SAN ANTONIO – Focus, discipline, determination and practice — qualities applicable on the soccer field and in the operating room, according to Dr. Ian Makey, assistant professor in the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the UT Health Science Center.
When Makey isn’t teaching residents studying everything from cardiothoracic surgery to anesthesia, he can be found on a soccer field, coaching his children’s team.
"In any sport, you have to have focus and practice, and I think in the operating room you have to keep the team focused, too,” he said.
Makey draws similarities between being a team captain and teaching surgical residents.
“As a surgeon, you are leading the team in the operating room,” he said. "Having a shared goal keeps everybody on the same team. When you’re around the same people every day, you’re working towards the same goal."
He said the residents he teaches at the UT Health Science Center eventually go on to join the community in San Antonio.
"When they rotate through our service, they get great experience and then they use that experience to go into their individual discipline,” he said. "I feel like I have a hand in that, as well."
For more information on the UT Health Science Center, call 210-450-9000 or visit www.UTMedicine.com.