Call Me Del

Dr. Adel A. Yunis

Description

The Author was born in the little town of Rahbeh in North Lebanon. He was the youngest of four boys. The family lived in a one room house, with no amenities, no kitchen or bathroom. They lived off the land, a limited bit of land. He and his brothers worked hard to keep the farm up and running. Life in Rahbeh in those days was primitive and simple, reminiscent of biblical times.

The author's father who had been in the USA for some years as a youngster came to appreciate the importance of higher education having himself been only to elementary school. Thus the father's life mission was to secure the best possible educational opportunities for his children; this was not an easy task, not in Lebanon in the 1930s and 1940s. To accomplish that he made the remarkable decision to travel to the west coast of Africa where he spent 11 years away from his family. He would send money home to the mother who's job among her many responsibilities, was to make certain the children were applying themselves at school.

The author completed elementary education at the age of 11, but because of insufficient funds was delayed one year before going to high school. He graduated from high school at age 16 and enrolled as a freshmen in college at the American University of Beirut (AUB). His father's dream was to see his son as a doctor. He thus was determined that his son study medicine. " I have never doubted that he made the right decision for me" the author states.

He graduated from the AUB school of medicine in June 54. During internship he applied and was accepted to work for an oil company. However it was the sincere praise of a single man that not only changed his plan but essentially charted his entire career path. He came to the United States in 1956 to study hematology at Washington University in St. Louis. It was here that Dr. Yunis fell in love with medical research and launched his career as a physician-scientist. Once down that path he discovered an inner drive to succeed and an incomparable passion for his work and the research mission.

This book is Dr. Yunis's way of revisiting the highlights of his career and his research accomplishments. It is also the story of how the author moved from a great institution to a young medical school promising a wealth of challenges and the potential for academic excellence.

Instead he became closely involved in a struggle between two agendas, an agenda for academic excellence against, what in his opinion, was an agenda for a health care supermarket. Because of poor misguided leadership at the top, a center for academic excellence was not realized. Nevertheless, Dr. Yunis could never be swayed from his pursuit of excellence always recognizing that "our mission as physician-scientists is to constantly generate new knowledge through research for the betterment of the quality of human life and to reproduce ourselves always creating new generations of physician-scientists to carry the torch. It is this noble mission and its execution that distinguishes great medical schools from the average ones."

Academic excellence will not thrive at medical centers designed as health care supermarkets. Because such centers place more value on clinical practice and the generation of income they often become graveyards for fledgling academicians. Resources alone, no matter how abundant, will not make a medical school great. It is the leadership at the top; an educated leadership totally committed to academic excellence as reflected by selecting the brightest students and recruiting and retaining faculty academicians of the highest quality.

In this book, the author also touches on a number of topics along with his views. These include : life in the United States, our moral values and how they have changed over the past fifty years; our failed foreign policy and the anti-American sentiment in the Middle East; our war on terrorism; the war in Iraq and the quagmire we have put ourselves into; U.S. foreign aid; the unhealthy status of our health care system; illegal immigration and the insecurity at our borders and other topics.

Sujets

• Medical
• Instituto Médico Howard Hughes
• Yunus (name)
• Biography
• American University of Beirut
• Howard Hughes Medical Institute
• Autobiography
• Lebanon
• Del
• Université américaine de Beyrouth

Informations

• Publié par: Trafford Publishing
• Date de parution: 19 septembre 2008
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781412236003
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

CALL ME DEL: DOGGED IN THE PURSUIT OF EXCELLENCE
AN AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY
DR. ADEL A. YUNIS

 
© Copyright 2007 D r. Adel A. Yunis. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the written prior permission of the author.
 
ISBN: 978-1-4120-5808-7 (sc) ISBN: 978-1-4122-3600-3 (e)
Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.
Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only. Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.
Trafford rev. 11/10/2022
www.trafford.com North America & international toll-free: 844-688-6899 (USA & Canada) fax: [phone]
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PREFACE
CHAPTER 1 The Village of My Youth
CHAPTER 2 A Land of Poets and Mathematicians
CHAPTER 3 American University of Beirut
CHAPTER 4 Internship
CHAPTER 5 What Better Place Than America
CHAPTER 6 Welcome to the Midwest
CHAPTER 7 The Ward Fellowship
CHAPTER 8 Go West, Young Man
CHAPTER 9 Seattle
CHAPTER 10 Back to the Beginning
CHAPTER 11 The Old Country
CHAPTER 12 Miami – The Early Days
CHAPTER 13 The Productive Years
CHAPTER 14 Recruitment: Stocking the Shelves of Knowledge
CHAPTER 15 Sabbatical
CHAPTER 16 The Beginning of the End
CHAPTER 17 The Worm Turned Again
CHAPTER 18 Unshakable
CHAPTER 19 It’s All About the People
CHAPTER 20 Fighting the Good Fight
CHAPTER 21 Along Came Andrew
CHAPTER 22 The Makings of a Great Medical School
CHAPTER 23 The Three Rs
CHAPTER 24 Reflections
CHAPTER 25 A Husband, A Parent, AFriend, A Man
CHAPTER 26 Sounding Off
Dedication
This book is dedicated to the memory of:
1. My parents who made all the sacrifices for the education of their children
2. Dr. Virgil Scott who by his sincere praise essentially chartered my career path.
3. Dr. William J. Harrington for his inspiration and support in the pursuit of academic excellence.
And to all my former associates, fellows, and students who made my academic career a real joy.
Acknowledgments
Cover photos were obtained as follows:
 
