James Douglas Hammond II

Biography

James Douglas Hammond II, M.D., is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Neonatal Perinatal Medicine at the University of California, Irvine, and an attending physician at Children's Hospital of Orange County (CHOC), where he serves as core faculty for the Neonatal Perinatal Medicine Fellowship Training Program, as well as the program director for the advanced Neonatal Cardiac Intensive Care & Hemodynamics Fellowship training program.

Dr. Hammond received his Doctor of Medicine from the University of South Carolina School of Medicine. He completed his pediatric residency at Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital / Northwestern University before pursuing subspecialty training in neonatal-perinatal medicine at Baylor College of Medicine. Dr. Hammond also obtained advanced fellowship training in neonatal cardiovascular intensive care and hemodynamics at CHOC/UCI prior to joining the Division after graduation. His clinical practice focuses on neonatal hemodynamics and the care of critically ill infants with congenital diaphragmatic hernia and complex cardiac conditions.

Hammond's research examines cardiovascular physiology and outcomes in high-risk neonatal populations, with particular attention to congenital diaphragmatic hernia and bronchopulmonary dysplasia. He served as site principal investigator for the SMART PDA Trial, a multi-center randomized controlled trial investigating early medical treatment of patent ductus arteriosus, and leads several clinical investigations utilizing targeted neonatal echocardiography and speckle tracking techniques to assess cardiac function. His work on sex differences in severe bronchopulmonary dysplasia outcomes was published in Chest, and he has contributed to research on the molecular mechanisms of lung development in congenital diaphragmatic hernia. Hammond received the Evie Whitlock Fellowship Award in Neonatology for his research on sexual dimorphism in pulmonary hypertension associated with congenital diaphragmatic hernia.

Hammond holds board certification in general pediatrics and neonatal-perinatal medicine, as well as a Certificate of Post-Doctoral Training in Targeted Neonatal Echocardiography from the American Society of Echocardiography. He is a member of the Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia Collaborative Epidemiology Working Group and the Children's Hospital Neonatal Consortium, where he participates in the CDH and BPD Study Groups and Hemodynamics Focus Group. He is also an active member of the American Society of Echocardiography, as well the Neonatal Hemodynamics Research Center where he serves on the educational planning committee. Hammond served as co-lead for the PDA Symposium at the 2025 NeoHeart Annual Conference and provides clinical education in neonatal hemodynamics and targeted echocardiography to fellows, residents, and medical students at UC Irvine and CHOC.

Education

• MD, University of South Carolina School of Medicine, 2017
• BS in Biomedical Engineering, University of South Carolina, 2013

Distinctions

• Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA), University of South Carolina School of Medicine, 2016
• Evie Whitlock Fellowship Award in Neonatology Grant, 2020-2023
• Fellow American Academy of Pediatrics, 2024
• University of South Carolina Significant Achievement in Philanthropy Award, 2012
• South Carolina Palmetto Fellows Scholar, 2009-2013
• University of South Carolina School of Medicine, Cum Laude, 2017
• Graduated with Honors from the University of South Carolina Honors College, Cum Laude, 2013
• University of South Carolina Dean's Honor Roll, 2009-2017
• University of South Carolina Leadership Scholar, 2009-2013