SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

                             Washington, D.C. 20549
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                                    FORM 6-K

                        REPORT OF FOREIGN PRIVATE ISSUER

                    Pursuant to Rule 13a-16 or 15d-16 of the
                         Securities Exchange Act of 1934

                         For the month of: January 2003

                        Commission File Number: 000-28882

                             World Heart Corporation
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               (Exact name of registrant as specified in charter)

                                       N/A
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                 (Translation of registrant's name into English)

                                     Ontario
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                         (Jurisdiction of organization)

                     1 Laser Street, Ottawa, Ontario K2E 7V1
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                    (Address of principal executive offices)

                  Registrant's telephone number: (613) 226-4278

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual reports
under cover of Form 20-F or Form 40-F.

                        Form 20-F  X       Form 40-F
                                  ---                ---

Indicate by check mark whether by furnishing the information contained in this
Form, the registrant is also thereby furnishing the information to the
Commission pursuant to Rule 12g3-2(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

                               Yes          No  X
                                   ---         ---

If "Yes" is marked, indicate below the file number assigned to the registrant in
connection with Rule 12g3-2(b): 82-________
<PAGE>

This Form 6-K consists of the following:

1.   Press release of World Heart Corporation, dated January 2, 2003, announcing
     the first closing of its previously announced issuance of securities in
     Canada in a private placement transaction, as well as plans for additional
     financing.
<PAGE>

News Release
For Immediate Release

                         WORLD HEART CORPORATION CLOSES
                           PRIVATE PLACEMENT OF EQUITY

OTTAWA, Ontario - January 2, 2003 - (TSX: WHT, OTCBB: WHRTF) - World Heart
Corporation ("WorldHeart" or the "Corporation") has now completed the first
closing of its previously announced private placement, through Northern
Securities Inc., of 1,631,525 units (the "Units") at a price of CDN$1.28 per
Unit, for gross proceeds of $2,088,352. Each Unit comprises one common share,
and one warrant to purchase a common share. Each warrant will be exercisable
into one common share at an exercise price of CDN$1.60 per share for a period of
five years. The balance of the $3,000,000 private placement is expected to close
on or before January 10, 2003.

With respect to the additional $8,000,000 in debt financing, which the
Corporation previously indicated that it was raising in separate transactions,
$2,000,000 of gross proceeds has already been received, and final approvals have
been received with respect to the balance, which has now been increased by
$2,000,000 for a total of $13,000,000 in funding including the above private
placement of equity. These additional transactions are expected to close early
in 2003.

Following today's first closing, WorldHeart now has 19,601,652 common shares
issued and outstanding.

WorldHeart intends to use the proceeds from these private placements towards
marketing expenses related to its Novacor(R) LVAS, continued funding of the
development of its optimized HeartSaverVAD(TM) and for general corporate
purposes.

The common shares, including those underlying the warrants, have not been
registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933 and may not be offered or sold
in the United States or to U.S. persons unless an exemption from such
registration is available.

About the Novacor(R) LVAS
WorldHeart's Novacor(R) LVAS is an electromagnetically driven pump that provides
circulatory support by taking over part or all of the workload of the left
ventricle. Novacor(R) LVAS is already approved in Europe without restrictions
for use by heart failure patients; and in the United States and Canada as a
bridge to heart transplantation. It is approved for use in Japan by cardiac
patients at risk of imminent death from non-reversible left ventricular failure
for which there is no alternative but a heart transplant.

<PAGE>
About WorldHeart
World Heart Corporation, a global medical device company based in Ottawa,
Ontario and Oakland, California, is currently focused on the development and
commercialization of pulsatile ventricular assist devices. Its Novacor(R) LVAS
(Left Ventricular Assist System) is well established in the marketplace and its
next-generation technology, HeartSaverVAD(TM), is a fully implantable assist
device intended for long-term support of patients with end-stage heart failure.

Any forward-looking statements in this release are made pursuant to the safe
harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
Investors are cautioned that all forward-looking statements involve risk and
uncertainties, including without limitation, risks in product development and
market acceptance of and demand for the Corporation's products, risks of
downturns in economic conditions generally, and in the medical devices markets,
risks associated with costs and delays posed by government regulation,
limitations on third party reimbursement, inability to protect proprietary
technology, potential product liability and other risks detailed in the
Corporation's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. All
financial figures are prepared in accordance with Canadian generally accepted
accounting principles (GAAP) and are expressed in Canadian dollars.

                                       --

For more information, please contact:
Michelle Banning
Manager, Corporate Communications
(613) 226-4278 x 2995
communications@worldheart.com
<PAGE>

                                   SIGNATURES

     Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the
registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

                                        World Heart Corporation

Date: January 2, 2003                  By: /s/ Ian Malone
                                           -------------------------------------
                                           Name:   Ian Malone
                                           Title:  Vice President Finance and
                                                   Financial Officer