UNLV Medicine Newsletter

Volume 17 - March 16, 2021

TRANSFORMING HEALTHCARE

Friends & Colleagues,

During this Women’s History Month, we focus on UNLV Medicine pediatrician Dr. Rebecca Meyers. She says learning about the late Dr. Francis Oldham Kelsey, a physician-scientist whose actions in the 1960s went a long way toward preventing the FDA approval of thalidomide in the U.S., helped her realize women could contribute to the world of science and medicine. Prescribed for morning sickness and insomnia in dozens of countries around the world, thalidomide ultimately would kill thousands of babies and deform thousands of others. Americans did not escape the tragedy completely. Some physicians received supplies of the drug from the manufacturer under the auspices of its “investigational” trial. Seventeen births were affected in the U.S., but the country was spared the broad-based catastrophe visited upon Europe. As a little girl, Dr. Meyers found out about Dr. Kelsey’s fearless regulatory stance -- she argued the drug hadn’t been tested enough -- in the face of withering pressure from the drug manufacturer. “My dad (a college science professor) was so impressed with her -- he told me how strong she had to be to keep the drug off the U.S. market when it was being used around the world. I didn’t see many other women in science growing up during the 80’s, so learning about Dr. Kelsey really inspired me to see that area as a possibility.” In today’s newsletter, we learn that a key part of Dr. Meyers’ work, like Dr. Kelsey’s, stresses prevention.

Michael Gardner, MD, MPH, MMM

President & CEO, UNLV Medicine

Vice Dean of Clinical Affairs

UNLV School of Medicine

Vice President and Governor

Visit UNLV Vaccination Site

Vice President Kamala Harris and Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak stopped by the UNLV vaccination site Monday, getting a tour of the facility from UNLV Medicine CEO Dr. Michael Gardner.

Vice President Harris and Governor Sisolak thanked the frontline workers and volunteers who have provided more than 63,000 COVID vaccine doses to date.

Medicine By The Numbers

Orthopedic Surgery

The average orthopedic surgeon in the U.S. is 56 years old

Over 90% of orthopedic surgeons are men

About 85% of orthopedic surgeons are white

The average salary of an orthopedic surgeon in 2019 was $526,385

Orthopedic surgeons are the third highest earning medical specialty (after neurosurgery and thoracic surgery.)

About half of all orthopedic surgeons value gratitude and relationships with patients as the most rewarding aspect of their job

Source:

www.verywellhealth.com/orthopedic-statistics-and-demographics-2548685

Providing Impactful Care

The Goal for Pediatrician Dr. Rebecca Meyers

Dr. Rebecca Meyers appreciates the impact that pediatricians can have even after a child grows into adulthood. She is an important part of UNLV Medicine's well respected department of pediatrics.

Education has the power to transform lives -- it’s a deeply held conviction of UNLV Medicine pediatrician Dr. Rebecca Meyers that began with learning about her father’s experience.

My father grew up living in a travel trailer on a tiny ranch outside of a small town in Texas. His family owned a few cattle but they always struggled terribly financially. As a young man, dad’s dream was to manage a ranch for a wealthy rancher. In his early 20s, he landed a job doing just that and figured he was set for life. A few years into the job, he injured his back badly and was no longer able to do the heavy manual labor that life on the ranch required. Dad scraped together the few dollars he had and enrolled in a local community college. Fast forward many years of living hand to mouth and my father graduated from Purdue University with a PhD. He was hired as a professor at the University of Alabama. He spent his career there, becoming a pioneering researcher in the emerging field of teratology...he was interested in how chemicals in the environment hurt babies in the womb and what we could do to protect babies from harm.

An only child, Meyers now believes her father was grooming her to be a scientist. “We lived in a semi-rural area in Alabama and our property backed up to a lake. Dad brought home a microscope from work and we would collect lake water and look at it on slides under the microscope together, describing the tiny organisms we saw.”

