Page 34 - COM Outlook - Winter 2013

34 COM Outlook . Winter 2013
2012 Alumnus Dr. Kaylesh “KK” Pandya
Pursues Unconventional Postgraduate Path
nlike many of his peers, who began
their internship and residency
training as soon as they graduated from
medical school, class of 2012 alumnus
Kaylesh “KK” Pandya, D.O., is charting
an unconventional course that includes
completing his Master of Science in
Biomedical Informatics (M.S.B.I.) degree
before pursuing his residency training.
In the following interview, Dr. Pandya
shares thoughts about his parents, who
are both physicians, his favorite NSU-
COM memories, and why he chose to
pursue a nontraditional postgraduate
path in his attempt to attain maximum
career fulfillment.
Please explain what led you to pursue a
D.O. degree at NSU’s College of Osteopathic
Medicine. While I’ve always been interested
in the sciences, my passions and interests
prior to medical school were principally
surrounding technology.My undergraduate
education at The Evergreen State College
in Olympia, Washington, was focused on
polymer chemistry and computer science,
while my previous jobs have all been in
the information technology field involving
system administration, technical support,
and security.
Fixing the technical problem was often
intuitive tome, but I realizedmy satisfaction
came not only from solving complex
problems, but solving these with and for
my clients. The challenging (and most
satisfying) part of the job involved explaining
the problem to my clients, involving them
in the troubleshooting process, discussing
solutions to these problems, and finding
ways to prevent their recurrence. I realized
quickly this is also the approach a physician
must take in providing patient care.
My first exposure to osteopathic
medicine was through my father while he
was in medical school. The osteopathic
approach to patient care and wellness has
always struck me as common sense, and I
value being able to use my hands as both
a diagnostic and treatment tool for my
patients. When applying to medical school,
I only applied to osteopathic programs.
Af te r obta i n i ng my wi l de rnes s
emergency medicine training certification
in 2006, I noticed a change in my approach
to troubleshooting. It began to mirror
the structure I’d been taught to address
patients’ problems—obtaining a systematic
and comprehensive history of the problem
prior to diagnosis and treatment.
Since both of your parents are physicians,
please explain what role they played in your
becoming a physician. While my parents
are both physicians, each of them entered
the profession through rather different
paths. My mother went to medical school
in the United Kingdom, did her internal
medicine residency in the United States,
and has been a physician for all my life.
My father went to medical school in his
40s at UHSCOM (now KCUMB) when I was
in my early teens.
I’ve grown up in and out of hospitals
with my mother, and I saw firsthand what
medical school required from my father
and our family overall. When I chose to
enter NSU-COM, I had a good picture of
what the school would require from me.
Most importantly, I was clear that my
motives for becoming a physician were my
own and not those of my family.
Medical school requires the support
of one’s family and friends, and I value
that I’ve received that from my parents.
In addition to support and understanding
as their son, they’ve been invaluable for
their advice and understanding as medical
professionals. All of the firsts that occur
during postgraduate training, from my
first night on call to stories about patients,
are experiences I know my parents have
experienced and understand implicitly.
In previous conversations, you mentioned
that you are following a nontraditional career
path. Please explain why you decided to
pursue an untraditional path and what it will
entail. Although I have graduated fromNSU-
COM, I have been concurrently pursuing
my M.S.B.I. degree through the college.
This program allows me to integrate my
experience and interests in information
technology with my medical studies. Each
of my rotations during medical school
presented a moment where I relied just
as much on my information technology
background as my clinical knowledge as
a medical student. This has varied from
fixing keyboards at the hospital to advising
my attendings regarding electronic health
record systems usage and implementation.
My careers in both medicine and
technology came to an unexpected head
during a fourth-year rotation. During my
otolaryngology rotation in 2011, a surgical
navigation tool malfunctioned at the
beginning of a complex jaw reconstruction
procedure. I was able to use my laptop to
provide my attendings with intraoperative
3D renderings from the patient’s CT,
allowing the procedure to continue.
This acutely illustrated how important
By Scott Colton, B.A., APR
NSU-COM/HPD Director of Medical Communications and Public Relations
U