Earlier this year Providence Health Care announced Dr. Val Montessori as the new Head of its Division of Infectious Diseases in the Department of Medicine at St. Paul’s Hospital. We spoke with Dr. Montessori to find out what inspires and informs her work as she takes on this important new role.
From a very early age, Dr. Montessori had an interest in microbiology and infectious diseases. Her father was a pathologist and her childhood summers were spent assisting him with laboratory work, giving her a flavor for research and basic benchwork and how they can be married with clinical care. She discovered that medicine could provide her with endless opportunities to combine both her love for people and passion for research.
When Dr. Montessori first arrived at St. Paul’s Hospital as a medical resident, she was assigned to the Division of Infectious Diseases where she had the opportunity to work alongside Dr. Julio Montaner, BC-CfE Physician-in-Chief & Executive Director and Dr. Peter Phillips, the former Head of the Division of Infectious Diseases at St. Paul’s Hospital. A huge focus of their work at that time, and indeed today, was to provide best-in-class treatment and care for people with HIV and AIDS.
Speaking about her early experiences working alongside Infectious Disease Specialists at the forefront of HIV research and care, Dr. Montessori explained why she was drawn to this area of medicine above others. At the time, pioneering treatment options such as combination antiretroviral therapy and highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) were not clinical tools available to prescribers. Developing treatment plans for patients was extremely challenging clinically, but also emotionally.
Many of her patients had experienced significant hardships in their personal lives due to the stigma associated with an HIV diagnosis, which was more prevalent then than it is today. Above all else, they were so grateful of the respectful and compassionate care they received from physicians and other healthcare workers in St. Paul’s Hospital.
Speaking about her new role, Dr. Montessori said, “I am truly delighted and honored to take up this role at St. Paul’s Hospital. Dr. Phillips has done an exceptional job building this Division into the strong team it is today. My huge focus in the months and years ahead will be to establish as much balance as possible in the lives of my team. As physicians, we are often pulled in many different directions, across clinical practice, research and teaching, on top of our own personal commitments.
“As we navigate the COVID-19 pandemic, into unknown and indeed uncertain territories, I believe there has never been a more heightened awareness locally and globally of the significant value of infectious disease experts in our healthcare system and the essential contributions they make to safeguard public health during these difficult times. It is absolutely crucial to nurture and protect our healthcare, which includes Infectious Disease Specialists, who are caring for patients on the frontline as this pandemic unfolds.”
Dr. Montessori hopes to see greater integration of molecular biology into everyday clinical practice. In HIV care, it has become the gold standard to use precision medicine techniques to inform a patient’s treatment plan, which yields better outcomes. She believes greater integration of clinical practice with available and evolving laboratory analysis will be applied to other infectious diseases to further improve the care provided to patients across a whole spectrum of conditions, from hepatitis to pneumonia.
The BC-CfE wishes Dr. Montessori continued success in her new position, leading a vital department in the treatment and care of those living with infectious diseases in BC.