Dr. Gary W. Floyd, a Keller pediatrician, officially became the Texas Medical Association’s 157th president on April 30. The Texas Medical Association has more than 56,000 physician and medical student members and is the nation's largest state medical society. Floyd has been heavily involved in the TMA throughout his 43-year medical career. He responded to questions from Community Impact Newspaper about his career and his new role. Answers have been edited for length and clarity.
Talk about your journey from medical school to Texas Medical Association president. After graduating from University of Texas Medical Branch-Galveston (UTMB), I completed my pediatric residency at Children’s Hospital of Oklahoma. ... After five years in [a private general pediatric] practice, I was recruited to return to Children’s Hospital of Oklahoma as a faculty member in the department of pediatrics, where I served for five years. ... I was then recruited to Fort Worth to build an emergency department in the new Cook Children’s Medical Center. I served as medical director of emergency services for 15 years, then as medical director of urgent care centers and government affairs for five years. I was then recruited to be chief medical officer and executive vice president for medical affairs for Tarrant County Hospital District (John Peter Smith Health Network) where I served for five years. I then served as executive vice president of medical affairs and government relations for another two years. Since then, I am self-employed.
Talk about your connection to the Keller community. My wife of 47 years and I have lived in the Keller community for 33 years; we are members of First Baptist Church Keller, where I serve as a deacon, and we both serve as Bible study teachers. We raised two daughters through the Keller ISD system. Both are married, and we have three grandsons, ages 13, 6 and 8 months. My professional and practice life has been connected to Tarrant County Medical Society, where I am a past president, as well as through my work at Cook Children’s Medical Center and JPS Health Network.
How does your background help in your role as association president? TMA is a membership organization that serves all physicians and the patients they care for. ... My experience helps me better understand the origins of their concerns and frustrations. I am and will be a staunch supporter of—and advocate for—practicing physicians and for the sanctity of the relationship between patients and physicians, which is what both expect and deserve.
