Dr. Janna K. Flint on Louisiana Medical News

Dr. Janna K. Flint

By: LISA HANCHEY

Friend's Dilemma Leads to Medical Calling

While attending high school in Chicago, Janna Flint's best friend had grand mal seizures. Flint went to all of his doctor's appointments and imaging studies with him, searching for relief. Eventually, his physicians found the right medications for treatment, and were able to control his seizures. "It made a major difference in his life," Flint recalled. "And so, I really wanted to be able to help people like my friend's doctors had helped him."

At undergraduate school at Rice University, Flint was again led to her destiny while volunteering for a liver transplant surgeon at Texas Medical Center. This physician asked her to get feedback from his patients about his clinical services. Flint interviewed about 100 patients, analyzed the data, and compiled it for the surgeon to help him improve his medical practice. "It was fun," she said. "It was a good initial exposure to talking to a lot of patients, running the data and collecting results."

Although Flint enjoyed her time in Houston, she missed her family, and decided to return to Chicago to pursue medicine at Loyola University's Stritch School of Medicine. During her fourth year, she did a pediatric endocrinology rotation at the Baby's & Children's Hospital of New York in Manhattan. After working with an excellent group of teachers, she decided to specialize in that field. She completed a three-year fellowship at St. Christopher's Hospital for Children in Philadelphia in June, 2007.

While going through her residency and fellowship, Flint faced a great challenge. During that time, her husband, Linus Wilson, was attending graduate school at the University of Oxford in England. Separated by an ocean, the young marrieds saw each other only during his summer breaks. But, despite the lonely times apart, the couple toughed it out, eventually ending up in the same town – Lafayette – in 2008. "We've been married for six years, and this is actually the first year that we've been able to live together," Flint said. "It's obviously really nice. We get to talk a lot more and spend a lot more time together."

A year ago, Wilson snagged a position as a visiting assistant professor at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. In 2008, he secured a permanent position as an assistant professor in finance. Flint joined him in Lafayette after she landed a job as a pediatric endocrinologist at Women's and Children's Hospital. After years of waiting, the couple was finally reunited, along with toy poodle, Daly.

Since July, 2008, Flint has practiced as the sole board-certified pediatric endocrinologist in Lafayette. The specialty involves taking care of children with hormone problems and diabetes. "I like pediatric endocrinology because there are treatments for most of the problems that I see," Flint explained. "For example, if somebody is diagnosed with growth hormone deficiency, we can prescribe growth hormones and replace what the body can't make; if somebody has diabetes, we can prescribe insulin. We can really make a tremendous difference in patients' lives. I also like that most of the problems are long-term; therefore, I can see patients and families over years, I can develop relationships, and I can see how patients can grow and mature. I find that very rewarding."

Flint has found her transition back to the deep South an easy one. "I love it," she said. "People have been so welcoming, so warm. I love the food, I love the music."

One adjustment has been learning the French-based last names of patients. "I thought one of my patient's last name was 'Meow,'" she said with a laugh. "They corrected me and said, 'No, it's Meaux.'" Flint is now taking French classes at UL-L to avoid repeating that mistake.

In the meantime, Flint is thoroughly enjoying the local seafood and spicy Cajun specialties, like jambalaya and crawfish etouffée. To work off all that good food, she joined the Cajun Road Runners Association. She also enjoys going out to hear live music, and plans to learn the two-step one day.

Down the road, Flint hopes to devote more time to research. "Sometimes, there are questions you have when you are seeing patients, and the answers are not always in the journals and textbooks," she said. "So, I'd really like to get back into clinical research and answer some of these questions that I have."