Excellence in Healthcare, Geriatric Medicine – Ron Hunninghake, MD

Wichita Business Journal | June 2020| Excellence in Healthcare | Category: Geriatric Medicine

Why did you choose a career in health care? I wanted to learn more about real health, optimal health.

What is your greatest professional achievement? Learning how to work with and treat patients as co-learners in their struggle to overcome complex chronic illness. Co-learner is a term that Dr. Riordan coined years ago. It embodies the principle that both the patient and the doctor are together in this journey to better understanding. I want my patients to be educated and well-informed about their health and treatment plan. This is what leads to lasting success.

What is the biggest challenge you have faced in your career? Learning how to cope with deep-rooted institutional bias in the science and practice of medicine.

What was the best career decision you ever made? Deciding to join Dr. Hugh Riordan in 1989 at what was once called The Center for the Improvement of Human Functioning — now known as the Riordan Clinic.

Who was your most important mentor? Several: Dr. Hugh Riordan; Dr. Raymond Schmidt; Dr. Thomas Levy.

What is the best advice they gave you? Focus on working with patients to detect and correct the actual root causes of their illnesses from BOTH the conventional and functional perspective.

What is the best advice you would give to someone considering a career in health care? Know that achieving a solid career in medicine is quite difficult and expensive these days — but worthwhile if you know where your true motivation lies!

Are you involved in the community? I give presentations on health and wellness at various organizations.

What do you like to do in your spare time? I love to read detective novels and to read widely to enlarge my understanding of microbiology and nutritional biochemistry.

How has the pandemic impacted your job? Actually, very little, thankfully. I’m as busy as ever.