Being Ready When the Door Opens with Dr. Robert Bacallao

Robert Bacallao, MD, is a Professor of Medicine and an Adjunct Professor of Anatomy, Cell Biology & Physiology at the Indiana University School of Medicine. Dr. Bacallao completed his training from the University of Illinois and completed his fellowship in Nephrology from UCLA. Dr. Bacallao is widely regarded for his research on polycystic kidney disease, and has published extensively on its pathogenesis. He is the founder of Apoptocys, a company which aims to bring novel therapy interventions to people with ADPKD. He is involved in medical student, resident, and fellow training as a faculty member at Indiana University. As a physician, hard work is par for the course. But as Dr. Bacallao reminds us, the hard work is what sets you up for success when the door of opportunity opens. Today, we learn what it means to prepare for greatness. We learn about the power of the helping hand: We don’t often get to where we’re going alone. We are also reminded that arrogance blocks communication between us and our patients, therefore it is key to set our ego aside. We also need to find ways to break out of our shell and learn outside of medicine. It will give us new ways to communicate with, and understand the patient in the room. Pearls of Wisdom: 1. Understand the power of the helping hand. Our careers are formed as a result of the blessings of many people in our life. 2. Hard work allows you to be prepared when the door opens. You have to be standing at the net with the racket. 3. Get out of your shell. We need to look outside of medicine in order to broaden our thinking. This is instrumental in understanding the lives of our patients.