Dr. Roshni Kulkarni, professor emeritus with the Michigan State University College of Human Medicine Department of Pediatrics & Human Development was honored this month in the latest issue of American Journal of Hematology. For an article titled "Women leaders in hematology: Inspirations & insights", Dr. Kulkarni sat down with Children's Hospital of Michigan hematologist Madhvi Rajpurkar, MD to talk about her life's work, past, present, and future.
There were a number of events and circumstances that inspired me to consider a career in medicine. I was always interested in botany and zoology. I lost two of my best friends in school to cancer; my grandfather, a physician in the British army, to poison gas; and my aunt to post-partum hemorrhage. My interest in hematology was piqued during my residency, as these were the children who had prolonged hospitalizations and gave me an opportunity to get to know them and their families better. I specifically liked the interaction of patient care and laboratory evaluation. The blood intrigued me. Prior to that, I was rather unfocused regarding my career decision since I loved every specialty I rotated through.
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It was during my pediatric residency that I spent long hours with hospitalized children (and families) with cancer and blood disorders. I came to know them personally, and shared their joy and grief. For a number of years, I did both oncology and hematology and I liked them both. One of the things I liked about hematology was the lack of preset protocols. One had to think through the problem, order appropriate tests, and interpret them, applying age-dependent values.
Dr. Kulkarni is director of the Michigan State University Centers for Bleeding and Clotting Disorders. In her interview with Dr. Rajpurkar, she also spoke at length about the expanding role of women in the field of pediatric hematololgy, and the challenges women in positions of leadership must oftentimes face.
In this moment of recognition, we in the Department of Pediatrics & Human Development would like to congratulate Dr. Kulkarni. We remain ever proud of the good she has done for MSU, for the State of Michigan, and the world.