Departmental Grand Rounds by Jim Rathmell, MD, Editor in Chief of Anesthesiology
The Department of Anesthesiology, Critical Care and Pain Medicine at McGovern Medical School welcomed James P. Rathmell, MD, for Grand Rounds on career development, mentorship, and learning from adversity.
Dr. Rathmell is the Leroy D. Vandam Distinguished Professor of Anesthesia at Harvard Medical School and Editor-in-Chief of Anesthesiology. He previously served as Chief of Enterprise Anesthesiology for Mass General Brigham and as a director of the American Board of Anesthesiology, and he holds an MBA from MIT.
In “Two Roads, One Profession: Innovation, Stewardship, and Preserving Academic Values,” he traced the experiences and relationships that shaped his career. His advice emphasized defining your goals, seeking mentors, and keeping learning as responsibilities and aspirations evolve. Mentorship, he said, rarely comes from one person. Different mentors offer different perspectives at different stages.
He was equally direct about setbacks. Professional growth is rarely linear, and even accomplished careers include uncertainty. Adversity, he suggested, can act as a whetstone, sharpening judgment and resolve. Feedback that differs from what we expect can do similar work if met with curiosity rather than defense: why does someone else see this differently, and what might I be missing?
An accomplished photographer, Dr. Rathmell wove award-winning images through the talk, pairing career reflection with a careful eye for detail. The result was encouragement for trainees, junior faculty, and staff still finding their footing: not every step needs to be mapped, and mentors, openness, and a willingness to begin again can carry a career forward.
After Grand Rounds he met with department members and visited McGovern’s anesthesiologist assistant program. We thank him for his time and look forward to welcoming him back for the Association of University Anesthesiologists meeting in Houston, April 2–4, 2027.
