Opinion
AMA meetings helped this physician scale all 50 state high points
LETTER — Posted Jan. 19, 2004
Regarding "Mountain-loving doctor climbs to great heights" (Article, Aug. 18, 2003) and "More than two physicians have scaled every high point in all 50 states" (Letters, Oct. 27, 2003):
As a follow-up to the article that featured Douglas Butler, MD, and a subsequent letter to the editor concerning other physicians who successfully climbed the summits in each of our 50 states, let me add my name.
My accomplishing this had something to do with the AMA; therefore this letter.
I was an alternate delegate from California to the AMA House of Delegates for a number of years. With our meetings in Chicago and our December meetings in various other cities, I would add a few days to the meetings and take that opportunity to do some of the states' high points. From Chicago in various years, I would finish off Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Ohio and Indiana. At a meeting in Atlanta, Florida, Georgia, Alabama and South Carolina would fall. At our Washington, D.C., meeting I finished off Maryland, New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. The Dallas December meeting allowed Texas and Louisiana to be done. In a way, my association with the AMA helped me to accomplish this.
As a footnote, the AMA had nothing to do with it, but I have also accomplished the high points in six continents. On some of the expeditions I was the team physician.
The combination of the professional and personal life has been rewarding and fulfilling.
Reinhold A. Ullrich, MD, Rolling Hills, Calif.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2004/01/19/edlt0119.htm.
