DRAFT: AAP
I am a native of Los Angeles (my parents moved to California from Michigan 6 months before I was born). This was post-war Los Angeles, and my mother always told me that being a native was very special, because almost everyone in California had moved here from somewhere else! My father had graduated from the University of Michigan Medical School in the late 1930s and he was the person who always suggested that I should consider a career in medicine. However, he hinted that radiology or ophthalmology would be a good career choice if I wanted to have regular hours (the subtle message that medicine would be a difficult occupation for a woman if she wanted a family). He had general medicine training and ran an urgent care facility in the industrial section of Los Angeles, where he took care of injured workers from meat packing plants and other industrial facilities. Everything was billed through a worker’s compensation fee schedule, and I spent several summers as a young girl doing office work and seeing what went on there. This was just before the advent of the federal legislation that established Medicare, and even at that early age, I was aware about how paying for medical care was a challenge, with most care being delivered in the hospital (people would be hospitalized for routine work-ups as there was no outpatient insurance coverage). Possibly this sensitized me at an early age to the challenges of health care delivery, setting the stage for my future research interests in health services research and health policy.
My father also provided some regular medical care to patients, including some minor surgery (hernia repairs, appendectomies) and sometimes our family would have to wait in the car while he went into Temple Community Hospital in central Los Angeles to check on a patient. He was also very proud of UCLA Medical School, even though he was not affiliated with it, and I remember driving up to the front of the main hospital entrance in the Center for the Health Sciences [CHS] (there was no plaza or parking structure in front of the building; patients were dropped off at the front door) when he wanted to show UCLA to out of town visitors. I also spent several summers during college working as a volunteer in a pediatric cardiology research lab, where in 1968 I met my future husband, Tomas Ganz, when we both had California Cardiology Association summer fellowships. After graduating from Radcliffe College (Harvard University) in 1969, I entered UCLA Medical School as one of only three women in a class of about 125. So you can see, I have had a long association with the medical school and the CHS building, where my current research office is housed.
In spite of doing cardiology research before and after entering medical school, I ultimately made the decision to become a medical oncologist. This occurred after being exposed as a resident to a new hematology/oncology division chief who had been recently recruited to UCLA, rotating through the newly established oncology ward, and seeing the expansion of new cancer therapies as part of the recently signed National Cancer Act of 1971. Cancer treatments seemed to provide much greater potential for cure than what was available for the management of advanced cardiovascular disease (this was before the availability of good hypertension medications and statins), but I had underestimated the future role of prevention in cardiology. In oncology, drugs like cisplatin and doxorubicin had just come on the scene, leading to cures of testicular cancer and some lymphomas. I was also attracted to medical oncology because of the important role of internal medicine in cancer patient care, from diagnosis through management of treatment complications. Focusing on the whole person in cancer care delivery was important to me, and early on I had an interest in the psychosocial aspects of cancer care. This was enhanced by my interactions with a very strong clinical consultation liaison service staffed by psychiatrists and psychologists at UCLA who focused on the behavioral and mental health complications of medical illness. They helped in the day-to-day care of seriously ill patients and exposed many clinicians to the value of collaborative care.
I am a native of Los Angeles (my parents moved to California from Michigan 6 months before I was born). This was post-war Los Angeles, and my mother always told me that being a native was very special, because almost everyone in California had moved here from somewhere else! My father had graduated from the University of Michigan Medical School in the late 1930s and he was the person who always suggested that I should consider a career in medicine. However, he hinted that radiology or ophthalmology would be a good career choice if I wanted to have regular hours (the subtle message that medicine would be a difficult occupation for a woman if she wanted a family). He had general medicine training and ran an urgent care facility in the industrial section of Los Angeles, where he took care of injured workers from meat packing plants and other industrial facilities. Everything was billed through a worker’s compensation fee schedule, and I spent several summers as a young girl doing office work and seeing what went on there. This was just before the advent of the federal legislation that established Medicare, and even at that early age, I was aware about how paying for medical care was a challenge, with most care being delivered in the hospital (people would be hospitalized for routine work-ups as there was no outpatient insurance coverage). Possibly this sensitized me at an early age to the challenges of health care delivery, setting the stage for my future research interests in health services research and health policy.
My father also provided some regular medical care to patients, including some minor surgery (hernia repairs, appendectomies) and sometimes our family would have to wait in the car while he went into Temple Community Hospital in central Los Angeles to check on a patient. He was also very proud of UCLA Medical School, even though he was not affiliated with it, and I remember driving up to the front of the main hospital entrance in the Center for the Health Sciences [CHS] (there was no plaza or parking structure in front of the building; patients were dropped off at the front door) when he wanted to show UCLA to out of town visitors. I also spent several summers during college working as a volunteer in a pediatric cardiology research lab, where in 1968 I met my future husband, Tomas Ganz, when we both had California Cardiology Association summer fellowships. After graduating from Radcliffe College (Harvard University) in 1969, I entered UCLA Medical School as one of only three women in a class of about 125. So you can see, I have had a long association with the medical school and the CHS building, where my current research office is housed.
