DISTRICT TRUSTEES PROFILES
James E . Hunt , MD
PAIN TREATMENT CENTERS OF AMERICA
City : Little Rock and North Little Rock
Specialty : Anesthesiology , Pediatric Anesthesiology , Pain Management
AMS Member since 1999 : Currently serves as trustee for AMS District 8 .
Why are you an AMS member ? It ’ s more important than ever to be engaged in community and professional organizations that represent our perspectives , our passions , and our professions . AMS serves as an accessible network of physicians and resources to help me best care for my patients as well as an advocate for the highest standards of care my patients — and my family — deserve right here in Arkansas .
Who or what inspired your career in medicine ? As a nurse I fell in love with critical care — the complexity of care in extremes of medically and surgically fragile patients . I loved the monitoring and management of hemodynamics , the families and patients , and the knowledge and skills I witnessed in the physicians I worked alongside . I didn ’ t expect to feel so hungry for deeper engagement in the medicine of critical care when I started my nursing career , but I loved being at the bedside and pestering my patients ’ physicians about decision-making processes and knowledge . Eventually , several of those physicians started encouraging me to apply to medical school — maybe because they were tired of me being such a pest ( thank you to Art Squire , Don Meacham and so many others for helping me believe I could succeed ).
What do you like most about being a doctor , or your specialty ? Anesthesiology , for me , has been a wonderful nexus of so many parts and specialties of medicine and surgery — critical care , obstetrics , trauma , pediatrics , pain management — I ’ m constantly learning new things and seeing new things . Even after all these years , I love “ going to school ” every day !
What advice do you have for young people considering a career in medicine ? Whatever you decide to do or wherever you practice , make sure part of your medical education is a business education ! Get an MBA or similar degree ; you ’ ll never be sorry if you do .
What is the most critical health care issue facing Arkansas today ? Access and equity are two of the most critical health care issues facing Arkansans today .
Do you have a personal motto or favorite quote ? “ If you ’ re not sitting at the table , you ’ re on the menu .”
What is an important cause to me ? My personal and professional passion is care of neurodiverse people : Arkansan children with intellectual and developmental disabilities ( IDD ) can access excellent dental , medical , and surgical care through Arkansas Children ’ s ’ System , but adults with IDD don ’ t have access to equitable care in Arkansas . Since 2009 , I ’ ve dedicated a portion of my clinical time to perioperative care of Arkansans with IDD , and a portion of my community service to advocating for more equitable and empathetic dental and medical care of adult Arkansans with IDD . Our loved ones with IDD shouldn ’ t have to leave our state to find good care — or suffer without access to care . We can and must do better . ■
Dr . Hunt with son Al and wife DeAnn .
96 THE JOURNAL OF THE ARKANSAS MEDICAL SOCIETY