American University of Beirut (AUB) campus was provided by the office of the AUB Alumni Association of N.A. New York, N.Y.
Washington University Medical Center, (WUMC) campus was provided by the office of development of WU.
The University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Medical Center was provided by the biomedical communications division of the UM/JMMC.
PREFACE
THIS BOOK REPRESENTS a review of a life well worth living. My life.
No life is free of failures or regret, nor of success or accomplishment, and this book explores both sides of that very revealing picture: my life as a doctor, a researcher, an explorer of the new and a respectful advocate of the old; my years as a father, a friend, a believer in change and proponent of progress. As with the good years, the bad years have taught me to live more deeply, to explore horizons I may have missed otherwise, to appreciate more fully the gifts life has presented me.
Like many emigrants to this great country, I have spent most of my life here. I came here at the age of 26. The year was 1956. It was not a planned move, however. Coming to America had not been a life-long dream of mine. Even less expected was my decision to make this my permanent home. It is often said that America is the greatest country on the face of the earth. I honestly believe that to be true.
Given hard work and perseverance, a person can obtain their maximum potential here. No, that is not to discount the many limitations we encounter; there are always circumstances beyond one’s control. Three hundred years before Jesus was born, the Confucian scholar Mencius said, “inequality is the nature of things.” This rather profound statement applies in today’s world, and it applies in America. But in America, fighting against those inequalities is our right, it is our responsibility.
One faces circumstances, and one must put their best face forward. Luck may be apart of it, but luck in my view, is that which is left over after you have given all you have to give. A person may not belong. They may not fit a certain agenda. Certainly, no one is free from prejudice or the ravages of politics. And politics, even academic politics, can affect the practice of medicine. I have never been a politician. I consider myself too forthright to be a politician.
Adel, phonetically Adil, is an Arabic name that translates to “fair” or “just”, as a judge must be. My father, Assad Yunis, a man of great character, encouraged me to live up to my name, something I have always strived to do.
He once told me, “Son, dress appropriately for every occasion.” Typical of my father, this was a metaphorical statement that went far beyond outward appearance, and it was a lesson I took seriously. I have always tried to “dress” appropriately, pursuant to honesty. To do otherwise would be hypocritical, and I have never been very effective in the use of hypocrisy. Often in my career I have found myself thrust into the role of the politician, but honesty has gotten in the way. So, sometimes you have to follow. Derrieres must be kissed. Unfortunately, I have never been a brown-nose. Yes, this is a shortcoming that has held me back on certain occasions, but I have never regretted those occasions.
My story illustrates the tremendous positive influence others can have on a career, time notwithstanding. A word of encouragement, a sincere compliment, a meaningful nudge, an inspirational comment; truly, it was the sincere praise of a single man that essentially charted my career path. Once I began down the path, I discovered an inner drive to succeed, that inner drive fostered a willingness to work hard and to persevere. Out of that blossomed an incomparable passion for my work. How extremely fortunate can one man be? I have always loved what I do, a boast, I suspect, few people can make.
This autobiography is my way of revisiting the highlights of a career, with some well-placed commentary here and there. I cannot swear by the absolute accuracy of every date and every time mentioned, so hopefully the reader will grant me latitude in that regard. Furthermore, any opinions expressed — favorable or unfavorable — are not intended to deprecate or insult any individual or any institution. They are just opinions, consciously made and without haste.
This is the story of a scientist who moved from one of the world’s great academic institutions to a new institution that promised a wealth of challenges and the potential was never fully realized, nor was the dream that dramatic career move spawned. Though disappointing and unsettling, that clash of agendas does not make this a sad story. I am not a cynical or unhappy man. On the contrary, my experiences have validated the truths I learned as a young doctor in Lebanon: never be swayed from your personal pursuit of excellence; recognize that one of the most important responsibilities given you is to inspire young people; make the world of research so relevant to young scientists that they cannot help but be attracted to it. One thing is certain: If my colleagues and I are not able to produce a new generation of scientists, then we have failed.
I look around at the vastly important contributions that the hard-working, dedicated, and able associates and friends I have helped train are making in the world of medicine, and I know they feel as I do: We exist for the betterment of human health. In what greater way could one spend a life?
CHAPTER 1
THE VILLAGE OF MY YOUTH
FOR ELEVEN YEARS and the better part of my youth, my father was absent from my life. He had gone to Africa, sacrificing the small comforts of his home and the company of his family to insure that my brothers and I received the best possible education four Lebanese boys could have. In doing so, he set in motion all our subsequent lives.
I was born in Rahbeh, a small village of several hundred people located in the district of Akkar, in northern Lebanon. Akkar is north of the great port city of Tripoli, gateway to the Mediterranean. The early Canaanites established Tripoli as a means of expanding trade beyond their borders and exploring new markets for the rich spices and exquisite perfumes they exported. There has never been a day since when Tripoli was not a transportation center of great importance.
I was the youngest of four boys: Victor, Aniece (Andy), Michael, and me. We lived in a one-room house built of concrete. It is said that ours was the first house in the village to make use of concrete. There were three adjoining rooms, each overflowing with people and seemingly endless activity. My family resided in the first of the three rooms. My uncles Elias and Toufic and their families occupied the other two. The families squabbled over just about everything.
Our concrete house was equipped with neither a kitchen nor a bathroom. We cooked outside in the open in a cooking pot fueled by stores of wood collected in the nearby hills.
Our mother, Menache, a woman of dignity and grace, gave us a bath once a week. She heated the water over the fire and poured it cup by cup over our heads while we scrubbed with soap.
Our toilet was in the bushes. We used plant leaves or stones for toilet paper. Parasite in