Amy K. Holbrook, MD, FACP
Associate Program Director, Abbott Northwestern Internal Medicine Residency
1. What is your current professional position?
Associate Program Director, Abbott Northwestern Internal Medicine Residency.
2. Why did you choose internal medicine?
I love the complexity and variety of adult medicine and the opportunity to work in both the inpatient and outpatient settings. There are just so many ways to customize your career depending on your interests.
3. What trends are you seeing in your day-to-day practice (with patients, the health care system, or otherwise)?
I see so many trends: the interest that patients have in telemedicine and options to communicate with physicians electronically, the role of technology in patient monitoring (wearable heart rate monitors, continuous glucose monitoring), and the need for physicians to continue to advocate for putting patients first as health care continues to change and evolve.
4. What do you want to accomplish professionally within the next five years?
I want to grow in my role in medical education leadership and continue to train well-rounded, compassionate, and forward-thinking future physicians.
5. Can you share a brief (and anonymous) patient encounter or professional situation that made you proud to be an Internal Medicine physician?
A well-known, beloved, and long-standing patient in our resident clinic who is frequently hospitalized was in the hospital on her birthday. Her resident team coordinated a surprise party complete with cupcakes, balloons, and a personalized coffee mug. All of the residents on service (including those not caring for her this admission)—plus the nurses, techs, and I—surprised her with a robust rendition of the “Happy Birthday” song.