Alumni Resident Star Award Recipient: Racquel Kaizer, MD ’22
As a young child, a hematologist at the renowned Children’s Hospital in her adopted home of Minnesota changed Dr. Racquel Kaizer’s life. The experience and care she received from Dr. Stephen C. Nelson inspired her to go into medicine herself. Now years later, wrapping up her third year of residency in internal medicine and pediatrics at Adventhealth Redmond, Dr. Kaizer is headed home to Minnesota to accept a prestigious fellowship position in hematology-oncology at her self-proclaimed dream school, the University of Minnesota.
“He’s retired now, but Dr. Nelson was my hematologist and he saved me,” says Dr. Kaizer. “I always felt hematology-oncology was the only field that really made sense because of that. There’s a personal connection there so I always knew I wanted to specialize, and this was it.”
Tenaciousness to Achieve a Dream
Dr. Kaizer’s journey to medicine was less than straightforward. After immigrating from Liberia at age 13, she settled in Minnesota with her family, later attending the University of Wisconsin. Getting into medical school was a series of new hurdles especially with the University of Minnesota. “They put me on the wait list twice,” she recalls. “So it took a couple of tries and I didn’t get into med school right away.” Undeterred, Dr. Kaizer followed her passion for medicine and along the way discovered something else she excelled at: helping people.
“I had to figure a lot of things out on my own,” says Dr. Kaizer. “So if I can save someone else even ten minutes by passing something along, connecting them with the right people at AUC or helping to answer a question for them, I absolutely will. Helping others is the best way to say thank you.”
From Family Support to a Travel Wish List
Outside of work, Dr. Kaizer stays grounded by staying close to her family and community. She enjoys watching sports – especially Minnesota Vikings football – and finds joy in something completely different from medicine: cooking. “I cook just for fun,” she says. “But it really can help expand your perspective for all kinds of things.” Travel is another big priority when her studies settle down – both vacation and a trip back to Liberia with her mother someday. “Bali is also high on my list. My friends have been and loved it. And I want to go to Venice too— to do my own photo shoot on a boat. Maybe I’ll take a trip after the first year of my fellowship when I have more time.”
For Dr. Kaizer, recipient of AUC’s Alumni Resident Star Award, inspiration for her fast-moving career may have started with one man – Dr. Nelson – but success is really about the network of those around us. “Having a support system is essential,” she notes. “Family, people in school – I’ve been a blessed person to have those around me. And I want to be here to help others.”
