Magna Dias, MD, FAAP

Once Magna Dias, MD, decided to become a physician, it didn’t take her long to realize working with children was what she wanted to do.

“Kids have such positive energy,” says Dr. Dias, who is a pediatric hospitalist (a doctor who exclusively treats hospitalized children). “And if you make an impact in the life of a child and improve their health, it’s going to have such meaningful benefits for the remainder of that child’s life, which is incredibly satisfying.”

To help put worried families at ease, Dr. Dias says the most important thing she can do is listen. “We really do our best to make sure they know we are addressing any concerns they have,” she says. “The same goes for the child, especially for the kids who are a bit older. We try to include them in the conversations, and make sure they understand what is happening to their bodies.”

As a hospitalist, Dr. Dias says she enjoys getting to know families. “When you’re in the hospital, the nice thing is that it allows you the time to sit down with the family and take a very detailed history and delve into anything they need, including not just medical issues that may be affecting their health, but social issues," she says.

Her research focuses on quality improvement. “We look at things that are happening in the hospital that we could be doing a better job with. For example, with asthma care, we might consider educational programs or smoking cessation aids for parents,” she says.

Dr. Dias is an associate professor of pediatrics at Yale School of Medicine.