Deirdre Rhoad, M.D.

"I am one of two female plastic surgeons in Austin and one of the four percent of all female plastic surgeons in the United States. It was not an easy road.

The training and certification process required to become a plastic surgeon is a life changing and life consuming endeavor. The prolonged "boot camp" of surgical training was filled with a surprise of sexism. Both men and women doctors, nurses, clerks, and patients seemed to be puzzled by a woman surgeon.

Becoming a surgeon made perfectly good sense to me. When I was little and cut my finger or became sick, I went to my mother. It was my grandmother that taught me how to sew my own clothes. It was my piano teacher that taught me how to hold my hands properly for agility. Afternoon television shows demonstrated single or widowed women striving to live independently and working to support themselves. By the end of six grade, I learned that "Girls are smarter than boys" from a trophy my sixth grade teacher gave me on the last day of elementary school. I saw how difficult it was for my mother to find employment after she and my father divorced.

My mother was a very pretty and gentle woman and my father was a very handsome and polite man. I learned patience and empathy from my mother; the value of being independent, honest and working hard from my father. Attention to detail, the ability to draw and create something, came from my father. Neither one directed, questioned, or discouraged my career choices. Having grown up with three sisters, two older and one younger, I knew all too well how self conscious, competitive and and insecure females can be.

I know how important beauty and symmetry is to all of us. We may want plastic surgery to improve some aspects of physical selves, but we also want to know that the operating surgeon cares about us, understands us, and is listening to us.

I am sure there will be more women plastic surgeons as time goes on and I hope there are more women who will endure the ridicule and intimidation and hardships that may need to be overcome to reach this goal. I am glad I am here for the women (and men) who find comfort in being treated by a woman plastic surgeon."

Sincerely, Deirdre Rhoad, MD

College

The University of Texas at Austin
Bachelor of Arts with Honors, Microbiology
December 1981

Medical School

The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston
Medical Doctorate
May 1987

Post Graduate Training

General Surgery:
Intern and Resident in General Surgery
St. Vincent’s Hospital
New York Medical College
New York, New York
July 1987 - June 1990

Fellowship

Fellow in Burn Surgery
Detroit Receiving Hospital
Wayne State University
Detroit, Michigan
July 1990 - June 1991

Plastic Surgery

Resident in Plastic Surgery
Wayne State University
Detroit, Michigan
July 1991 - June 1993

Cosmetic Surgery

Manhattan Eye, Ear, Nose & Throat Hospital
New York, New York
March 1993 - April 1993