My journey.

867 IAM HONORED to be considered a Pioneer in Palliative Care, and while I humbly accept the honor, I believe there are many others more worthy of such notable distinction. Unlike many of my peers, I did not forge my career in a community hospice or in a pure academic environment, but rather at the Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) Medical Center in Phoenix, Arizona, a Deans Committee institution with residencies and fellowships, but a somewhat geographically distant affiliation with the University of Arizona (the University of Arizona is establishing a new allopathic medical school in Phoenix, with the first class scheduled for the fall of 2007). However, the distance was not necessarily detrimental, and in fact, the miles most likely afforded me the opportunity to develop a new program without the academic and political constraints so often dictated by the medical school-DVA marriage.