PHYSICIAN SPOTLIGHT Drawing Inspiration at an Early Age

PHYSICIAN || SPOTLIGHT “I love to see them going back to playing with versity of Oklahoma Health Science Center.

“In my residency, I really enjoyed working with and being able to work with families. I also loved that I would be able to take care of children their entire lives with the goal of allowing them to be a kid.”

Baldwin completed her fellowship in pediatric orthopedics at A.I. duPont Hospital for Children/ Nemours. She found that experience so positive that she was inspired to find a permanent position with the children’s health system. When an opening was posted in Florida, she applied, saying the opportunity to stay within Nemours was too good to pass up.

“The Nemours hospital in Delaware is one of the top centers in the country for work in cerebral palsy (CP), and I learned from the best doctors in that area,” Baldwin said. “In my residency, I really enjoyed working with children and families to offer excellent care and make a difference in someone’s life. The opportunity to stay with Nemours is friends or to the sports they love,” she said. “I really enjoy building a relationship with the children Drawing and their families and being able to care for the children from a young age to adulthood. It is also amazing to help be part of a team that helps kids Inspiration at keep or restore their mobility.” She said an important trend is doing single event multi-level surgery (SELMS). This allows the an Early Age children to undergo one large operation with one recovery/rehab period. Baldwin said it allows them to rehab better and retain more of their function. There have been major advancements made over Nemours’ Dr. Margaret Baldwin revels in helping kids be kids the past 10 to 15 years treating areas of focus in orthopedics including spine and neurodevelopmental disorders, spina bifida, and spinal muscular atrophy. Most people probably recall very exactly what I was looking for, so I can collaborate genetics and basic science aspect of these diseases few memories of being two years with everyone I did fellowship training with for which has brought forth medications to help slow old, let alone making a major surgeries and research ideas. I look forward to serv- the progression of some of these diseases,” Baldcareer decision at that age. ing my new communities of Orlando and Lakeland at Nemours.” win said. “We have also developed better implants which allow us to accomplish more with surgery

But pediatric orthopedic surgeon Margaret Only six percent of board-certified orthopedic and obtain better outcomes.” Baldwin, MD, has had her eyes set on a career in surgeons are female. While some women report Outside of work, Baldwin loves outdoor activimedicine ever since she was a toddler. facing barriers and discrimination in professions that ties, including running, and enjoys trying out new

“I think it was because I really looked up to my are largely male dominated, Baldwin said she was restaurants. She looks forward to introducing her pediatrician and thought what she did was amaz- lucky to have a great mentor during medical school. parents and siblings, who all live in different states, ing,” said Baldwin, who recently joined the staff “Even though he was male, he believed in me and to all that Florida has to offer. Nemours Children’s Specialty Care in Lakeland, encouraged me to do what I loved,” she said. “I did In addition to Nemours internationally-recas well as at Nemours Children’s Hospital in Lake have many other people make comments that I was ognized children’s health system that owns and Nona. “I was really fascinated by the idea of mak- not strong enough/large enough/or that orthopedics operates two free-standing children’s hospitals, ing kids feel better.” just wasn’t suited for females. Those are miscon- Nemours also powers the world’s most-visited

She also wanted to be an astronaut when she ceptions that I am hoping to change and through website for information on the health of children was younger. As she advanced in school, she volunteering with the Perry Initiative and various and teens, KidsHealth.org, and offers on-demand, became very interested in math and science and medical school interest groups, I am a huge advo- online video patient visits through Nemours considered doing engineering, especially prosthetic cate for females going into orthopedic surgery.” CareConnect. Nemours ReadingBrightstart.org is design, while in college. But she continued to be Baldwin said she is excited to be a trail blazer a program dedicated to preventing reading failure drawn toward a career in medicine. by being the first female orthopedic surgeon for in young children, grounded in Nemours’ under-

“It just felt like a natural career choice for me,” Nemours in Florida. She will treat children with a standing that child health and learning are inexBaldwin said. “I knew I wanted to do orthopedics wide variety of orthopedic issues, including spine tricably linked, and that reading level is a strong my first year of medical school at the University and neurodevelopmental disorders, spina bifida, and predictor of adult health. of Texas School of Medicine at San Antonio. I was spinal muscular atrophy. She especially looks forward The not-for-profit Lakeland Regional Health able to spend some time with the current residents to continuing her work with patients with CP, a sub- reaches beyond its hospital walls to promote welland really enjoyed the idea of restoring function to specialty in which she has done important research. ness, education and discovery in new places and new people and being able to fix what was wrong.” The thing she most enjoys about her work is ways, providing a wide range of inpatient and outpa-

She became interested in pediatric orthopedics when she can help children get back to being chil- tient healthcare services at its Medical Center, Hollis during the beginning of her residency at the Uni- dren and young adults. Cancer Center and ambulatory care locations.

children and families to offer excellent care and make a difference in someone’s life,” she said. “We were able to rotate on the pediatric service during inHEALTH CAREERS Join a growing organization with an energetic tern year and I really enjoyed that patient population & mission driven spirit that offers great benefits.

“There has been further understanding of the