Staff Interview: Dr. Letitia Lyons

Dr. Letitia Lyons, 2003 high school basketball player of the year at Woodside High School and OBGYN at one of the largest hospitals in Texas, was interviewed by our Journalism Class.

The class interviewed her on September 11th, where she gave a summary of her journey from scholarship basketball player at ODU to doctor in a prominent hospital.

Ms. Lyons was born in Germany to two army parents. From there, she lived in Korea and four different U.S. states. During high school, she was a 6'0" shooting guard and ended her career with 1,700 points under her belt. From there, Ms. Lyons went on to major in Biology with a minor in Sports Management at Old Dominion University.

During her time in college, Dr. Lyons met many difficulties. She tried several times to pass the MCAT, a standardized test that decides if you can enter medical school. When she took the test a fifth time and got 1 point away from passing, the medicine school allowed her to still be accepted, proving that even in failure you can still have success. She gives God all the glory for the favor shown to her. While in medical school, she studied to become an orthopedic surgeon, but throughout the course decided being a gynecologist was better for her. She currently works at the sixth largest medical university in the nation, the University of Texas - Houston.

Here are some excerpts from our interview with Dr. Lyons

• What made you want to become a doctor?
• "My grandmother would always talk about her treatment by doctors. She talked of how she was never truly looked after and never felt cared for. Plus I watched this show called Operation," (popular doctor show in the 90s), "I thought it would be cool to do surgeries."
• What is the 'craziest' birth you have ever had to help deliver?
• "A lady came in at preterm, which preterm means the pregnancy is at 32 of 40 weeks, so the baby is still small. So we're setting up the room and team and we tell the lady, 'Don't push.' The lady doesn't listen, and I hear a grunt. The lady pushes and a baby comes flying at me. I catch the baby, but it was reflex action."
• What is your standpoint on abortion?
• "As a Christian, I don't agree with it. I understand though, the need for it. If the baby is going to harm the mother, or it's better for the baby to not be born, then I see the necessity for it. However, I will never want to or will perform an abortion, I will pass it off to a doctor who would do it."
• Any advice for becoming a doctor or entering the medical field?
• "Honestly, stay focused, especially on your end goal of becoming a doctor. Study, lots and lots of studying, which goes along with focus. Learn how to study, I didn't really learn to until my third time taking the test which hurt me."

Written by Keira Zirkle