06/17/2026
โThe concept of a traveling dinosaur that was able to be a part of my activities โ it became a pathway for me to explain to my whole family, my kids in particular, why I had to be gone, what Ellie and I were going to do."
Rodney Young, M.D., regional chair of family and community medicine at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center School of Medicine and Texas Medical Association Board of Trustees member, encourages physicians to find meaningful ways to involve their families in their work. For Dr. Young, a traveling dinosaur named Ellie helped give his family a way to share in the journey and better understand the purpose behind his medical career.
Plucked from a claw machine ahead of a TMA meeting, a little yellow stuffed animal has bonded a medical family through decades of work in organized medicine. Owner Rodney Young, MD, says such strategies can help physician advocates stay engaged.