
Dr. Sposato grew up in a lower-income family in Philadelphia. He entered Temple University as a Secondary Education major, planning to become a teacher, but found his passion in biology. After college graduation, he joined the Navy and attended medical school under the Armed Forces Health Professions Scholarship program.
At Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, Dr. Sposato gravitated to cardiology in part because his first child, Andrew, was born with Tetralogy of Fallot, a rare combination of four heart defects. Now 26 and healthy, Andrew has had to undergo two open-heart surgeries and several catheter-based valve procedures.
In 1996, Dr. Sposato entered active duty and completed an Internal Medicine Categorical Internship at National Naval Medical Center, now known as Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, in Bethesda, Md.
Next, he spent two years as a Battalion Surgeon with a Marine division based at Camp Lejeune, N.C. Deployments included six months in the Mediterranean aboard the USS Wasp and a month in Norway for Battle Griffin, a multi-national readiness exercise.
“Norway happened in February, and we camped outside,” he relates. “It was so cold, but so much fun. I got to serve with some of the finest people in the world.”
Dr. Sposato completed an Internal Medicine residency in Bethesda, where he was named Chief Resident. He returned to Naval Hospital Camp Lejeune for two years as a Staff Internist before earning a rare opportunity for a civilian Cardiology Fellowship at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Cardiovascular Institute.
“It was very high volume, high acuity,” he relates. “I gained invaluable experience in complex cardiology including transplants, heart failure and all types of coronary interventions.”
From 2006 until his military retirement in 2017, Dr. Sposato worked as Staff Cardiologist and held multiple leadership positions at Naval Medical Center Portsmouth, including Program Director for the Internal Medicine Residency and Director of Clinical Services for Expeditionary Medical Facility Kuwait during a six-month deployment in 2011.
Outside work, Dr. Sposato is a firm advocate of self-care for physicians, even more so after losing his wife and high school sweetheart, Annmarie, last year at age 50. Fluent in American Sign Language, he enjoys swimming, golf, travel and time with Andrew, an actor, and younger son Vincent, 22, who is on the autism spectrum and a gifted electric guitar player.
“Too many people get caught up in the hamster wheel of life,” he notes. “Too many physicians suffer from burnout. We all need to focus on wellness.”
Looking back, Dr. Sposato is grateful that his military patients convinced him to serve much longer than planned, and for his family’s support of that career. “It was always an adventure,” he says. “I learned so much about medicine and leadership – about life, really.”
