Robert Patterson '88 Co-Authors So You Want to be a Doctor?

January 7, 2009

January 7, 2009, Greencastle, Ind. — Robert D. Patterson, M.D., a resident in the University of Louisville's department of psychiatry and 1988 graduate of DePauw University, has authored So You Want to be a Doctor?: A Guide for the Student from High School through Retirement. Two of Dr. Patterson's mentors assisted with the project: retired surgeon George Rawls co-authored the book, and the foreword was written by neurosurgeon Benjamin Carson. Both are longtime advocates for improving health care for minorities.

"This is one of the reasons the book was written; 12 percent of the population of Indiana is African-American, but only 3 percent of that population are medical students," Dr. Patterson tells Indiana's Gary Post-Tribune. "With health disparities in the minority population, blacks are more reserved about going to the doctor and taking care of themselves. The trust level is not as high with their doctors. There needs to be a connection between the doctor and patient."

Patterson also notes, "As a recent graduate from medical school, I am well acquainted with the ups and downs of that critical phase of a student's life from first entertaining the thought of becoming a physician to the triumphant moment of walking across the stage a medical school graduate. As outlined in the book I was the first in my family to attend college, let alone dream about pursing a career as a physician. There was no role model to guide me through the tedious MCAT study process, the arduous admission process, or the all-important job of selecting the right medical school. But while this pre-matriculation stage was difficult, nothing compared to the challenges I faced during medical school."

He adds, "Throughout my medical school trials and triumphs outlined in the book, from being removed from my freshman class due to academic deficiencies to being acknowledged by the American Medical Association as 'one of twenty most energetic and gifted students' during my junior year, I found myself constantly wondering how I could help illuminate another student's successful path towards the pursuit of this noble profession. This book is a product of that desire, providing a comprehensive vision of the empowering journey of becoming a physician, while maintaining a realistic view of the sacrifices necessary to achieve this goal."

The newspaper article points out that "Patterson also wrote a 20-page report, 'Health Care Disparities Among Minority Patients in Indiana,' that is featured in the curriculum of the IU School of Medicine, from which he graduated in 2005. Patterson attended Northwestern University as a premed student in 1997, then switched to the business world. He earned a bachelor's degree in economics from DePauw University and an M.B.A. in marketing from Indiana University's Kelley School of Business."

Read more at the Post-Tribune online or the author's Web site.

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