Marla Haller, D.O., Class of 1993
One of the most important aspects of WVSOM’s culture is its emphasis on the “WVSOM family.” Members of the WVSOM family — which encompasses students, faculty and staff — support each other when needed, as one’s personal family would.
Marla Haller, D.O., admits that the WVSOM family seemed like an idyllic concept that admissions counselors shared with prospective students to make the medical school seem more appealing. However, in Haller’s second year of medical school, she realized that the WVSOM family was as supportive as it claimed to be.
The support came after Haller was pregnant with her son, Nathaniel, who had complications at birth. He was transported from LewisGale Hospital Alleghany in Low Moor, Va., to Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital and was later flown to the former Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, D.C. He was placed on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation in the neonatal intensive care unit.
The special care her child required subsequently forced Haller to make a decision about her medical education.
“I notified the school that I had my son but we didn’t know whether he was going to live,” she said. “I had to decide whether I was going to have to take a leave of absence from school or if the school was going to support me staying on with my class. I didn’t want to sit out a year or take a significant leave of absence. I didn’t want to quit medical school. There was no way I was going to do that.”
She said that she asked WVSOM’s president at the time, Olen E. Jones Jr., Ph.D., and dean, James Stookey, D.O., to allow her to continue with the curriculum and stay on schedule.
“I told them, ‘I promise I will study hard and do my best. I want to graduate with my class. Just please allow me to do that.’ After pleading my case, I will never forget Dr. Stookey said, ‘Marla, I swear you could sell a rusted old rattle trap off a used car lot for full price.’ And they allowed me to stay and continue with my class,” the family practice physician said.
Being able to graduate with her classmates was important to Haller. After spending significant time studying with each other, Haller said, students develop bonds with one another and become a part of each other’s lives.
“Feeling as though your classmates are also your extended family was vitally important,” she said. “That was a key factor in staying on track along with wanting to get through medical school. I wanted to get to that next step, that next level. I wanted to graduate and be a physician who utilized the knowledge and education that I was gifted and be able to share that with patients and make a difference in peoples’ lives.”
Medical school is difficult, and having a child’s health issue to deal with can make it more challenging. Haller said that her education temporarily involved a type of distance learning: picking up cassette tapes of recorded class lectures to listen to at the hospital in Washington, D.C., by her son’s side. She’d return to campus to take exams based on her notes from the taped lectures and the notes of classmates. She also received “bedside learning” from the team at Children’s National Medical Center, who knew she was a medical student.
Haller appreciated the caring WVSOM professors and an empathetic group of leaders. The touted “WVSOM family” that she questioned at the time of her medical school admission left no doubt in her mind about its existence.
“The school and my professors saw my dedication, and I knew how dedicated they were to the success of each student, no matter what the situation was. Because they wanted each student to be successful, they would help in any way that they could to allow us to finish our schooling and become alumni of WVSOM,” Haller said.
Haller received a surprise the week of her graduation when she was awarded the Dr. William R. Holmes Scholarship for overcoming adversity while in school. She attributes her fortitude to her religious beliefs.
“Those who know me know my Christian faith. It is that faith that I rely on in every aspect of my life to get me through tough times. Many people will go through tough times and may feel like quitting, but don’t. No matter what the circumstance is, you can be an overcomer,” she said. Haller, who graduated with her class in 1993, is WVSOM’s Statewide Campus Central West regional assistant dean.