ACP is delighted to introduce our incoming ACP President, Dr. Robert McLean, and our incoming Chair of the Board of Regents, Dr. Douglas M. DeLong. Read on to learn about who they are, where they're from, their careers and their hobbies.
Incoming ACP President
Robert McLean, M.D., FACP
Practicing rheumatologist and Medical Director of Clinical Quality with Northeast Medical Group of Yale New Haven Health; Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine at Yale School of Medicine
鈥 MEDICAL SCHOOL 鈥
University of Maryland School of Medicine, 鈥88
鈥 RESIDENCE 鈥
Woodbridge, CT
Background
1. I was born and raised in鈥 Born in Chapel Hill, NC, while my father was in dental school at UNC, then grew up in Potomac, MD, in the Washington, DC, suburbs.
2. As a child I was鈥 a typical first-born鈥攂ossy over my younger sister, and I was a true child of the 70s (I loved music and movies especially) but fortunately still spent enough time reading and playing sports that my brain didn't rot.
3. I decided to be a doctor鈥 because I was always interested in science in school, but also loved the social interaction a medical career seemed to involve.
4. The person(s) who influenced me the most鈥 to go into internal medicine was Dr. Ted Woodward, a legend at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, who taught Intro to Clinical Medicine to the first-years, interviewing patients in front of a lecture hall and showing how 鈥減atients will usually lead you to the diagnosis, if you let them.鈥 He handed out the Francis Peabody lecture 鈥淭he Care of the Patient,鈥 which I still have. Dr. Woodward was a teacher and internist role-model extraordinaire.
Career
5. I chose internal medicine because鈥 it combined the intellectual rigor of complex organ system conditions, with the curiosity needed to be a good detective, with the emotional satisfaction of helping patients both with short-term illnesses and with long-term chronic disease management.
6. What I find most rewarding about my career is鈥 the variety my daily activities. I was practicing both primary care medicine and rheumatology for more than 20 years, seeing patients in my office and having the opportunity to teach students and residents in an ambulatory setting. Then in recent years I was lured into some administrative work in the areas of quality and safety. It is a fascinating challenge to combine my medical knowledge with strategy and thinking about change management, at all levels, from the individual behavior of doctors and patients to the various large systems in which we operate.
7. I joined ACP because鈥 I was initially attracted to advocacy early in my career, starting with scope of practice issues in my state of Connecticut and soon after furthered with attendance at my first ACP Leadership Day in DC more than 20 years ago. ACP has become my professional home, allowing me to step out of my practice situation and deal with much larger issues impacting our profession as well as how to improve our health care delivery system for our patients. It has always made me see a bigger picture of health care delivery, and provided me the opportunity to develop a larger sense of purpose.
8. An award or achievement I am proud of is鈥 receiving the ACP's 鈥淜ey Contact of the Year鈥 Award in 2006, now called the Richard Neubauer Advocacy Award. Being recognized for advocacy by an organization like the ACP was a tremendous honor. Having the opportunity to carry that further as ACP President will be a thrill.
9. My advice to medical students is鈥 look at the big picture when choosing a specialty. The field must be something that will interest you for many years. But realize that turns (and bumps) along the road are inevitable and embrace opportunities as they arise.
Personal
William, and wife Cathy pose for a family selfie
on vacation in Colmar, France last December.
10. I like people who鈥 are honest, compassionate, and hard-working.
11. My family includes鈥 a wonderful wife who tolerates my foibles and keeps me inspired every day, two sons who keep me humble both intellectually and in athletic endeavors, and my parents and a sister who showed me the wonderful value of laughter and humor.
12. My interests/hobbies are鈥 reading non-fiction including history of medicine (nerdy about details, per my family), travel to interesting places and the geography that entails, skiing with my sons, golf when I have the chance, and movie and music trivia.
13. If I had the time, I would like to learn鈥 to play the guitar.
14. I enjoy listening to鈥 music from 70s and 80s, as well various types of blues and jazz.
15. I enjoy watching鈥 movies (though not enough time) and live sports, especially tennis and squash (sports my sons played).
16. My idea of a great vacation is鈥 touring historic places as well as seeing beautiful natural scenery with my family.
17. Something others may not know about me is鈥 I developed a problematic habit as a kid of liking to collect things (business cards, beer cans, ski mountain patches) that my wife now considers a bit pathologic.
18. If I could be anything other than a physician I would be鈥 tour guide at a sports hall of fame (or the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, per my sons), or maybe a brewmaster.
19. A person I greatly admire is/was鈥 someone who endured hardship yet appreciated humanity and envisioned a higher purpose, Nelson Mandela.
Incoming Chair, Board of Regents
Douglas M. DeLong, MD, FACP
Chief, Division of General Internal Medicine at Bassett Healthcare in Cooperstown, NY
鈥 MEDICAL SCHOOL 鈥
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
鈥 RESIDENCE 鈥
Roseboom, NY, but we spend much of our time at our 250-acre farm nearby
Background
1. I was born and raised in鈥 born in Philadelphia but grew up in Federal Way, WA, between Seattle and Tacoma.
2. As a child I was鈥 always outside playing sports.
3. I decided to be a doctor鈥 because of Dr. Robert Lundeen (鈥淒r. Bob鈥) our family physician.
4. The person(s) who influenced me the most鈥 my parents for their unflagging support [financial and otherwise] of my education and for having confidence in me even when it was not necessarily deserved.
Career
5. I chose internal medicine because鈥 in medical school the internists were regarded in the highest esteem鈥搕he best and the brightest.
6. What I find most rewarding about my career is鈥 sitting in the room with long-term patients chatting during the routine rhythm of the physical exam, or sitting at the bedside holding a hand.
7. I joined ACP because鈥 I was asked to by a respected colleague, Joe Mazza, of the Marshfield Clinic in Wisconsin.
8. An award or achievement I am proud of is鈥 the 鈥淐oach Of The Year Award鈥 presented to me by the ACP Board Of Governors after my term as chair.
9. My advice to medical students is鈥 Life is short. Listen to your heart. [Alternatively: Gilda Radner wrote a brilliant limerick 鈥淒octors Are Whippersnappers.鈥 It's taped to my computer screen. Look it up!]
Personal
the ruins of a castle in the Languedoc region
of southern France during a trip last year.
10. I like people who鈥 read voraciously and are broad minded.
11. My family includes鈥 my ever-supportive wife, Lynn, three adult children, and four grandkids [with one on the way], and Lena, the world's best dog.
12. My interests/hobbies are鈥 cross-country skiing, travel, reading.
13. If I had the time, I would like to learn鈥 French [this time have it actually stick].
14. I enjoy listening to鈥 my car radio presets: real jazz, Grateful Dead, symphony hall.
15. I enjoy watching鈥 news and documentaries.
16. My idea of a great vacation is鈥 cross-country skiing all day followed by a nice meal and a bottle red wine.
17. Something others may not know about me is鈥 I interviewed to be the physician at the South Pole Station.
18. If I could be anything other than a physician I would be鈥 an arborist.
19. A person I greatly admire is/was鈥 Eleanor Roosevelt. I'm current reading a biography of her and she was a very impressive woman.