Mary Carr

Positively Deviant Emergency Medicine

Mary Carr just finished her career in clinical Emergency Medicine. Most of her practice was at Regions Hospital, but she didn’t start there. She started her training as an EM resident in Michigan and completed it at Regions Hospital. Over that time she served her patients and the system in many ways. She was the key physician liaison with the trauma program for many years. She’s been a core member of the residency since the beginning. She then developed a new and highly regarded Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner program at Regions that now has multiple practice locations in the east metro area of the Twin Cities. Not satisfied there, Mary applied for and was awarded a grant through the Bush Foundation. She developed her own fellowship in Clinical Forensic Medicine and turned that into a forensic medicine consulting service for police and prosecutors in criminal law. In this role she could help the criminal system interpret findings on people who were still living, as compared to those who’ve died – often represented by medical examiners.

This interview was done in May of 2018 just prior to Mary’s retirement. I feel very fortunate to have caught Mary at the close out of her amazing and enduring career in emergency medicine. She has seen it all and she shares just a bit of her wisdom in this episode. I had way too much fun talking with her and we went beyond 90 minutes – so I expect you’ll be breaking this one up over multiple listening sessions.

Outline

• Mary’s path to emergency medicine was rooted in her childhood
• How many other women were in Mary’s EM residency? Can you guess?
• From Henry Ford to Med College of Wisconsin to Ramsey
• Early exposures to teaching in Wisconsin then in the pre-EM residency Ramsey
• Keys for success. #1 is arrive a bit early.
• Mary’s per-patient workflow
• Mary wears a white coat for the pockets… not for nurse vs doctor recognition…
• Getting the whole exam done right away
• Slack time during a shift – what is the right amount?
• Long term career resilience tips
• The importance of staying up on current medical knowledge
• Mary’s niche in sexual assault medicine and forensic medicine
• Details on the clinical forensic medicine consulting service for the criminal law system
• We wax on about the possibilities allowed by emergency medicine to have a rich and multifaceted life
• Gender equity in medicine – extensive discussion of her experience with tips for men and women
• Showing up
• Listen to me ramble though the ‘awe’ of Mary as I ask ‘Why are you such a bad ass in emergency medicine?’ and her much more deft response.
• Room 10 and Mary’s Trauma Liaison role
• Finding escape in your life and Mary’s daily year-around running in Minnesota
• The next horizon for Mary
• Wrap up – would you recommend medicine to a career in medicine?

Show Links

• Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine