Tripler Army Medical Center  –   In honor of National Doctors’ Day on March 30, Tripler Army Medical Center is featuring one doctor each day this week. The annual observance serves as an opportunity to honor the dedication, skill and unwavering commitment of physicians in providing high-quality care at TAMC and beyond.

Q: How have things changed for doctors in the recent years?
Changes have had impact on both the education of physicians and the practice of medicine. Medical schools have broadened educational opportunities by incorporating live online lectures, simulated patient encounters, and numerous web-based curricular resources. Practicing physicians have benefited from new electronic medical record systems which offer a wealth of historic patient data and data analysis tools. 
 
Q: What’s the biggest challenge you have faced this year?
Implementation of new clinical management software and how it relates to patient scheduling.
 
Q: What would you say is the proudest moment at Tripler Army Medical Center, and specifically our TAMC over the last year?
TAMC’s ability to maintain excellent patient care while undergoing interval institutional changes.
 
Q: What’s something exciting happening right now at Tripler Army Medical Center?
Physicians across all hospital specialties have completed specialized training at top fellowship programs (i.e. Stanford, Duke, UC San Francisco, etc.), and they bring fresh ideas to patient care at Tripler. Just recently I heard preliminary discussion for the novel use of an existing chemotherapy agent to treat a form of cancer not previously studied in the literature.
 
Q: What is the most rewarding part of working as a physician in your department?
Patient care is most rewarding. In my experience, patients often have two questions, the first being “What’s wrong?” and second “What can be done?” What I love about radiology is helping patients find answers. It is exciting to identify the source of a patient’s problem, to give it a name and a location. It is also meaningful to use imaging to help patients understand their symptoms, and ultimately most rewarding to be able to contribute to their care.