Kids are this doctor's life — at work and at home

Becoming a doctor wasn't an easy decision for Dr. Molly Shaw, pediatrician at Akron Children's Hospital Pediatrics.

Shaw always liked science and was interested in the medical field, but was intimidated and overwhelmed with the commitment to medical school. During her years at the University of Dayton, her advisors and friends gave her the confidence she needed to succeed.

"Most people are not lucky enough to have a job they love," she says. "I knew that if I committed to the challenge of becoming a doctor that I would, hopefully, be one of those people."

She attended Wright State University School of Medicine, and while choosing to become a physician was originally a struggle, specializing in pediatrics was the easiest decision of her life.

"The more I learned about the unique and challenging aspects of caring for children, I couldn’t see myself doing anything else," she says. "The most rewarding aspect of my job is getting to know families and becoming part of their lives. I love seeing my patients become big sisters and brothers. I love when they’re excited to see me. I’ve had many families tell me that their children play check-up at home and fight over who gets to be 'Dr. Shaw.'  It doesn't get better than that."

Shaw says her job isn’t only to help her patients but also to provide assurance to the parents of the patients. And, she loves when the parents say, 'Thank you, I feel much better.'

Although she cares for children of all ages, Shaw’s passion lies with premature babies. Her second son was born premature at 31 weeks and spent five weeks in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

"Parents usually feel stressed, overwhelmed and scared when their baby comes home,” she says. “I love guiding parents through the early challenges and helping celebrate the amazing milestone these babies achieve in the first few years."

Akron Children's Hospital has a reputation of excellence and professional support for patients and families, and Shaw says the challenge in today’s medical field is trying to provide every patient with the time and care that they need.

She says the hospital's Electronic Medical Records were recently converted to a new, fully integrated system that provides many advantages. Some of these include incorporating an online portal for patients and parents to easily access immunization records, test results, health summaries, as well as the opportunity to request appointments, request prescription refills and send secure messages to healthcare providers and staff.

When Shaw isn't at the hospital, she devotes her spare time to her children. Her two boys, ages 9 and 6, keep her on-the-go with their football, basketball and baseball practices. She also exercises regularly and tries to serve healthy meals to her kids. She ran her first 5K this past spring and has others in the works for next year.