Pediatric Oncologist Dr. Joana Mack: "I'm Not Bossy, I'm the Boss"

Dr. Joana Mack has been called "bossy" her whole career — in training, at work, even by her own mom. Now, she just says it back differently: "I'm not bossy, I'm the boss."Dr. Mack is a board-certified pediatric hematologist-oncologist, NIH-funded researcher, and mother of five daughters, practicing at Arkansas Children's Hospital and UAMS. In this conversation with Dr. David Spiro, she opens up about the everyday bias she still encounters as a woman in medicine, how artificial intelligence is reshaping (and sometimes eroding) communication between doctors, why she's stopped chasing "work-life balance" in favor of "work-life integration," and the rituals — prayer, permission to cry, a trampoline park at midnight — that get her through the hardest days of treating children with cancer. She also shares a story from Dr. Todd Maxson's Grand Rounds that changed how she trains the next generation of physicians, and reflects on how far childhood leukemia survival has come in her lifetime, from a near-certain death sentence to roughly 90% remission today.(00:00) Cold Open: "I Went to the Trampoline Park"(00:16) Welcome & Meet Dr. Joana Mack(01:51) Called "Bossy" Her Whole Life(02:44) "I'm Not Bossy, I'm the Boss"(03:59) Balancing 4 Jobs and 5 Daughters(07:06) Staying Present as a Working Mom(08:51) The Email That Calls Everyone "Doctor" Except Her(10:47) Naming Unconscious Bias at Work(13:26) Being a Role Model for the Next Generation(16:08) AI in Medicine: Efficiency vs. Connection(19:14) From "Google Parents" to AI-Informed Parents(20:28) Prioritizing Herself and Her Marriage(25:16) Phones, Sleep, and Circadian Disruption(29:19) Why She Pours Into Medical Students(30:42) Dr. Todd Maxson's Grand Rounds Story(36:22) From a Death Sentence to 90% Survival(38:49) How She Copes: Prayer, Tears, and the Trampoline Park(42:08) A Prayer Circle in the ER(47:00) The Village That Makes It Possible(49:54) Closing ThoughtsThis episode is also available on video on YouTube and Apple Podcasts. Follow HuMed so you never miss an episode.