Meet Connecticut Children's Father-Son Dynamic Duo

What led you on your career path to being a physician?

Dr. Jim Wiley: I knew I wanted to be a physician in the 7th grade. My science teacher Ms. Bingham inspired my interest as I learned about anatomy and physiology for the first time. Learning how the human body worked was amazing to me. I also saw medicine as a way to help other people and to actualize my Christian faith. Back at that time (70s), becoming a physician meant being a science major in college. I broke the mold a little by being a religion major, but I still took plenty of science courses.

Dr. James Wiley: I wasn’t originally planning on a medical career, but after college I ended up working in child obesity prevention research. This fostered my interest in pediatrics and motivated me to enter the field of medicine. I did a postbacc at UConn while I continued working and still remember the day I got my medical school acceptance letter to PCOM.

What inspired you to enter your various specialties (Emergency Medicine and Cardiology)?

Dr. Jim Wiley: It was the great teachers I encountered. My main problem in medical school is that I liked all of my clinical rotations. However, I found my special passion in Pediatrics under the tutelage of Sam Katz MD (one of the primary developers of the attenuated measles vaccine). During my residency, I was very fortunate to have fantastic mentors in Pediatric Emergency Medicine (PEM) who were national and international leaders in their field including the physicians Gary Fleisher, Stephen Ludwig, and Fred Henretig. My exposure to them and to PEM in a busy inner city pediatric emergency department launched my career. ? At that time, PEM was in its infancy as a specialty which meant that there were many opportunities to teach, to perform research, and to ?expand PEM in new places (like Hartford). Although challenging, taking care of seriously ill or injured children and their families and ensuring that the necessary knowledge, experience, resources, and personnel are in place to give them the best possible chance of recovery has been my mission ever since.

Dr. James Wiley:?Pediatric cardiology is such a unique field, and fits with my love of physiology and thinking through how different defects or conditions will affect how the heart works and interacts with other organs. Training in pediatric cardiology has so many subspecialty elements as well (imaging, cath, ICU, inpatient, clinic) so there is always so much variety to what we do!

What do you enjoy most about working for Connecticut Children’s?

Dr. Jim Wiley:?At Connecticut Children’s, we devote ourselves to the well-being of children and their families. This shared mission and the dedication it inspires in everyone who works here is what is so great about this hospital.

Dr. James Wiley: The people here are very passionate about working together and providing high quality care to children. I’m very proud of the care this hospital provides.

What do you enjoy most about working with each other?

Dr. Jim Wiley: Because a lot of my time is now spent in nonclinical work (editing for UpToDate), we haven’t had a lot of opportunity to work with each other. However, when we did (during James’ residency), I had a special feeling of joy and pride in my son. He is a great doctor.

Dr. James Wiley:?We don’t directly work together very often, but as a resident there was an ED shift where we got to see patients together. It was very fun and surreal to be on the other side now working as a team to take care of patients, remembering how when I was younger and my dad and mom would come home speaking medical talk that sounded completely foreign.

Do you have one memory in particular that stands out during your time at Connecticut Children’s?

Dr. Jim Wiley: For me, it is the opening of the first and still only freestanding 24-hour pediatric emergency department in Connecticut. We saw 42 patients in the first 24 hours (on average, we now see about 200 patients every 24 hours). The first patient had a sore throat that was managed expertly by our superb physician’s assistant, Chrissy Dubinsky (now Horgan). Within 2 hours after that, we had a child with meningococcemia arrive and undergo emergency resuscitation. Since then, we have been available 24/7/365 for any patient with any problem who comes to our department.

Dr. James Wiley:?Forwarding the dozens of emails that were meant for my dad (it’s very confusing when two people have the same name) Dr. Jim Wiley, what do you think of your son following in mom and dad’s footsteps?

Dr. Jim Wiley:? Growing up, I didn’t want James to feel pressure to become a doctor or anything else, but to explore his many talents and find a career that would inspire him and bring him joy. I am thrilled that James chose to join the medical profession and has found a discipline (pediatric cardiology) that he loves and in which he excels.

Share a fun fact no one knows about you!

Dr. Jim Wiley:?In college at Duke, I was a soloist for the acapella group The Pitchforks.

Dr. James Wiley:?Somehow I’ve never broken a bone and hope to keep my streak intact!