The Service Component of Interventional Radiology

“I don't know what your destiny will be, but one thing I know: the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who have sought and found how to serve.”

—Albert Schweitzer

Interventional radiologists as a whole intrigue me. I find my colleagues to be everything from tremendous teachers, to brilliant scientists, to extraordinary physicians, to savvy administrators. I have never had difficulty in enjoying a conversation with anyone in the field (although I must admit that they are unlikely to be saying the same thing about me). There is one component, however, of which I am most proud of our field: the willingness of our colleagues to give of themselves. I would like to share some examples with you.

Through my involvement in the Society of Interventional Radiology (the other SIR), I have been fortunate to get to know many remarkable people. Many of these dedicated individuals are staff members, who truly are the engine that makes the society and in many ways the field as exciting and forward thinking as it is. The current executive director of the SIR (Sue Holzer) and immediate past executive director (Pete Lauer) are two of the most dedicated and professional individuals with whom I've been associated, even given the fact that no two people could be more polar opposites of one another in terms of style. Other staff members with whom I've had the pleasure of working—Erica Holland, Jeff Nielsen, Beth Allgaier, Joy Gornal (who might as well be family), and many others—bring the same dedication to our field. The other side of the coin, however, is the motivated and giving physician volunteers who serve on the committees, Executive Council, and Operations Committee of the SIR. These individuals give their time, and often deplete their academic and vacation days, to serve the society and the field as a whole. And the most amazing thing is this: The society can't even begin to find roles for all of the member volunteers who want to become involved for no reason other than to serve their specialty. Finally, there are those who have served not just our specialty but the general radiology community as well. I know of at least two (Anne Roberts and Matt Mauro, with Alan Matsumoto and Jean LaBerge on deck) who have held high-level positions in the SIR and the American College of Radiology, and Gary Becker served as an editor of our journal long before moving on to his current position as executive director of the American Board of Radiology.

Service to the society and to the field of radiology as a whole is laudable and, in the instances just given (as well as many others), altruistic to the level of absurdity. I mean, really—don't these people sleep? Service, however, can take many forms. I am familiar with many interventional radiologists who make an effort to serve on committees at local hospitals, institutional review boards at their institutions, and groups that serve their community. I know of interventional radiologists who take their limited free time to assume leadership positions with their church groups and coach their kids' baseball teams (although, in reality, he shouldn't have—his results were pretty miserable—the coach, not the deacon). Brain Stainken, MD, a past president of the SIR, travels the world in an attempt to help developing countries adopt interventional techniques. My own partner, Dave Kumpe, MD, has been instrumental in the development of IR in Korea and China, and Matt Johnson, MD, gave a short presentation that I missed at the last SIR annual meeting about introducing IR to Kenya. They don't do this for the fun of it, not while trying to juggle their real job and family lives; they do it because they are passionate about what they do. The same can be said for everyone else who gives of their time in ways recognized and unrecognized, within the field and outside of it.

True service is performed without the expectation for a reward at the end. The interventional radiologists who serve are incredible to me, and I have been fortunate to have been exposed to so many quality individuals who have taught me so much over the past two dozen or so years. Although I may never be a teacher like Kaufman, a scientist like Geschwind, a clinician like Funaki, or run my section like Rilling, I still feel that I can make a difference through service to my field and my community. And at the end of the day, that might just have to be enough.