March 23, 2001

Luanda Grazette, MD, MPH

Medical school often is equal parts learning experience and stressful ordeal. Many doctors look back at their medical education and wonder how they made it through. Luanda Grazette, MD, MPH, of MGH Cardiology, can see firsthand how she did it — she can turn on her television and relive those days for herself.

Grazette, along with six other Harvard Medical School (HMS) graduates, will be featured on the NOVA series "Survivor MD," airing March 27, April 3 and 10, 9 pm on PBS, locally on WGBH-Channel 2. The series is a sequel to "The Making of a Doctor," which filmed the seven students as they launched their medical education at HMS in 1987. In subsequent years, NOVA — through its local production company, the WGBH Science Unit — has followed Grazette and her classmates through labs, rotations, internships, residencies and now flourishing careers.

Grazette initially was hesitant to allow NOVA's camera crews into her life. What convinced her was the memory of a BBC documentary she had once followed, which profiled a group of children as they grew into adulthood. "The concept behind that program was, 'Show me the boy, and I'll give you the man,'" Grazette explains. "I thought that was intriguing, and I wanted to see if the same would hold true for me."

The NOVA series is not Grazette's only foray into the spotlight. When she went to Emory University in Georgia after receiving her degree from HMS, she was the first — and only — black female cardiologist in residence. "Some people would want to question everything I did because of what they saw in front of them," she says. "It really strengthened my courage and conviction."

Grazette returned to Boston at the suggestion of a friend, who reminded her of the rich offering of research opportunities at the MGH. "I found it necessary to come back to an institution with a strong research mission," Grazette says. "It was easy for me to decide on the MGH. I knew a lot of people here, and I knew that it had an unparalleled depth of excellence." Today, Grazette devotes a significant amount of time to heart failure and transplant research, in addition to seeing patients.

"Survivor MD" was shown to representatives of the HMS community and members of the media March 21 in a special screening at the HMS Tosteson Medical Education Center. Grazette was among three show participants in attendance.

Despite some trepidation, Grazette says she is looking forward to seeing her past and present on screen. "Harvard Medical School was a very intense experience," she explains. "But it helped me. I had to become a much tougher person than I would be if I hadn't done it."

For more information about "Survivor MD," visit http://www.pbs.org/nova/doctors.