In spite of doing cardiology research before and after entering medical school, I ultimately made the decision to become a medical oncologist. This occurred after being exposed as a resident to a new hematology/oncology division chief who had been recently recruited to UCLA, rotating through the newly established oncology ward, and seeing the expansion of new cancer therapies as part of the recently signed National Cancer Act of 1971. Cancer treatments seemed to provide much greater potential for cure than what was available for the management of advanced cardiovascular disease (this was before the availability of good hypertension medications and statins), but I had underestimated the future role of prevention in cardiology. In oncology, drugs like cisplatin and doxorubicin had just come on the scene, leading to cures of testicular cancer and some lymphomas. I was also attracted to medical oncology because of the important role of internal medicine in cancer patient care, from diagnosis through management of treatment complications. Focusing on the whole person in cancer care delivery was important to me, and early on I had an interest in the psychosocial aspects of cancer care. This was enhanced by my interactions with a very strong clinical consultation liaison service staffed by psychiatrists and psychologists at UCLA who focused on the behavioral and mental health complications of medical illness. They helped in the day-to-day care of seriously ill patients and exposed many clinicians to the value of collaborative care.
I will not dwell on my various leadership roles and academic and hospital positions preceding my current position, but I do want to reflect on what it was like almost always being the only woman in the room for many years, and starting a career just as the feminist movement was emerging in the early 1970s. I came from a family of strong and successful women who primarily worked in a family business while also raising their children. When I was applying to medical school, women still were infrequently accepted and young schools like UCLA were reluctant to take a risk filling slots with women who were thought to be at high risk for drop-out or not fulfilling the career that men would have no trouble doing. My interview at UCLA was with a senior gynecologist who had actually taken care of my grandmother and mother. He directly said to me that he was not worried about me being a risk for drop-out, as he knew my family and the work ethic of these women. This interview was mild compared to “stress interviews” that some of my Radcliffe classmates were subjected to.
I am a native of Los Angeles (my parents moved to California from Michigan 6 months before I was born). This was post-war Los Angeles, and my mother always told me that being a native was very special, because almost everyone in California had moved here from somewhere else! My father had graduated from the University of Michigan Medical School in the late 1930s and he was the person who always suggested that I should consider a career in medicine. However, he hinted that radiology or ophthalmology would be a good career choice if I wanted to have regular hours (the subtle message that medicine would be a difficult occupation for a woman if she wanted a family). He had general medicine training and ran an urgent care facility in the industrial section of Los Angeles, where he took care of injured workers from meat packing plants and other industrial facilities. Everything was billed through a worker’s compensation fee schedule, and I spent several summers as a young girl doing office work and seeing what went on there. This was just before the advent of the federal legislation that established Medicare, and even at that early age, I was aware about how paying for medical care was a challenge, with most care being delivered in the hospital (people would be hospitalized for routine work-ups as there was no outpatient insurance coverage). Possibly this sensitized me at an early age to the challenges of health care delivery, setting the stage for my future research interests in health services research and health policy.
I am a native of Los Angeles (my parents moved to California from Michigan 6 months before I was born). This was post-war Los Angeles, and my mother always told me that being a native was very special, because almost everyone in California had moved here from somewhere else! My father had graduated from the University of Michigan Medical School in the late 1930s and he was the person who always suggested that I should consider a career in medicine. However, he hinted that radiology or ophthalmology would be a good career choice if I wanted to have regular hours (the subtle message that medicine would be a difficult occupation for a woman if she wanted a family). He had general medicine training and ran an urgent care facility in the industrial section of Los Angeles, where he took care of injured workers from meat packing plants and other industrial facilities. Everything was billed through a worker’s compensation fee schedule, and I spent several summers as a young girl doing office work and seeing what went on there. This was just before the advent of the federal legislation that established Medicare, and even at that early age, I was aware about how paying for medical care was a challenge, with most care being delivered in the hospital (people would be hospitalized for routine work-ups as there was no outpatient insurance coverage). Possibly this sensitized me at an early age to the challenges of health care delivery, setting the stage for my future research interests in health services research and health policy.
I am a native of Los Angeles (my parents moved to California from Michigan 6 months before I was born). This was post-war Los Angeles, and my mother always told me that being a native was very special, because almost everyone in California had moved here from somewhere else! My father had graduated from the University of Michigan Medical School in the late 1930s and he was the person who always suggested that I should consider a career in medicine. However, he hinted that radiology or ophthalmology would be a good career choice if I wanted to have regular hours (the subtle message that medicine would be a difficult occupation for a woman if she wanted a family). He had general medicine training and ran an urgent care facility in the industrial section of Los Angeles, where he took care of injured workers from meat packing plants and other industrial facilities. Everything was billed through a worker’s compensation fee schedule, and I spent several summers as a young girl doing office work and seeing what went on there. This was just before the advent of the federal legislation that established Medicare, and even at that early age, I was aware about how paying for medical care was a challenge, with most care being delivered in the hospital (people would be hospitalized for routine work-ups as there was no outpatient insurance coverage). Possibly this sensitized me at an early age to the challenges of health care delivery, setting the stage for my future research interests in health services research and health policy.
I am a native of Los Angeles (my parents moved to California from Michigan 6 months before I was born).
I am a native of Los Angeles (my parents moved to California from Michigan 6 months before I was born).
I am a native of Los Angeles (my parents moved to California from Michigan 6 months before I was born).
I am a native of Los Angeles (my parents moved to California from Michigan 6 months before I was born).