DR. WHO?
MEMBER SPOTLIGHT
CHRISTIAN FURMAN, MD,
MSPH, AGSF
Aaron Burch
C
hristian Furman, MD, MSPH, AGSF, knew she wanted to be
a physician from the moment one cared for her.
Afflicted with asthma from a young age, Dr. Furman was hospitalized in the third grade. While there, rather than being scared,
she was inspired. “The whole hospital experience made me feel
that being a doctor was what I wanted to do. I wanted to be one of
the people that took care of me and made me feel so much better.”
Today, Dr. Furman serves the community in a variety of different
health care roles. She is vice chair and professor of geriatric and
palliative medicine at the University of Louisville, medical director
of the U of L Institute for Sustainable Health and Optimal Aging
(ISHOA), and the medical director of two nursing homes: Mercy
Sacred Heart and the Masonic Homes of Louisville. She’s branched
out into multiple health care environments, all thanks to the support
of her family, teachers and peers.
Growing up in Oldham County, Dr. Furman gravitated towards
math and science from an early age. Since she showed promise in
challenging subjects, her teachers encouraged the pursuit of medicine. Because she wanted to complete her undergraduate courses
outside of Kentucky, a suggestion from her uncle prompted Dr.
Furman to apply to the University of Miami.
“The university was really trying to change how it was perceived.
They had been called things like ‘Suntan U’ so they were giving out
really good scholarships to get a more academic reputation. They
accepted me, it was a great experience and that’s where I met my
husband.”
While on campus as an RA, Dr. Furman was assigned the same
floor as her one-day husband, Dean Furman. “He kept trying to
recruit me to be on his campaign at UM. He was into student government and politics. I didn’t take his offer the first time we met
but we kept running into
each other and it was like
it was meant to be.”
Looking for medical schools, Dr. Furman and her husband aimed
for Kentucky where tuition was cheaper and both could be close
to family. She was accepted to the U of L School of Medicine and
was then welcomed into the internal medicine residency program
and the second ever geriatric medicine fellowship. She’s been with
the University ever since.
“I’m glad we matched here. We were thinking about having a
family a