Issue link: https://tmcpulse.uberflip.com/i/597435
t m c » p u l s e | n o v e m b e r 2 0 1 5 8 Q | Can you tell us about your formative years? A | I grew up in Indianapolis, Indiana. I am a middle child—I have two sisters and a brother. My mom and dad were not college graduates. My mother was a beautician and my dad was a postal worker. As a young girl, the two careers that were most fascinating to me were teaching and medicine. Along my jour- ney, I had great role models and mentors who introduced me to those fields. My pediatrician, who happened to be an African-American female, encouraged my interest in medicine and offered advice. As early as middle school, I thought I would go to medical school and become a pediatrician, but my love for teaching and learning was always there. My other early mentor was my maternal aunt who has a passion for literature and poetry, and who pursued a career in elementary education. I was able to observe my aunt in the class- room and the enthusiastic response of her students. At one point, I recall having a conversation with my aunt about my interests, and I told her I was interested in both medicine and teach- ing. Her response was, 'If you have an opportunity to go to medical school and become a physician, by all means you should pursue a career in medicine.' So that wasn't the reason I chose medicine, but I certainly had those two passions, both for teaching and for health care. I grew up in a family where there has been a lot of premature death—from cardiovascular disease and cancer. My paternal grandfather died at age 44, and none of my father's brothers lived beyond age 56. My paternal grandfather ALICIA MONROE, M.D., PROVOST AND SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT OF ACADEMIC AND FACULTY AFFAIRS AT BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE, SAT DOWN WITH TEXAS MEDICAL CENTER EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT AND CHIEF STRATEGY AND OPERATING OFFICER WILLIAM F. McKEON TO REFLECT ON HOW A STRONG SUPPORT SYSTEM HELPED SHAPE HER CAREER, AND WHAT ROLE SHE HOPES TO HAVE IN BUILDING BAYLOR'S FUTURE LEADERS. TMC SPOTLIGHT expired following a hemorrhagic stroke, and my father's brothers all had hyper- tension and died following massive myocardial infarcts. My dad lived to age 57, but he died of lung cancer. My mother died at age 44 from Hodgkin's disease. She experienced a delay in receiving an accurate diagnosis and had many disappointing and hurtful interactions with her physicians. She didn't feel that she was listened to or that the physicians took her complaints seriously. Although she was ultimately diagnosed with Hodgkin's disease, she was initially told that her symptoms were psychosomatic. I would say she was disillusioned with regard to her interactions with physicians. Those less-than-satisfactory relationships with physicians, the prevalence of chronic illnesses in my family and my community, and a strong desire to improve access to care and the quality of physician/patient interactions were the primary reasons I chose medi- cine. However, the physician/patient relationship and cross-cultural commu- nication have been areas of scholarly interest throughout my career. Q | What led you to Brown University? A | While I was preparing for college, I had a conversation with my pediatri- cian to gather her recommendations regarding schools to consider. She encouraged me to consider women's colleges. In particular the seven sister colleges—Barnard, Bryn Mawr, Mount Holyoke, Radcliffe, Smith, Vassar and Wellesley. When I looked at those schools, Smith College, in Northampton, Massachusetts, was