As a medical student, do you ever wonder what it’s like to specialize in pediatric critical care? Meet Joanna Kuppy, MD, a critical care pediatrician and assistant professor of pediatrics at Rush University Medical Center, and a featured physician in the AMA “Shadow Me” Specialty Series, which offers advice directly from physicians about life in their specialties. Check out her insights to help determine whether a career in pediatric critical care medicine might be a good fit for you. A typical day and week in my practice: It depends whether I am on service or not. I don’t really have a typical day, which is something I like about this job. It gives me a more flexibility in my life. When I am on clinical service, my days are generally 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., and a minimum of 75 hours for the week. I pre-round with the overnight attending, then run team rounds on the patients, then juggle other issues that include procedures, evaluate any changes in clinical course, talking to families and other sub-specialists, and, (my favorite) teaching.

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