James Glasser

Biography

I was introduced to pediatric surgery (during high school) through a television program, A Day in the Life of Dr. Judson Randolph, Surgeon-in-Chief at Children’s National Medical Center. His day began early! There were no other cars in the hospital parking lot when he arrived. The television crew shadowed him during rounds and followed him into the operating room, where he repaired a baby’s esophageal atresia and tracheoesophageal fistula.

During my general surgery residency (in NJ), I cared for a Hispanic girl who had a fecal fistula from a ruptured appendix. She could hardly bear to look at her ugly, smelly wound. Post-operatively, when we removed the surgical dressing, she tentatively looked down; and suddenly, her face lit up with amazement and gratitude and joy!

My pediatric surgery fellowship was split between Pittsburgh and Memphis. Afterwards, I joined the Baton Rouge pediatric surgery practice of an acquaintance from Pittsburgh. After 2 years, I was displaced by a Baton Rouge native, who had just completed her pediatric surgery training.

Coincidentally, I received an inheritance that allowed me to self-support. I was interested in mission medicine, and World Medical Mission assigned me to Galmi Hospital in Niger, West Africa (14 months). My uncle, who was Dean (emeritus) at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena CA, advised “You need to study with us, if you want to be a missionary doctor!”

I followed his advice (and received an MA); but ultimately chose pediatric surgery over missionary medicine. I joined the pediatric surgery practice of Dr. Foster Marshall and Dr. Prithvi Reddy in Columbia, SC – and worked there for > 20 years. Even though we were adjunct members of USC Medical School, our practice was clinical, rather than academic.

I appreciated this distinction, when I joined the surgical faculty of University of South Alabama in Mobile. Rather than showing residents how I performed operative procedures, my task was to operate through the hands of second- and third-year residents! Also, our busy clinical practice did not leave much time for research; consequently, my CV needed some embellishment with additional publications - 13 since leaning Columbia!
Again, I was displaced (after 4 years) by two USA graduates, who were newly certified in pediatric surgery and wished to return to Mobile.

Since leaving USA, I worked at Saint Peter’s University Hospital, New Brunswick, NJ (for 2 years); and I have done locum tenen assignments in Texas, Illinois, Oklahoma, Virginia, and SC.