Terri Laguna, MD, MSCS, ATSF
Division Head, Pulmonary and Sleep Medicine
Seattle Children’s Hospital
Professor of Pediatrics
University of Washington School of Medicine
Three statements about you – two true, one false.
- My childhood dream was to be an NFL quarterback.
- I’ve completed the mini-New York Times Daily crossword in under 20 seconds.
- I love raisins and add them as a garnish to every dish possible.
Give us your ‘elevator pitch’ biography.
I decided to be a pediatric pulmonologist at age eight. Yup – you read that correctly! I had severe asthma as a child and woke up in the ICU following a one-week intubation for status asthmaticus knowing my future career path. My goal was to help kids manage their asthma to allow them to excel at sports, which have been a passion of mine for as long as I can remember. I played Division I softball at the University of New Mexico, where I learned the lifelong skills of teamwork and time-management, as well as the importance of work ethic, all of which have made me into a better leader. My medical training was at UCSF, followed by pediatric residency at the University of Washington and pediatric pulmonology fellowship at the University of Colorado. Then I spent 15 years as faculty at the University of Minnesota and Northwestern University prior to returning to the University of Washington to be Division Head of Pulmonary and Sleep Medicine at Seattle Children’s Hospital. I absolutely love my job, and appreciate the mix of clinical care, research, teaching, and advocacy that working in academics provides.
I believe that “if you see it, you can be it.” As a Latinx woman and member of the LGBTQIA+ community in a leadership role in academic medicine, I have an opportunity to mentor and sponsor those coming after me. I decided to become a Division Head and to take additional leadership roles in order to provide representation and visibility to minoritized communities. My involvement in ATS has been a highlight of my career, as I have gotten to partner with dedicated individuals to inspire positive change. I strive to bring my authentic self to work every day and use my voice and leadership platforms to advance diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives for patients, trainees, and colleagues.
What would you tell yourself as an Early Career Professional?
To never compromise who you are for the sake of others. Medicine is hard enough without the pressures of needing to be somebody you are not. You will find your tribe who will appreciate you for who you are and what you bring. Feeling valued by your institution and your colleagues is such an important part of mitigating burnout.
If you weren’t in medicine, and were in a different industry altogether, what would you be?
I would be a drummer in an ‘80’s hair metal band (and also sing background vocals). Given I don’t know how to drum, and I don’t know how to sing, this will always be a fantasy living in my mind.
What is your favorite way to spend a day off?
I am an early riser, so I would still be up early to head to Orange Theory Fitness. Then coffee on the back deck with my wife and dog, followed by washing the car (this is very therapeutic for me) and probably some ID TV (love me some true crime).
What areas of medicine are you most excited to see develop?
The care of people living with cystic fibrosis (CF) has been transformed during my career with the discovery of new therapeutic CFTR modulators. However, this has also widened the inequities between non-Hispanic white people with CF and those with a different race and/or ethnicity. I am hopeful that gene therapy or gene editing approaches will be developed to provide a cure for ALL people living with CF.
What is one advancement in your field you’d like to see in your career?
The number of underrepresented minorities in medicine (URiM) is not where it needs to be. We owe it to the patients and families we take of in our communities to do better. As a woman, Latinx, full Professor, I am one of < 2 % of all medical school faculty nationwide. I would like to see the allocation of resources from within medical schools to improve our ability to generate interest in medical careers from a much earlier age.
Which statement (in question #2) was false?
Raisins ruin everything.
Terri Laguna, MD, MSCS, ATSF is an ATS board member and chair of the Assembly on Pediatrics.