Talking with: Betsy Lazaron, MD, physician leader for Cincinnati’s central region
Lisbeth Lazaron, better known as “Betsy,” had no intention of becoming a doctor. After graduating from Western Hills High School, she went off to the University of Chicago where she majored in the classics. But during the summers when she came home to Cincinnati, she worked in Dr. George Hug’s medical research lab in the Enzymology Division at Cincinnati Children’s. It turned out to be a life-changing experience.
“Dr. Hug’s office and lab had once belonged to Albert Sabin,” says Lazaron. “So I felt like I was walking in the footsteps of a giant, although I wondered if I should worry about any leftover polio virus lurking there."
Hug must have seen a spark of potential in her eyes, because he convinced her to go to medical school.
“I made the decision in the last quarter of my senior year to apply to medical school,” she says. “Since I didn’t have the necessary prerequisites, I had to take additional classes. While I took them, I worked as a lab tech at the University of Chicago, where they did research in pediatric cardiology and genetic cardiomyopathies. I set my sights on becoming a pediatric cardiologist who did invasive procedures.”
That was her plan through her first two years at Rush Medical School in Chicago, until she began doing rotations. She loved every one of them except for pediatrics. “I discovered that I didn’t like hurting small children and I hated giving parents bad news. So I chose family medicine instead,” she says.
Lazaron enjoyed 20 years of private practice on Cincinnati’s west side before joining the full-time teaching faculty of the University of Cincinnati/Christ Hospital Family Medicine residency program in 2012. She is also an associate professor at the UC College of Medicine in the Department of Family Medicine. Additionally, she chaired the Department of Family Medicine at Good Samaritan Hospital for 10 years and served on the Medical Executive Committee there and at Cincinnati Children’s.
“I’ve always been involved in teaching,” she says. “I’ve been a community preceptor throughout my career, and the more I’ve done it, the more I love it. When I get to teach in the context of a patient encounter, that is the best experience of all.”
Lazaron was thrilled to take on the role of physician leader representing the central region. “I’m good at making connections with people,” she explains. “I’ve done hospital administration, and I’ve taught at community-based practices. So I have a good perspective on ways people can collaborate to enhance each other’s work.”
In her new role, Lazaron hopes to strengthen the link between Cincinnati Children’s and community physicians. “I take a holistic approach to healthcare, and it’s always a challenge to find resources for families that can help them improve their quality of life,” she says. “Families don’t just need their medications and vaccines. They need to be housed, fed and clothed. Making sure community physicians have access to the services that Cincinnati Children’s offers for the enrichment of patients and families is absolutely a priority and a passion for me.”
You can contact Lazaron at lisbeth.lazaron@uc.edu.
