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About Me

Other Languages I speak: Mandarin

I was born in Chicago of immigrant parents. Then, we moved back to Taiwan for 12 years before returning to the United States when I was 14. This experience allows me to be bilingual now.

I went to UC Berkeley for my undergraduate degree in Chemistry. I met my husband there and I got married within one week of college graduation. Then we moved to Baltimore for more education.

I first obtained a PhD in 1995 from the Department of Pharmacology at Johns Hopkins University. Then I went to SUNY Stony Brook Medical School and obtained my MD degree in 1999. After 3 years of residency in internal medicine at Duke University and Stanford University, I was ready to practice as a Hospitalist. I came to Kaiser Permanente in 2002 after finishing my residency.

Being a Hospitalist is a relatively new specialty of physicians who take care of hospitalized, acutely ill patients. Hospitalists function as primary care physicians for the acutely ill patients in the hospital. I coordinate the care plan with a team of specialists, nurses, physical therapists, nutritionists, and discharge planners. Being hospitalized and in declining health is frightening to most people. I feel that it is my job to help patients and families understand the diagnosis and prognosis of the illness to the best of my abilities. I enjoy the challenge of helping an ill patient improve and return to his/her previous level of health. Upon discharge, I will convey the information from the hospital to primary care physicians for the continuation of the patient's care.

I didn't dream of becoming a doctor when I was a child. In fact, I went to Medical School with the intention of returning to medical research. However, life pointed me in a different direction. I found that helping patients and families to understand their illness to be very rewarding. Being a Hospitalist allows me to make a large impact on the care of the patient.

Due to the nature of hospital medicine, I am frequently speaking with patients and their families after a life-altering event such as a stroke or diagnosis of cancer. I feel that it is important to provide patients and families accurate medical information and to assist in making medical decisions which are consistent with the patient's goals.

My Credentials

Medical school	State University of New York At Stony Brook, Stony Brook, NY
Residency	Stanford University Hospital, Stanford, CA
Residency	Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC
Board certification	Internal Medicine, American Board of Internal Medicine

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