Pulmonary Pitfalls: An Appreciation of Professor Thomas L. Petty

Guest Commentary
Introducing a New CONSULTANT Series
Pulmonary Pitfalls: An Appreciation of Professor Thomas L. Petty

Thomas L. Petty was wrong. People who die are not quickly forgotten.¹

Dr Petty was a pioneer. He defined and redefined clinical and academic excellence in medicine and health care in his indomitable way. From asthma to ARDS, from COPD to oxygen therapy and pulmonary rehabilitation, from tuberculosis to lung cancer, Dr Petty advanced our knowledge with his experiences.

Dr Petty was among the first to expound on the importance of patient education in chronic lung diseases. He understood the pain and suffering endured by patients with chronic lung diseases, particularly COPD. Taking control of life again was a recurring theme in his musings, writings, and lectures.

Dr Petty recognized the importance of a multi-disciplinary approach to pulmonary research, education, and patient care. He was honored in 1990 when the Aspen Lung Conference was named The Thomas L. Petty Aspen Lung Conference. We will never forget lines such as “Treat status asthmaticus 3 days before it occurs” (1989), or direct challenges to our viewpoints such as “Computer or human interaction?” (1987). Yet he still had time to conceive and edit “Pulmonary Q & A” for Consultant because the format probably brought him back to his favorite way of teaching.

Dr Petty was a mentor to anyone who would listen: not only to physicians, nurses, and respiratory therapists at the University of Colorado Health Science Center and those at the internationally renowned National Jewish Medical and Research Center in Denver, Colorado, but to the international medical community. Very few professors leave indelible impressions at the very first encounter. A warm smile and a sparkling glint in the eyes can go far to capture an audience. Dr Glen Lillington immediately comes to mind when thinking of these qualities. Dr Petty had the gift too and much more. He had true grit: courage, fearlessness, and guts.

Dr Petty was the only professor invited twice to lecture at the prestigious Sacramento Valley Lung Club in Old Sacramento in 1990 and again in 2000. It was here at the Lung Club that I met Tom and understood firsthand his greatness and unpretentiousness. He made certain that his less extraordinary friends and colleagues in pulmonary and critical care medicine felt as important and empowered as he was. His presence was inspiring!

Dr Nicholas J. Kenyon and I hope that “Pulmonary Pitfalls” will continue the tradition of excellence in education in Consultant that Dr Petty inaugurated. We launch the series with “The Case of the Coughing Obstetrician.” Future topics will include:

•Dyspnea: an efficient approach to the workup.
•Cough: what’s normal, what’s not.
•New treatments for early and late COPD.
•Ten tips to help distinguish COPD from asthma.
•Treating pneumonia: what you need to know about antibiotic resistance.

With expert discussion of these topics in pulmonary and critical care medicine interspersed with pithy case studies, we hope to inspire our readership to not forget the past and to embrace a better future educating and caring for our patients who live with lung diseases.