Her father also told her about the FDA’s Dr. Francis Oldham Kelsey, who took a bold regulatory stance against inadequate testing and corporate pressure when she refused to approve release of thalidomide in the U.S. during the 1960s. The drug, largely used for morning sickness, was later proven to have caused thousands of deaths and birth deformities in Europe. Less than 20 cases, the result of a manufacturer's’ “investigational” trial, were found in the U.S.

"Learning about Dr. Kelsey showed me a woman could make a career in science," Meyers says.

Despite her love for science, Meyers would go on to earn a bachelor’s degree in history from New York University and a master’s in the discipline from UCLA -- “I loved writing about what I learned about the past” -- before going on to medical school at Louisiana State University. “I missed science,” she explained, stressing that her businessman husband, Leo, fully supported her career change from history teacher to physician, even if it meant more student debt. She even returned to UCLA for her residency in pediatrics.

“I chose pediatrics...because kids are awesome,” said the mother of two young boys, Mateo, 7, and Adrian, 3. “I knew that I would always push myself as hard as possible as long as I was responsible for the health of an innocent child.”

Meyers joined the UNLV School of Medicine as an assistant professor of pediatrics in 2017, the year the school opened.

“I love what I do,” she said. “I am able to focus on teaching and learning, which are my original true loves. I teach a course called Problem Based Learning. Together with a small group, we apply basic sciences to patient cases. It’s so much fun to watch students come to those ‘ah-ha’ moments as they realize how what they’re learning in class applies to actual patient care.”

"The impact of pediatrics affects the entire lifespan of each child. As pediatricians, what we do now affects children who may be alive 100 years from now. That thought stops me in my tracks. When I’m rounding in the newborn nursery, I often imagine the doctors and nurses who took care of me...when I was a newborn and my heart fills with gratitude.”

Dr. Rebecca Meyers

Meyers also enjoys teaching residents at the bedside.

“I’m constantly awed by the fact that if I do a good job teaching my pediatric residents, I give them the opportunity to go on to be the best pediatricians they can be for countless patients. The impact of pediatrics affects the entire lifespan of each child. As pediatricians, what we do now affects children who may be alive 100 years from now. That thought stops me in my tracks. It’s an incredibly humbling realization and that’s why we have to be excellent. When I’m rounding in the newborn nursery, I often imagine the doctors and nurses who took care of me so many years ago when I was a newborn baby and my heart fills with gratitude.”

Meyers’ long term goal, and the focus of her research, is to find the best ways to promote healthy lifestyles for children.

“So much about our modern world is unhealthy for kids,” she said. “Screens are everywhere and the content available on our phones, TVs and tablets is incredibly entertaining. This means that many kids are content to watch their devices and are more sedentary than ever before. There are tempting, high calorie, low nutrient treats available at every turn…Obesity in childhood has so many consequences including diabetes, non alcoholic fatty liver disease, high blood pressure, poor exercise tolerance, obstructive sleep apnea, and more...Pediatric obesity is a delicate subject. You don’t want to body shame kids. You must be real sensitive, but you must deal with the subject.”

Recently, Myers was asked by the media to speak about the Nevada Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics’ view on students returning to school during the COVID-19 pandemic. Her concern about children missing out on their educations -- something she repeatedly stresses can transform their lives -- was readily evident.

“The risks of remote schooling are clear,” she said. “More students are performing poorly or failing. Families are stressed and rates of horrific outcomes such as child abuse and youth suicide have increased...Of course, the risk of the pandemic is very serious as well. Parents are scared of COVID-19 for themselves and their children and they are scared for loved ones who are at high risk. The American Academy of Pediatrics believes that schools can be reopened safely. I agree with their position. Safe school reopening is possible but will require increased funding...Students, teachers and staff should follow the CDC’s recommendations (including social distancing, masking and improved ventilation). And everyone who is eligible should receive their COVID-19 vaccine. We should take these measures now and reopen schools for the sake of...our students and their families...and their futures.”