Peer Perspectives: Mercy Wariari Misoi, MD, FACP

Assistant Professor, General Internal Medicine
University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX

Medical Director, General Internal Medicine Inpatient Consultative Service 
University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX

1. What is your current professional position?

I am a board-certified internal medicine physician and currently serve as the Inpatient Medical Director for the General Internal Medicine Consultative Medicine Service at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, TX, where I am also Assistant Professor of General Internal Medicine.

2. Why did you choose internal medicine?

I chose internal medicine for its expansive scope, the intellectual rigor that fosters continual professional development, and the opportunity to make a meaningful impact on patients’ lives each day. As an onco-medicine internal medicine physician, I provide comprehensive clinical care, including perioperative management of patients undergoing oncologic surgeries, treatment of medical comorbidities in individuals receiving therapy, and management of cancer-related or treatment-induced complications. This role has been deeply fulfilling. 

3. What trends are you seeing in your day-to-day practice (with patients, the health care system, or otherwise)?

The increased availability of information has reshaped the patient–doctor relationship into a more collaborative partnership characterized by shared decision making. Strengthening trust through effective communication and careful consideration of patient concerns is essential.

4. What do you want to accomplish professionally within the next five years?

I aim to further develop my involvement in surgical co-management programs alongside oncologic surgical teams. Each day, I observe the significant contributions internal medicine physicians make when collaborating with surgical teams to manage the care of patients with complex cancer who are undergoing surgery. 

5. Can you share a brief (and anonymous) patient encounter or professional situation that made you proud to be an internal medicine physician?

Numerous meaningful and profound patient encounters have inspired a deep sense of pride in my roles as an internal medicine physician. In the preoperative clinic, I have encountered countless patients who sought an internal medicine physician's expertise solely due to their upcoming surgeries. Frequently, new diagnoses emerge through a thorough history and physical examination. Witnessing a light bulb moment in the patient’s eyes as I solve the clinical puzzle and optimize their condition before surgery gives me great pride in my work as an internal medicine physician.