What inspired you to join the Make-A-Wish Hawaii Medical Advisory Board, and what are you most looking forward to in your new role?

The opportunity to give back. I think you reach a point in your career where you have gained a great deal of knowledge and experience and realize that you can do more with than just diagnosing and treating patients in the office or hospital. To be a part of Make-A-Wish, an organization that has been so important in the lives of so many children for so many years, is an incredible opportunity and a true honor. I look forward to collaborating with the rest of the advisory board and hope to make a positive contribution toward Make-A-Wish Hawaii's goals.

What led you to pursuing a medical career, specifically, pediatric gastroenterology?

What lead me to a career in Pediatric Gastroenterology was the incredible variety of experiences the field offers. For example, rather than spending all day in one clinic or one department of the hospital, on any given day, I might end up in just about every part of the hospital. I could be called from my clinic to the emergency room and need to take a patient to the operating room for an emergency procedure, see a consult on pediatric wards, and then return to my clinic to see a patient with a stable, chronic condition that has been in remission for years. Because of this, my days often end in a perfect harmony of exciting, new challenges balanced with long-term patients that feel more like being visited by family.

As a physician, what role do you think a wish can play in the midst of a child’s medical battle? 

With every patient I see, I try to treat the mind, body and spirit. To completely care for a patient, you need to do all three, as each impacts the others. Typically, I feel pretty good at treating the body, and over the years, I have gotten better and better at treating the mind. Treating a damaged spirit can be especially challenging. The Wish treats the spirit. If the Wish can help restore a child’s spirit, this facilitates healing the mind and body.

-Dr. Jeremy King, Pediatric Gastroenterology, Kapiolani Medical Center for Women and Children