CLINICAL NEWS
Serving the Next Generation of Hematologists:
Interview with Reed E. Drews, MD
Reed E. Drews, MD, recipient of the 2018 Mentor Award in education, explains how he found his home at Beth
Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston and the special pride he feels in helping trainees find their calling.
Reed Drews, MD
Associate Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School
Director of the Hematology/Oncology Training Program and
Assistant Director of Education, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Boston, MA
When you were younger, what did you
want to be when you grew up?
My father was a chemical engineer at
the Dupont plant near where I grew
up in Louisville, Kentucky, so I always
was inclined toward science. My initial
career plan was to follow in his footsteps:
I started off as a chemistry major at
Yale University and, after I graduated, I
headed to Harvard University to get my
PhD in chemistry.
After a year in the program, though,
I realized I was attracted to the biologic,
bio-organic aspects of what I was doing
as a chemistry major. For me, that meant
exploring that interest and applying to
medical schools.
I applied to several places outside of
Massachusetts and I was debating between
pursuing a PhD or an MD with a research
interest. I was thrilled to be accepted to
the Harvard-MIT Health Sciences and
Technology program, which required
medical students to complete a research
thesis. This was a perfect fit for me – and
I was happy to stay in Boston. So, a few
years later, I received my MD, and I’ve
been happy ever since.
Who or what inspired you to specialize
in hematology?
It happened when I was a second-year
medical student. In one of our semester-
long courses, we drew our own blood to
look at under the microscope. That was
my first exposure to hematology, and it
instantly attracted me.
That attraction only grew stronger
through my four years of medical school.
I was fortunate to do a hematology elec-
tive at Brigham and Women’s Hospital
with H. Frank Bunn, MD, who was a
luminary in the field of hematology.
Hematology sparked my interest from
the beginning, but I wasn’t certain about
medical oncology. That changed during
the first year of my internship at Beth Israel
Deaconess Medical Center, where hematol-
ogy and medical oncology were combined
in one program. I learned to love medical
oncology, and completed my training there.
Who were the mentors that helped you
make that decision?
I am fortunate to have been taught by
ASHClinicalNews.org
and to have worked with several world-
renowned hematologists early in my
career. Obviously, there was Dr. Bunn at
Brigham and Women’s.
As a resident, I also clearly remem-
ber sitting across the microscope from
William Moloney, MD, and being drawn
to the morphology of blood cells as they
“grow up” in the marrow.
As a fourth-year medical student, I
met Steven Weinberger, MD, who was a
pulmonologist and director of the Core
Medicine II sub-internship/clerkship I
was in. He went on to serve in several
positions at Beth Israel, and we have
become close friends.
Stephen Robinson, MD, who was the
chief of hematology here, also had a great
influence on my career.
What qualities do you think make
someone a good mentor?
In 1997, I was asked to take over for Dr.
Robinson as the director of the hematology/
oncology fellowship program after he
became ill. That same year, Mark Pepper-
corn, MD, head of the Core Medicine I
clerkship for third-year Harvard medical
students, was stepping down from that
role after 20 years. So, starting in 1997, I
spent about 11 years as the course direc-
tor for the Core Medicine I clerkship and
still hold the role of fellowship program
director.
I think a successful mentor is
someone who inspires enthusiasm for
medicine. As director of a clerkship and a
fellowship program – and as a hematolo-
gist who loves anemias and coagulation
pathways and everything else blood-
related – I believe my responsibility is to
pass along my passion for hematology to
trainees at all levels – medical students,
residents, and fellows.
Mentors exist to bring out the best
in trainees and mentees. As a fellow-
ship program director, my mission has
been to meet and get to know my fellows
individually and then make sure that
they have a fertile environment in which
to grow. All of them are talented, smart
individuals with many pathways open to
them. I’m there to ensure that they are
able to accomplish as much as they can
within our programs.
We can’t force anyone down a particu-
lar career pathway – even though we
might have our own ideas about where
they might thrive. We can only help them
make the decision that’s in their hearts
and minds. Once a fellow has decided
which pathway is right for him or her –
laboratory research, clinical investigation,
community practice, or translational
science – then it behooves our program
to give them as much opportunity as pos-
sible to progress along that pathway.
What was the best career advice you’ve
received?
In the second year of my three-year
residency, I was asked to be the chief
resident, which was a job typically given
to someone between the first and second
year of fellowship. So, at the same time
as I was considering that new role, I
was deciding where I wanted to do my
training. I knew I wanted to continue
in Boston because my life with my wife,
who was a year behind me in training,
was entrenched here. That meant I had
to wrestle with the question, “Should I
continue at Beth Israel or go across the
street to Brigham and Women’s? Should I
go to Dana-Farber Cancer Institute or go
across town to Tufts Medical Center?”
I was at this crossroads and I asked
Eugene Braunwald, MD, who was chief
of medicine at Beth Israel when I was a
house officer, for his advice. He told me
that if I liked it at Beth Israel, I should
stay. What was interesting about that was
Dr. Braunwald also was the chief of medi-
cine at Brigham and Women’s; he held
both roles and he was basically advising
me to stay where I was happy. So, Beth
Israel it was. It helped that Beth Israel
had both hematology and oncology fel-
lowships – and I was biased toward doing
both hematology and medical oncology
training to begin with.
What career accomplishment are you
most proud of?
Quite frankly, my greatest accomplish-
ment is what I am being recognized for
with this award: influencing more than
600 medical students during my 11 years
as the course director for Core Medicine I
clerkship and playing a role in the career
development of more than 120 fellows
over my 20-plus years as fellowship pro-
gram director. I take tremendous pride
in that, but I also am humbled by the
recognition. I would say that my receipt
of this award is a testimony to my fellows
who put together the nomination.
In a typical day, what is your rose and
what is your thorn?
By far, the part I look forward to the
most is being in clinic with patients and
trainees. As part of the Core Medicine
Clerkship here, I’m often assigned a
medical student to join me in clinic for
four consecutive weeks. I take that role
very seriously; I want to learn why that
medical student is doing what he or she is
doing and what I can do to inspire him or
her – particularly if that person is pursu-
ing hematology.
I see patients on my own, too, and
love the challenge of thinking through
a difficult case. In medical oncology, a
biopsy can tell you what type of can-
cer you’re dealing with; in hematology,
there isn’t always a clear answer. I like
to inspire trainees to practice thinking
through problems, as well.
On the other hand, the administrative
aspects of my roles aren’t too exciting.
Making sure all the “i’s” are dotted and
the “t’s” are crossed is all part of the job,
though.
What do you in your off hours – if you
have any?
Gardening keeps me grounded (pardon
the pun), which is something else that I
probably inherited from my father.
I enjoy playing cello. At least two or
three times a month, I get together with
friends to play; we make a night out of it,
playing string quartets together and then
retiring to the dining room to share wine,
food, and stories. Dr. Weinberger and I
also share a musical connection. He plays
piano, so, early in our friendship, we
started getting together to play sonatas
and piano trios.
I’m still an amateur cellist, but I’m
happy to say that I’m good enough that I
can play with professionals. I love watch-
ing the professionals at work, though, so
I’m a regular attendee at the Metropolitan
Opera in New York and at the Boston
Symphony Orchestra and the Celebrity
Series. Music is a passion of mine. I sup-
pose, if I had not gone into science or
medicine, I would have pursued a career
in music. But, obviously my heart and
mind were driving me in a more scien-
tific direction.
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