Day in the Life: Douglass Given
Each spring, the Medical & Biological Sciences Alumni Association sponsors the Day in the Life Program, which gives current medical students the opportunity to shadow Pritzker alumni in their professional lives during spring break. If you would like to participate in the Day in the Life Program or for more information about other student-alumni programs, please visit the Medical & Biological Sciences Alumni Association.
By Shashank Sinha, MS III
Sunday, March 18, 2007:
Shashank Singha and Dr. Douglass Given
After my plane taxies to the gate at San Francisco International Airport, I make my way to the baggage claim to meet Dr. Douglass Given, MD ‘80, PhD ‘79, MBA. Dr. Given attended Pritzker during the 1970s and became interested in scientific research during his second year. He joined Dr. Elliott Kieff’s lab and completed his PhD in Epstein-Barr virology in only three years. “I was very fortunate that things lined up so well for me,” Dr. Given reminisces over dinner. He completed both his MD and PhD after only 6 years of training, graduated with honors, and then matched in Internal Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital, where he also completed an Infectious Disease Fellowship. With a burgeoning academic career ahead of him, Dr. Given, after careful deliberation, decided to change course: “I noticed that some of my colleagues had already established a track record of obtaining RO1 grants during their formative years in medical school. So, I decided to go to Eli Lilly Pharmaceuticals (where he served as Medical Advisor and Vice-President).”
Dr. Given subsequently held positions in the upper echelons of management at Schering Plough Research Institute and at Monsanto/G.D. Searle Research Laboratories. Then, in his late 30s, he decided to pursue the Executive MBA program at University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton Business School. He is currently Chairman of VIA Pharmaceuticals, a drug development company focused on small molecules that target vascular inflammation pathways, and of Vivaldi Biosciences, an anti-viral and vaccine development company. In October 2000, Dr. Given joined Bay City Capital, a life sciences venture capital firm that manages $1 billion in total capital commitments across five investment funds, and now serves as an investment partner.
Monday, March 19, 2007:
We arrive at the office of VIA Pharmaceuticals for a 9:15 AM meeting with the company’s President and CEO, Dr. Larry Cohen. The big news this morning is a stunning announcement from AtheroGenics that its ARISE Phase III clinical trial of its lead drug candidate, AGI-1067, has failed to show a difference from placebo in its composite primary endpoint. Dr. Given and Dr. Cohen explore the implications for VIA-2291, VIA’s lead product candidate. They discuss and revise “talking points” to present their marketing strategy.
We then return to the office of Bay City Capital for the weekly staff meeting. As the team members seated at the table “run the list” of the more than 65 companies in Bay City Capital’s current portfolio, vagrant memories of my internal medicine teams running the list and delegating responsibilities meander through my mind.
Tuesday, March 20, 2007:
Dr. Given briefly prepares for a 90-minute teleconference presentation with a potential investor regarding a new drug development company that develops novel vaccines and antiviral agents for pandemic and annual influenza. He initiates the discussion by telling a story: “Stories tend to stick with people, so I like to tell them how the original idea was conceived.”
During the presentation, I marvel at Dr. Given’s consummate mastery of the art of persuasion. He credits the versatility of his medical training for his skills: “The communication skills you learn in medicine are readily transferable. By learning how to deliver a 1-minute presentation to an intern or consultant, a 3-minute presentation to your senior resident on work rounds, a 5-minute presentation to an attending, you learn how to present your arguments cogently and concisely.” After the presentation, I meet with several key members of Bay City Capital’s leadership team who explain the investment process in more detail.
Over the two days I spent as part of the Day in the Life Program, I developed a genuine appreciation for the manifold applications of medicine to an eclectic array of business enterprises. I was very fortunate to shadow an eminent University of Chicago alumnus, one whose illustrious professional achievements have only been surpassed by his love for his family and his insatiable passion for life.
