The Wright Stuff: Happy Doctors' Day
A message to the WVU Medicine-WVU Hospitals family
One of the great perks about being in the healthcare business is to not only be a part of a profession that changes lives – profoundly, in many cases – but to receive expressions of gratitude and relief from patients and families. The words are one thing, but when I am able to witness the families personally, their expressions, their beaming faces of hope and relief – it’s a reward like no other.
National Doctors’ Day, which is recognized tomorrow, gives us all – myself included – a chance to thank our doctors for everything they do, and that encompasses a wide range of skills: from a disposition and confidence that can produce a calming effect on a frightened patient; to evidence-based, pragmatic lifestyle advice that can improve the quality of life well past the patient’s visit; to expertise in a complex surgery or treatment that can not only heal a patient, but set them on a course of transformation.
Our doctors work tirelessly to change lives, and I’m happy to take a moment to show my appreciation.
At WVU Medicine, we are blessed to have great diversity in our physicians – not just gender or nationality, or even specialty. Our doctors also have a diversity of experience, and each level brings a valuable perspective and energy to our institution.
Some have built their careers here; some have joined us and flourished, emerging as our future leaders; some are gaining experience, while also quickly establishing themselves as experts in their field. Some chose WVU Medicine over many top institutions across the country, which reflects well on both our reputation and the opportunities that are available here.
We appreciate all of our doctors. The physicians who have built their careers here are the pillars of WVU Medicine and are often the purveyors of sage advice for our younger doctors. People like David Hubbard, MD (orthopaedics), David Rosen, MD (anesthesiology), and Mike Hurst, MD, DDS (otolaryngology) own the wisdom of long careers with thousands of cases under their belt. They care about WVU Medicine and the patients we serve. They embody our values and vision.
Building on that foundation are our emerging leaders. Ansaar Rai, MD (radiology, pictured right), Brock Lindsey, MD (orthopaedics), and Chris Goode MD (emergency medicine) are among the physicians becoming national leaders in their respective fields.
We also have a strong group of “rising stars,” young physicians like Amelia Adcock, MD (neurology, pictured bottom left), who are armed with the latest knowledge about their profession and are bringing new ideas and enthusiasm to the table. Also among them are Anthony Roda-Renzelli, MD (cardiology) and Kelley Gannon, MD (internal medicine).
Recently, we recruited “new talent” who already show considerable promise – like George Sokos, DO, a cardiologist who wanted to start a heart failure program in West Virginia, his home state. Min Deng, MD (pictured top left), is a highly-skilled and trained dermatologist and Mohs surgeon who could have gone anywhere. And Kelly Ross, MD, is a bright hematologist-oncologist who felt at home at WVU Medicine and in Morgantown.
We have hundreds of talented physicians providing care at WVU Medicine. The ones I have mentioned are just a sampling of the top-notch providers who are making a real impact in the institution, state, and region.
On Doctors’ Day – and the other 364 days of the year – I’d like to thank our physicians for all they do.
Don’t miss the grab-and-go breakfast being held tomorrow (March 30) to recognize our physicians on Doctors’ Day. It’s being held from 6:30-8 a.m. in the J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital third-floor atrium and the Chestnut Ridge Center library, as well as at these off-campus locations: University Town Centre, Cheat Lake Physicians, and Suncrest Towne Centre.