When
DR . WHO
DR . WHO
MEMBER SPOTLIGHT DR . ROBIN GUILLORY
AUTHOR Kathryn Vance
“
I was 8 , I decided I wanted to be a pediatric cardiac surgeon . I sort of charted a course and headed in that direction .”
Throughout her life growing up in Louisiana , Dr . Robin Guillory prepared herself for a future career in medicine . She finished high school at a public boarding school and was ready to take what she ’ d learned with that unique experience and move on to college . She stuck to her Southern roots and went to Tulane University on a full ride scholarship to pursue a degree in biomedical engineering , a background she felt would be beneficial for a future in medicine . In her senior year , she was applying to medical schools and decided she would choose ten schools . At the last minute , one of her choices changed its undergraduate requirements and her courses weren ’ t going to fit . That same day , she got a letter in the mail from Washington University in St . Louis , Missouri asking her to apply to their program .
“ I went to visit and was very impressed with the school and the focus they put on their students . I was very lucky to be offered a scholarship and I couldn ’ t turn down the opportunity to go to a great medical school for free .”
Early on in her first year of medical school , she found herself in Gross Anatomy lecture , along with everyone nervous for what was ahead . She met a teaching assistant named Victor van Berkel , a third-year working on his PhD ; they got to know each other just in passing . By the end of the rotation , the TAs held study sessions and Victor ran the radiology part . She remembered several medical students crammed into a little room with X-ray boxes and their rather giant TA .
“ He had the most calm , reassuring presence ,” she said . “ And he ’ s this tall guy , which I had never noticed before . He ’ s 6 ’ 8 ” and I ’ m
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5 ’ 2 ”. He filled up this whole room and everyone was in the room all atwitter . He told us we ’ d be fine , to take a deep breath and trust ourselves . I just thought he was amazing .”
A few months later in February 1999 , the two happened to be at the same party and Dr . Guillory spontaneously pulled a chair up next to Dr . van Berkel and climbed on top for a chat . “ When I was on the chair , we were about the same height ,” she said , laughing .
As she went through medical school , she was still set on that 8-year-old ’ s dream of becoming a pediatric cardiac surgeon . However , one semester , the only thing that fit was a rotation in anesthesiology , so she had to take it . But it turned out to be a perfect fit . “ When I started anesthesiology , I felt a connection to all the machines that you use , the fluid dynamics , the physics of the system and the anesthesia machine itself . I loved the feeling of moving with the equipment and using that to help somebody . It felt much more like a home .”
By the time she was ready to look at residencies , the couple was dedicated to each other . At that point , Dr . Guillory was a year ahead of Dr . van Berkel so she did a yearlong internship in internal medicine in St . Louis so they could stay together . They both matched the following year at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston to start her anesthesia and his surgical training .
“ It was an incredible opportunity to always have someone who was an expert in a subject available and a big community of residents to support each other and learn from each other , to learn how to be a student and a teacher to a colleague all at the same time .”
Early on in her residency she knew that she wanted to do more training - to pursue critical care medicine . “ I thought it was going to be some big revelation . I took Victor to dinner to tell him I wanted to do critical care ,” she said . “ I thought I was going to be making this big announcement and he said , ‘ Of course . I ’ ve always known