Never mind that she was female and 36 — Dr. Betty MacRae had it in her head that she wanted to be a neurosurgeon, and nothing was going to stop her. Not even the fact that it was 1977 and there were no other women practising in the specialty in Canada.
Even her father was cautious in his support, telling her she was taking a job away from a man.
MacRae and a Manitoba physician went on to become Canada's first female neurosurgeons, but the other doctor moved to the US, leaving MacRae alone in the male-dominated field. Today she practises at the Foothills Medical Centre and Alberta Children's Hospital, and is an associate professor in the Department of Neuroscience at the University of Calgary.
“There were obstacles but I chose to ignore them,” she recalls. “The biggest obstacle is yourself.”
That's proved to be a winning philosophy. Her dreams have also led her to the job of consulting physician with the Canadian Alpine Ski Team, a posting that developed because of her interest in sports and, more recently, in extreme sports. So far she's gone heli-skiing, mountain climbing, bungee jumping, bobsledding and skydiving. “My husband says I have rocks in my head,” jokes MacRae, 61.
Not surprisingly, her undergraduate degree was in physical education. She graduated from medical school in 1968 and completed a residency in endocrinology, followed by a year in internal medicine and a few years in family practice. In 1977 she began a fellowship in neurology and quickly realized she wanted to be a neurosurgeon.
One neurosurgeon said there was no way she could do it: she was too old and, even more damming, female.
But Dr. Tom Morley, then chief of neurosurgery in Toronto, was supportive. “I could see the quality of her work and her staying power in the 3-month rotation she had done in neurosurgery,” says Morley, now retired. She got into the program.
In 1982, she moved to Calgary, where her sister and best friend lived. She met her husband, psychiatrist David Miyauchi, on a golf course. “I almost beaned him,” she laughs.
About 5 years ago she went back to school to earn her diploma in sports medicine. She considers sports medicine and neurosurgery an ideal combination. “I see a lot of people with neck and back injuries or concussions.”
As for neurosurgery, MacRae considers it one of medicine's most rewarding fields. “I love the teaching, the patients and the work. I like doing something technical with my hands.”
The work can also prove inspirational. “One of my patients who has a slow-growing tumour told me, ‘You can die at 30 and have your funeral at 70.’
“It is more important to give life to your years than years to your life.” — Penelope Johnston, Toronto