Jennifer Schwartz, MD, is a surgeon who specializes in hernia repair and bariatric surgery, including minimally invasive and robotic techniques.
Growing up, Dr. Schwartz says there was never a doubt she would become a physician. “I come from a medical family and there’s an infamous story of us visiting a children’s museum when I was 6. There was a display on kidney transplants and my parents couldn’t peel me away,” she says. “I was fascinated with it and just continued on that track.”
In medical school, she narrowed her focus to anesthesia or surgery. “I soon realized I mostly cared about what the surgeons were doing during procedures,” she says. “And when I did a rotation on bariatric service and saw what a difference this surgery could have on people’s lives, I knew that was what I wanted to do. They were now able to do activities they maybe couldn’t do for 20 years.”
Likewise, Dr. Schwartz says it’s rewarding to perform bariatric surgery on younger patients—before diabetes, high blood pressure, and other complications to obesity can wreak havoc on their lives. “For both hernia and bariatric patients, I am often working with people who don’t have core or back strength, and these surgeries get them back to their lives as fast as possible,” she says.
When it comes to working with patients, Dr. Schwartz says she likes to sit down and talk to them. “I use a lot of pictures, describe the procedure, and really listen to them,” she says. “I’m not taking notes or working on the computer, but answering their questions and making them as comfortable as possible.”
Dr. Schwartz’s research interests include resident education and bariatric and robotic surgery.
