DISTRICT TRUSTEES PROFILES
Nirvana Manning , MD
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF OBSTETRICS AND GYNECOLOGY AT UAMS CHAIR AND SERVICE LINE DIRECTOR FOR WOMEN ’ S HEALTH SERVICE LINE
City : Little Rock
Specialty : Obstetrics and Gynecology
County Medical Society : Pulaski County Medical Society
AMS member since 2007 : Currently serves as trustee for AMS District 8 .
Why are you an AMS member ? To better advocate for my patients
Who or what inspired your career in medicine ? I loved the idea of helping people in a way that I was uniquely trained to do . No one in my family is in medicine and I found it fascinating .
What do you like most about being a doctor or your specialty ? I adore my specialty . Helping women to take care of themselves and advocate for themselves is truly inspiring . With the obstetrics I get to help women in the most exciting , terrifying , anxiety-provoking , and amazing nine-month journey . Women are coming to me for a largely happy reason which is very different than other areas of medicine . On top of that , I get to see patients through multi-generations and do surgery . It ’ s the best of all the worlds .
What is the best professional advice you have received ? Make the career you want and don ’ t be afraid every 3-5 years to re-examine and see if things need to change .
What advice do you have for young people considering a career in medicine ? Find something you would love to do every day . Despite recent
hardships in medicine , I truly love the patient care I get to do every day .
What do I like to do on my days off or weekends ? With three kids it is usually sporting events and being a personal chauffeur . I also love to read and do puzzles .
What is my favorite restaurant ? I love sushi , but more important than the food is the company . I de-stress by spending time with family and friends . ■
Randy D Walker , MD
OWNER , RANDY D . WALKER , MD , LLC
City : De Queen
Specialty : Family Practice
AMS member since 2003 : Currently serves as trustee for AMS District 6 .
Why are you an AMS member ? Having a voice , making a difference , and shaping the future requires many to speak as one . We may not all agree on every issue but together , through the AMS we can preserve the efficacy , integrity , and sanctity of the doctor-patient relationship , which is the very essence of our profession .
What is the best professional advice you have received ? “ Look son , don ’ t worry about lawyers , insurance companies or paying the rent . Be the best servant possible to your patients and the rest will take care of itself .”
What is the most critical health care issue facing Arkansas today ? The jeopardization of the patient / physician relationship . It ’ s prestige , economic girth , and headline-grabbing nature make the practice of medicine an irresistible target for special interests . Try to imagine a special interest that is not actively lobbying for some sort of medical legislation . To me , so many voices in the exam room between the patient and the physician is the most critical issue .
Do you have a personal motto or favorite quote ? “ We have spent the prime of our lives in procuring them the precious blessing of liberty . Let them spend theirs in showing that it is the
great parent of science and of virtue ; and that a nation will be great in both always in proportion as it is free .” -Thomas Jefferson to Joseph Willard , March 24 , 1789
What is an important cause to me ? Feed Local , Inc . is a non-profit started by my wife to assist with food insecurities in Sevier County , specifically with school age children . ■
186 THE JOURNAL OF THE ARKANSAS MEDICAL SOCIETY