To become a child neurology training director is a calling. This position calls for a special person with a special skill set. Unlimited patience, a desire to teach, innovative and creative teaching methods, and an excellent fund of knowledge pertaining to child neurology are essential to this important role.
Child neurology residency is full of memorable experiences, no matter where you train. Those who trained with Dr. Nancy Bass experienced a residency with all the above attributes. She is known for her unique lecture series that included an annual Halloween horrors conference, holiday Gingerbread rounds, a reflex workshop in which she dressed as a reflex hammer, and an ode to the fundi while dressed as an eyeball. Blending fun with education, Dr. Bass welcomes all her learners to the child neurology party. She exudes enthusiasm to teach, taking every single opportunity to share child neurology pearls. She was destined to become a child neurologist, an educator, and a training director…or was she?
This innovative educator almost didn’t become a child neurologist. Growing up in Skokie, Illinois, she started her undergraduate studies, majoring in animal science at the University of Illinois. She was in the pre-vet program and aced her VAT (Veterinary Aptitude Test), an MCAT equivalent. Everything was on track to become a vet until that fateful day when Dr. Bass went on a required animal science trip to Kentucky Horse Park and a “Kitty Hotel.” There, she discovered she was allergic to cats and had an anaphylactic reaction! She decided to change career paths. It was too bad for the animals, but it was good for us that Dr. Bass decided to pursue human medicine and chose the field of child neurology.
After leaving the cats behind, Dr. Bass completed her medical school and pediatrics residency at Southern Illinois University School of Medicine in Springfield, Illinois. It was there that Dr. Bass’ journey in child neurology started when she met Dr. Augusto Morales. Dr. Bass credits his passion for the field and his enthusiasm for teaching as the reasons she chose child neurology as her career.
During her Cleveland Clinic child neurology residency, Dr. Bass found a passion for general child neurology under the mentorship of Dr. David Rothner, Dr. Gerry Erenberg, and Dr. Bruce Cohen. She then packed her bags for the West Coast to join the child neurology division at UCSF and finessed her exemplary clinical skills with guidance from Dr. Bruce Berg and Dr. Donna Ferriero. While there, her exceptional teaching abilities were quickly recognized as she received the first of many teaching awards.
Dr. Bass returned to Cleveland in 1999 and joined Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital. At that time, the child neurology residency program was inactive. She re-activated the program, and successful recruitment started shortly after that. As the training director, she cared for her residents’ well-being and education immensely. She ensured that they were looked after when rotating in the “adult world,” with frequent check-ins and providing the flexibility in the program to spend some time in child neurology during the adult neurology year. She grew the program with a dedication to fostering the individual passions of her residents and helping them launch their careers through her mentorship and sponsorship. Dr. Bass brought an inactive program to one of the most sought-after and popular training programs through sheer determination and desire to train highly competent and successful child neurologists. Her passion for education was evident to all, with one former resident highlighting: “From the very beginning, I noticed three things about Nancy: Her enthusiasm to teach, her humility, and her ability to guide and support the residents. She brought excitement and a sense of joy to the teaching – for that, she was already well-known in the hospital. People who know her will talk about her caring attitude towards the trainees and her providing support to allow a good balance between work and life. Nancy inculcated good ethics and a desire to learn child neurology in a fun way, making difficult concepts easy to understand. She taught us to think about the patient and beyond when considering a neurological diagnosis. Considering the whole family in the treatment plan and her explanations of a diagnosis to the scared families in very simple terms made her a highly popular physician in the Cleveland area.” In 2022, Dr. Bass joined the faculty of Children’s Wisconsin in Milwaukee as the child neurology residency program director and director of child neurology education. One year after her arrival, she was recognized with the Bleser Family Endowed Chair for Neurology Education.
Dr. Bass’ impact on child neurology residency education goes beyond the walls of the hospitals in which she expertly cares for patients and teaches trainees. She has served on several committees within the Child Neurology Society, the American College of Graduate Medical Education, and the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. In each of these roles, she has had an important voice and lasting impact on the training of child neurologists. In recognition of her impact on the field of child neurology education, she rose to serve as president of the Professors and Educators of Child Neurology (PECN), renaming the organization to recognize more inclusive membership and sponsoring multiple junior and mid-career faculty into participation and leadership roles through the organization.
With all these accomplishments, Dr. Bass has built a legacy within the field of child neurology education. Her enthusiasm and expertise for teaching are contagious, inspiring numerous residents to follow in her footsteps and become master clinicians, clinician-educators. and program directors. A former resident, now child neurology program director, captured her impact on a generation of child neurologists in this excerpt: “I can say with confidence that I would not be the child neurologist I am today without having trained under Nancy Bass. Her commitment to training clinical child neurologists to serve their community while providing ample opportunities for individual pursuit of their aspirations stands apart and is a challenging thing to balance as a program director, but she does so with grace.”
In recognition of her many accomplishments and the lasting impact she has had as a child neurology residency program director, Dr. Nancy Bass is well-deserving of the 2024 Child Neurology Society Training Director Award.