Vector Volume 11 Issue 1 - 2017

Beyond the horizon and back again
Interview with Professor David Hilmers
[Feature Article]
Ashley Wilson-Smith
Prelude
The globalisation of medicine, particularly
within the last 50 years, has presented both
students and practitioners with an exciting -
yet staggering - amount of career and lifestyle
pathways. Be it working with Medecins Sans
Frontieres (MSF) in Africa; coordinating a WHO
response to a new, virulent disease; or servicing
rural-remote populations in outback Australia;
the variety of work within medicine is nothing
short of astounding.
Early life and background
Speaking with Professor David Hilmers of
the Baylor College of Medicine, this becomes
abundantly clear. With rich and varied
occupational and academic experience,
Hilmers’ pathway into medicine is as fascinating
as his career has been since graduation. After
growing up in a small town in Iowa, Hilmers
moved from undergraduate study to flight
school, the United States Marines – during the
Vietnam War, no less – and eventually graduate
school. Here, he studied electrical engineering
and mathematics, giving him a tremendous
grounding in scientific practice. Whilst he
expressed a desire to practice medicine
from as early as childhood, Hilmers was
serendipitously given opportunities that initially
drove him more towards working with N.A.S.A
than working in medicine, as astounding as
that may seem. Contextually, the United States
space program was still maturing following
the peak of the Cold War, with Hilmers’ career
progression perfectly aligning with the 1980’s
selection period.
In space on IML-1 just before starting medical school
Moving into N.A.S.A (and eventually,
medicine)
Whilst stationed in Japan on his third tour
overseas, Hilmers heard that the Marines were
offering forward candidates for consideration
to the astronaut program. Given that his
background was textbook in terms of the
desired skillsets - flight/military experience,
engineering and mathematics - he placed
himself forward. One level after another, he
cleared selection and eventually found himself
as an astronaut-in-training, something which
he considered entirely surprising. After a period
of intense long-term preparation, training and
eventually four on-orbit expeditions later,
Hilmers decided that it was finally time to study
medicine. Whilst it would have been incredible
to hear more about this journey to N.A.S.A,
it is his work following his time in space that
really exemplifies the multifaceted nature of
medicine and global health.
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