After graduating from Columbia University in May of 2024 with BAs in Biology and Computer…
LEAPS OF FAITH AND LARGE-HEARTED PEOPLE: DR. KATZ AND HIS JOURNEY DEVELOPING ORACORE AND A LIFE WORTH LIVING
We would not have OrACORe without Dr. Katz. And we would not have Dr. Katz without Jeff – the young college graduate who took a leap of faith into the field of medicine. In hindsight, we can claim with certainty that Jeff made the right decision, but this was not always so obvious. In fact, Jeff describes his initial choice to pursue medicine as “blind” and “not highly informed.” He did not have physicians in his family, nor did he have any shadowing experience. Rather, Jeff simply trusted his intuition that he would probably enjoy being a physician. And while this intuition may have in part been fostered by a brief stint volunteering in an emergency room during a summer in Madrid, Jeff describes that summer experience as more cultural than medical.
In 1980, Jeff’s leap of faith took him to Yale Medical School, where he quickly learned that his hunch was correct. Here, Jeff began his career in research, perhaps most notably through a project examining cystic fibrosis in kids. However, it was not until Jeff was a rheumatology fellow at the Brigham that he was really launched into the world of clinical musculoskeletal research. Like his decision to pursue medicine, Jeff’s decision to study rheumatology was also partly guided by intuition; he knew he wanted to work in internal medicine and liked the idea of forming longitudinal relationships. Further, at Yale, Jeff was exposed to some of the leading clinical epidemiologists in the country and inspired by their work, he wanted to take epidemiological concepts and apply them to clinical populations. Epidemiology was an emerging field in the 1970s and 80s, and Jeff was fascinated! As a self-described “numbers geek,” Jeff also liked the idea of working with statistics. All these factors encouraged Jeff to seek a fellowship in rheumatology. And luckily, he pursued an opportunity at the Brigham to combine a rheumatology fellowship and an MS in public health that would propel his career towards the research he is renowned for today.
One of Jeff’s first research projects as a rheumatology fellow addressed the sensitivity and specificity of diagnostic tests for carpal tunnel syndrome. For Jeff, this was a highly successful project that exposed him to several people who would pave the way for his subsequent work in Orthopedics. Jeff describes the project as having a foundation in clinical epidemiology that was based more in orthopedics and musculoskeletal programs than the inflammatory problems on which most of his colleagues in rheumatology were focused. As time passed, Jeff found himself becoming increasingly entranced with problems most rheumatologists were not prioritizing such as back pain, spinal stenosis, and meniscal tears. As a result, Jeff found himself becoming enmeshed with the Orthopedics department at the Brigham. Fortunately, there was already a strong collaborative relationship and history between the rheumatology and orthopedic cultures at the Brigham that favored Jeff’s interests.
In the context of studying orthopedic problems, Jeff began to work with OrACORe’s now-director Elena Losina around 1998. This union was solidified when the chief of orthopedics approached Drs. Losina and Katz about setting up the center that would later become OrACORe. In 2006, OrACORe was formally established and provided its own space. Very quickly, the center began receiving funding for projects like MeTeOR and OAPol, as well as for its T32 training grant.
A lot has changed around OrACORe since 2006, but some of the most important things have stayed the same. Since the beginning, Jeff and Elena have prioritized a culture of collaboration. Jeff notes his appreciation for fellow faculty members Jamie, Faith, Elena, Lindsey, Morgan, and Karen for helping to create a safe space that always prioritizes mutual respect while moving the science forward. He believes that the quality of OrACORe’s work benefits from the faculty’s culture of thoughtfully giving and humbly receiving constructive criticism. Jeff thoroughly trusts his fellow faculty members’ judgment and is grateful that his work is always reviewed intelligently and critically by his OrACORe peers before it reaches grant and manuscript reviewers. He notes that with only 10% of grants receiving funding, it requires a group effort to produce fundable grants. Jeff also notes that such a collaborative, supportive culture is not universal, and that we (and the science!) are lucky that such a culture has been developed here. In fact, when asked about any advice he may have for anyone aspiring to set up their own research centers, Jeff focused on these less tangible qualities that make OrACORe so special. Specifically, he notes that it is important to work with “large hearted people” who have similar values regarding the work environment.
Jeff notes that another critical piece of the OrACORe puzzle has been the center’s prioritization of teaching. Each year the center welcomes a new cohort of research assistants, all eager to learn from the faculty. Jeff has deeply enjoyed helping younger people navigate such formative years in their diverse career paths. He notes that he loves to watch them grow during their time at OrACORe as well as see what they accomplish afterwards.
Looking back at the young “not highly informed” Jeff, perhaps once as confused as many of our research assistants still are, we could not be more grateful that he took the leap of faith into medicine, rheumatology, and clinical research. Not only has Jeff contributed to highly impactful work, mentored dozens of research assistants, and helped to found OrACORe, but he has also molded a career and life that he is proud of and enjoys. By now, it should be clear that throughout his career Jeff has worn many hats. That he was able to juggle all these roles while still nurturing a deeply satisfying personal life as a husband, father, dog-owner, and now grandfather, is beyond what many of us could imagine as possible in a single lifetime! But Jeff has always found it important to prioritize those things that bring him joy. While work has always been a part of that equation, so have been activities like spending vacation time at the Cape in Brewster with his wife Susy and dog Dodi.
