You are board certified in anesthesiology and in emergency medicine and you continue to work as both an anesthesiologist and an emergency physician, with an academic position at the University of Illinois College of Medicine Peoria. How have these dual experiences in terms of specialty and setting (clinical/academic) informed your approach to legislation on medical issues and patient care?
Well, in my opinion there definitely should be a physician or at least a medical person in every state house in the country. Being a physician enables me to give other legislators a realistic idea of what is happening in health care and how the laws affect our practices, and offer my perspective on health care legislation. That's been a good thing for Illinois, I believe. Most health care legislation is actually really bipartisan, and when we as physicians are part of the process we are actually helping our patients and increasing access to health care for so many people.
Somehow you manage represent your district in the state legislature while continuing to practice medicine and even serving as an assistant director for a new anesthesiology residency program. That’s a lot! How do you balance the various demands on your professional time?
Well, that is a testament to my family as well as to my private practice partners. Anesthesiology is a 24/7 specialty and during session I am able to moves some of my practice to weekends and evenings. Additionally, there are post-call days, trades with partners, and vacation days to make it work. The Illinois General Assembly meets a few days each week, January through May. I have so many people ask how I can practice medicine and also be a State Representative, and I always respond, "How can I not do it?" It's really important work and another way to help our patients.
What about work/life balance? What do you do to unwind?
I own some properties that we can get away to. We love to travel. There are some sport teams I follow closely, including the St. Louis Cardinals and University of Illinois. Other than that, we love to do things with our five kids and they're in the stage of getting married, buying houses, and hopefully having grandkids soon!
Is there anything else you’d like to talk about that we haven’t yet touched on?
I always like to talk about physician advocacy at the state and federal level. I think physicians undersell themselves as advocates for our profession. State and federal legislators want to hear from physicians and from medical societies. Our voice is so respected and crucial to legislators. And as I've said before, when we advocate for our specialties we are really advocating for our patients and for patient safety.
Dr. William Hauter is a dual board-certified anesthesiologist and emergency medical doctor. He is also a member of many Illinois and 87th District organizations, including the Morton Chamber of Commerce and the Illinois Farm Bureau. He has been married to his wife Shelley for 30 years, and they have five children together.
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