The Department of Medicine Division of Hospital Medicine is the largest academic hospital medicine program in the nation. With more than 210 physicians providing hospital medicine services at eleven hospitals in the greater metropolitan Atlanta area, Emory hospitalists account for more than 65,000 admissions a year, and total patient encounters exceed 400,000 annually.
Read our interview with division director Dan Hunt, MD to learn about his path to a career in medicine, his experience as a faculty member at Emory, and more!
Why did you decide to pursue a career in medicine?
My youngest brother died of complications of leukemia when he was eight (and I was twelve) years old and at that point, I decided I wanted to be a doctor. I dreamed of being a physician-scientist specializing in oncology but during medical school, I fell in love with clinical medicine and the challenge of general internal medicine. I’m the first physician in our extended family, although shortly after I graduated from medical school, one of my cousins finished her MD degree and two years later, my little brother finished his MD.
What led you to join the Department of Medicine?
I’ve made several major transitions in my career. I came here from Massachusetts General Hospital, where I developed and led the Inpatient Clinician Educator Service for ten years, and for several years led the Hospital Medicine Unit that combined the clinician-educators with the direct care hospitalists under a unified leadership structure. Emory reached out at exactly the right time for a next career move. The opportunity to serve as a leader of the largest academic hospital medicine division in the country led me to join the Department of Medicine in 2015.
Can you share more about your experience and specialty area(s)?
I’m a general internist. I love complex medical problems, diagnostic dilemmas, and management challenges. When I finished residency training at Baylor, I entered private practice with Kelsey-Seybold Clinic, a large multi-specialty, multi-site practice where I really learned medicine from great senior partners. After four years as an employee physician, I moved to Medical Clinic of Houston, a large private practice group based in the Texas Medical Center. Seven years later, after accumulating enough experience to feel confident I could teach medicine on a high level, I returned to academic medicine at Baylor College of Medicine as a clinician educator practicing at Ben Taub General Hospital. I became heavily involved in bedside teaching, teaching in the classroom, innovating in teaching methods, and leading multiple education initiatives ranging from first year medical school courses to major CME courses. As I mentioned earlier, I had the privilege of practicing, teaching, and serving in leadership roles at the MGH beginning in 2005. My clinical interests have included anticoagulation, venous thromboembolism, perioperative consultation, and clinical problem solving.
What is the highlight of your career at Emory thus far?
The highlight of my career at Emory has been serving our large, expanding, and exciting division, and helping to foster a diverse and engaged leadership team and helping us develop a culture of clinical scholarship. I’m most proud of the accomplishments of our junior faculty who are taking great care of patients, sharing knowledge with others through teaching, presentations, and published scholarship, and building their regional and national reputations.
What do you like most about living in Atlanta?
Pre-COVID 19 – the restaurant scene, Blind Willie’s Blues Club, exploring the city, and the ability to fly non-stop to just about anywhere from ATL. And I like that it doesn’t snow 110 inches here during the winter (Boston, 2015) and I don’t have to drive the Mass Pike.
What do you enjoy doing in your free time?
Cycling, other exercise, reading (I’m a semi-voracious reader and generally have 3-4 books going at one time), and spending time with my wife and our three daughters (two of whom live in Texas).
If you didn’t pursue a career in medicine, what other profession would you have chosen?
Mathematics professor. Only because I wasn’t tall enough or fast enough to make a career out of basketball.
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