Lyle Wesley Baker, MD, FACP, FASN, AHSCP-CHS
Nephrologist and Internal Medicine Physician, Mayo Clinic
Medical Director, Mayo Clinic in Florida Comprehensive Hypertension Center
Assistant Professor of Medicine, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science
Jacksonville, FL
— MEDICAL SCHOOL —
University of Oklahoma College of Medicine in Oklahoma City, OK
— INTERNAL MEDICINE INTERNSHIP, RESIDENCY, AND CHIEF RESIDENCY —
University of Oklahoma School of Community Medicine in Tulsa, OK
— NEPHROLOGY FELLOWSHIP —
Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, FL
What is your current position?
I am a nephrologist and an internal medicine physician at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida, where I also serve as the Medical Director of the Mayo Clinic in Florida Comprehensive Hypertension Center and as an Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science.
Where did you attend medical school and post grad training?
I attended the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, for medical school. I completed my internal medicine internship, residency, and chief residency at the University of Oklahoma School of Community Medicine in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I then completed my nephrology fellowship at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida.
Why did you choose to become a physician?
Becoming a physician was a natural choice for me, influenced profoundly by my father—James Harold Baker, MD, MACP, FRCP—who is an internal medicine physician currently practicing in Muskogee, Oklahoma. From a young age, I observed firsthand the impact he had on the lives of his patients, the respect they held for him, and the gratitude they expressed for his care and expertise in the small town of Carthage, Texas. He exemplified dedication, compassion, and integrity in his practice, qualities that left a lasting impression on me as a child. Seeing him tirelessly dedicate himself to helping others within his community sparked within me a desire to follow in his footsteps. As I have grown older, this influence has motivated me to emulate his strengths not only as a physician but also as a husband and father.
What field of internal medicine did you select and why?
I became a nephrologist due to my interest in kidney diseases, hypertension, and electrolyte disorders. Being a nephrologist is a lot like being a detective. But instead of solving crimes by determining a motive and collecting supportive evidence, we solve equations and perform a detailed review of a patient's hospital course to determine the cause of their AKI (hint: it was the IV acyclovir that oncology gave). When the values of a patient's basic metabolic panel are all in red, who does the ICU call for help? That's right, nephrology. We know better than to label someone as having resistant hypertension when they are only on metoprolol and hydralazine. We take pride in our ability to correct that patient with chronic hyponatremia who was told by everyone else to just drink more fluids. We don't allow our family members to take NSAIDs and PPIs because we know that TIN is more than just a federal tax ID number. But in all seriousness, it was the complexity and vital importance of the kidneys in comparison to some of the other mundane organs like the heart and GI tract that drew me to the “bean team” during my internal medicine residency. And I have never looked back!
Please describe a typical day in your practice.
As a general nephrologist, a typical day for me entails seeing patients in either the clinical or hospital setting, diagnosing and managing kidney-related conditions, performing outpatient dialysis rounds, interpreting 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure reports, and providing education to our medical trainees. As a hypertension specialist, I see a lot of patients that have difficult to control hypertension. It is my job to determine whether these patients have pseudo-resistant hypertension, true drug-resistant hypertension, and/or a secondary cause of hypertension. I also manage patients in clinic for chronic kidney disease, kidney transplant, kidney stones, electrolyte abnormalities, and acid-base disorders. I long for the day that I no longer have to remind my hospitalist colleagues to “avoid nephrotoxic agents” and “obtain strict I&Os,” which would give me more time to screen patients for primary aldosteronism and polish my POCUS skills.
What are some of your special interests professionally?
My interests include the evaluation and treatment of resistant hypertension, primary aldosteronism, renin-independent aldosteronism, obesity-related hypertension, renovascular hypertension, and other secondary causes of hypertension. With the obesity epidemic and the growing prevalence of hypertension in young adults, I have a special interest in the role of aldosterone in obesity-related hypertension.
What are your interests and hobbies outside of medicine?
Outside of medicine, my greatest joys revolve around spending quality time with my family. We share a deep love for adventure and relaxation, often heading to our local beach to search for Megalodon shark teeth, boogie board in the waves, and simply unwind by the shore. If we aren't at the beach, you may find us at the “Happiest Place on Earth” hanging out with Mickey and his friends. At home, we enjoy playing card and board games, as long as the youngest member of our family always wins.
As a personal hobby, I enjoy photography, film, and media production, which I studied during my undergraduate years.
What advice would you like to share with medical students or what do you wish someone would have told you while you were in medical school?
Keep moving forward. As you progress through your medical training, you will make mistakes and experience failure. This is completely normal. We learn far more from our mistakes and failures than our successes. Don't look back. Keep moving forward.
“The glory of medicine is that it is constantly moving forward, that there is always more to learn.” —Dr. Will Mayo
If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
Improve my bad Dad jokes.
What is your most treasured possession?
The memories I have made over the course of my life with my wife, son, and parents.
Who is your hero of fiction?
Dr. John Carter III, Dr. Emmett Brown, Dr. Henry Walton Jones Jr., Dr. Stephen Vincent Strange, and Dr. Richard Kimble.
What is your motto?
“Keep moving forward.” —Walt Disney
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