DR . WHO

In junior high , Dr . Puthuff thought she might want to go into nursing , so her mother suggested that she volunteer at the hospital so she could see what nurses and other hospital personnel did . For the next six years , she volunteered at Suburban Hospital working in different departments , from the information desk to the emergency room .

“ While I of course admired the nurses , I really admired some of the physicians . From observing , I got the idea that I might like to be a plastic surgeon ,” she said . “ Dr . Morton Kasdan was an excellent plastic surgeon . I thought he was really awesome , and I wanted to be just like him when I grew up .”

After obtaining her undergraduate degree from the University of Louisville in 1980 , she went to work at Walgreens as a clerk , later moving up to a pharmacy technician , which would prove helpful down the line . She then began applying for medical school and in speaking with the admission director , found that a master ’ s degree in anatomy would make her a much stronger candidate .

“ That involved taking the same curriculum as the freshman medical students , but you had to be above the mean . You had to work extra hard to make yourself a viable candidate . So I did that freshman year and did my research project the next year .”

During the second year , a student in the class above her was removed from the program and she got an unexpected break . “ It was the first Friday of medical school and a guy that was working in the anatomy department with me said that the admissions director wanted to meet with me . So I threw off my jacket and ran down the hall down to his office and he said that they had a spot in the class of ’ 87 for me if I wanted it . Of course I said yes . He told me I ’ d be behind a week in sophomore year and that I ’ d have a microbiology test coming up the next week , but I told him I could do it .”

Her experience as a pharmacy technician would soon come in handy as she was offered a job working in the pharmacy at Norton downtown where she worked every weekend through medical school . Not only did this allow her to graduate without any loans , but it also taught her valuable medical knowledge she wouldn ’ t have gained otherwise . “ I learned a lot there . Practical things about medications , getting used to being in the hospital , that was really helpful . It ’ s amazing how much you learn on a practical level , just from working in the hospital , not as a physician .”

By 1987 , Dr . Puthuff had achieved a great feat - she had both her master ’ s degree in anatomy and her medical school degree in just five years . She then went straight into an internal medicine residency at UofL and finished in 1990 . While she knew internal medicine was not the final destination for her , she started practicing at the Portland Family Health Center as an internist . “ I was back in my old neighborhood , my old stomping grounds . It was nice because I was still going to church down there , so I knew people who lived down there , and they were my patients .”

After a year there , a close friend , Dr . Phil Fitzgerald , took over a private practice that needed help and she joined his team . While she was working , she began looking for dermatology residencies and was in talks with Dr . Jeffrey Callen , Dermatology Division Chief at UofL . While she interviewed at UofL , she was also keeping her options open , and Dr . Callen mentioned that he knew Ohio State University was going outside of the Match that year . She went up to Columbus , Ohio for an interview and left feeling good .

30 LOUISVILLE MEDICINE