“Surgery was the last thing on my mind when I went to medical school” at Harvard in 1978, said Myriam Curet, recalling how she started a life and career path that has taken her to Stanford’s general surgery service and a position of Medical Staff leadership.

“I was going to be a primary care physician. I was raised in Wisconsin where I watched my ob/gyn father leave the house to see patients with his black bag. But I realized that I was not patient enough to be a good primary care physician. Thankfully, though, I think I had just enough patience to be a surgeon!

“I fell in love with the pace of surgery and what you could do and the immediate gratification — watching people get better right away. My first rotation in surgery, I knew that was what I wanted to do.

”After finishing medical school, Curet completed a surgical residency and a research fellowship at the University of Chicago. After a four-year stint with the Indian Health Service, Curet served a fellowship in surgical endoscopy, 1993-94, at the University of New Mexico before joining the faculty there.