On January 23, 2024, on Facebook, I shared gratitude for Dr. Aziza Shad for her unparalleled care to our family and all patients and families under her care. I was inspired by a Susan Cain post titled Seven things my father taught me, by example. Her father was a doctor and the list of seven things he taught her was heartwarming and points we should all take to heart. Point number five immediately reminded me of Dr. Shad:
“If you happen to be a doctor, take care of your patients – really take care of them. Study medical journals after dinner, train the next generation of physicians (my father kept teaching until age 81), spend the extra hour to visit the bedside of your patients in the hospital. (Here’s a letter from one of those patients, which we found after my father passed away. He never showed us these things while he was alive.)”
The gratitude I shared in my Facebook share was:
“When I read Susan Cain’s post on Substack, this point, and the letter sent to Susan’s father, it inspired me to intentionally pause and be grateful for Doctor Aziza Shad.
Since 1996, Dr. Shad has been at our family’s side guiding and caring for Ryan Tomoff through his #ChildhoodCancer wars and beyond to monitoring the late effects of his treatments through the years.
The image above IS the essence of expertise, care, and compassion that Dr. Shad has brought to our family and every patient and family blessed to be a recipient of her care.
Please read Susan’s full Substack post and my wish is you can share your #gratitude with someone who made a forever impact in your life 🙏❤️.
Dr. Shad, thank you… the words shared by a patient, in Susan’s post, are beautiful. The Tomoff family carries these sentiments for you:
“How do I start, where do I begin to express my feeling of gratitude. appreciation to a [doctor] that has compassion, knowledge, and the kindest doctor… I had the pleasure to have in our lives.
Your caring, right from the heart, your kindness to always lead us in the right direction. We never thought to get a second opinion. Whatever you advised was good enough for us. BECAUSE YOU CARED, TRULY CARED….” “
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Released on March 22, 2024, Dr. Shad speaks with host Aransas Savas of The Uplifters podcast, titled Dr. Aziza Shad is Humanizing Healthcare: By using teamwork to tackle pediatric cancers. Terri recommended Dr. Shad for the podcast, and I am so happy this interview occurred!
Please prioritize 35 minutes to hear Dr. Shad’s perspective on treating her patients and their families. She cares deeply about all whom she is entrusted to care for. In the pediatric world, the child patient and the family must be considered to achieve the optimal outcome of curing a child. Aransas does a beautiful job guiding the conversation, and the entire podcast was an inspiring listen.
In the interview, Dr. Shad discusses why she chose pediatric cancer as a specialty, the founding of The Aslan Project dedicated to pediatric cancer in Ethiopia, and her mission to be accessible 24 hours per day, seven days a week! She is a godsend to our family. Listen in and be inspired – may we all approach our lives and careers to make the most meaningful difference we can.
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