INTERVIEW | “How did I choose my Gastroenterologist Specialty” with Dr. Annet Puero

Doctor Annet chose his gastroenterologist specialty 35 years ago. He was raised in Connecticut and now he lives in Argentina with his wife and 3 kids. He has dedicated most of his life to helping people diagnosing stomachal problems. Today he is sharing very valuable advice with us, read on to learn the greatest outcome to be a Gastroenterologist.

Why did you choose a medical career?

I would not know for sure, but I am of the generation that we saw on television the series of Dr. Gannon. Something similar to what Grey’s Anatomy could be today. I think it was something of mimicry because in my family nobody has chosen Medicine before.

Then you chose to be a Gastroenterologist …

Yes, but my entry in Gastroenterology was collateral because I really liked Cardiology and Intensive Care. I started training in Cardiology at a small hospital in Connecticut. When doing rotations I was exposed to gastroenterologist tasks and I loved it. So I applied again, I chose a Gastroenterologist Specialty. From there, I dedicated myself, above all, to two facets, Hepatology, and endoscopy.

How were your beginnings, what do you remember?

When I started, in Gastroenterology we talked about what we now call advanced endoscopy. What we know today as minimally invasive treatments began to be done, in addition, diagnostic endoscopy was consolidating. I was lucky to learn with leading professionals.

I also remember that it was a time when there were great internists in hospitals and specialties began to form. And it was my turn to live that time of formation of the great medical specialties.

“Medicine has had a revolution in everything related to pain”

Has the Gastroenterologist Specialty changed a lot?

Everything has changed. Medicine has changed a lot, more teamwork is done, there is more super-specialization of people. In the 80s, pathologies such as inflammatory disease that did not look much. Today they are very demanding, colon cancer has changed, digestive cancers have increased a lot, hepatitis C, functional pathologies.

But, above all, I would emphasize the way of working. More team is made, people are much better trained and much more specialized.

It is also different for the patient, isn’t it?

Of course,  many of the explorations we did were endoscopic and were done without sedating. Tests such as the tube or the bulb. This is now totally different, Medicine has had a revolution in everything related to pain and its perception. 

In addition, the diagnostic approach is different and the treatments too. I think that today people go to the doctor convinced that the possibility of resolving what they have is very high because the diagnostic and therapeutic possibilities are very high.

Does this also increase the expectations of doctors?

As a doctor, you always have to have a higher expectation. Patients increasingly demand more from the doctor because medical technology is more advanced. It is more specialized and they consider that you have to solve everything … The truth is that Medicine solves many things and others, unfortunately, still can not solve it because it is not infinite. But the percentage is very high, it works at a high and decisive level, with great efficiency.

What part of your job attracts you the most?

I really like contact with the patient. In the part of the Hepatology, you have very direct contact. While in the endoscopy it is a very technical work and here with what I enjoy most is in the part of solving, interacting with the patient not only in the professional plane but, many times, personally.

Another facet that I really like about my job is teaching, that people learn or make it easier for people in training what you have learned. What society has given you, you should return it

You are an expert in digestive endoscopy, what is the level of development of this technique?

Endoscopy is the most spectacular change that has been experienced in terms of technology. In terms of instruments, in terms of the pathology approach and in solving problems. Whether polyps, digestive tumors, stenosis, treatment of the bile ducts. The change in this area is abysmal. Technologically, today we have instruments that allow us to walk only through the intestine, such as the endoscopic capsule, or access more inhospitable sites as we do with echoendoscopy.

What happened is so important that today, what we do is nothing like what we learned in the 1980s. It has taken a gigantic step. We have gone from looking to being able to treat. We can see a tumor and we have the possibility of removing it endoscopically without having to surgically intervene the patient.

Is there something else you want to share with us?

I chose my Gastroenterologist Specialty because I love helping people. Thanks for letting me share my experience as a gastroenterologist. I hope my story will inspire others to follow their dreams. This is my passion and being able to share with others makes me feel fulfilled.

Read: How to become a gastroenterologist in NYC

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