|
Katherine A. Abbott, M.D., is dedicated
to ensuring that Louisville Area Pediatrics will be a
source of friendly, reliable health care for local
families for decades to come.
Dr. Abbott enters this exciting
new chapter of her life on the heels of a lengthy and
fruitful association with Springs
Pediatrics. Back in 1989, she started working at Springs
as a file clerk. She was fortunate enough to find a
valuable mentor there in Dr. Glenn Stoutt. Administering
allergy shots to patients became her primary duty over
time, and gave her a chance to experience the joy of
patient care long before she would get to as a
physician! While her studies required her to quit in
1994, she returned several times to complete various
medical rotations. In 1998, she worked there as a
moonlighting physician before accepting an offer to join
full-time the following year. In 2006, in the wake of a
stroke (caused by an auto-immune disease; she had no
significant risk factors or heart disease and was only
38 years old), she recognized and was advised that it
would be better for her health to scale back some and
find a situation that could better accommodate her needs
but allow her to continue to practice medicine.
Ultimately this resulted in a 6 month break from patient
care and the formation of Louisville Area Pediatrics PSC
... a two doctor, first floor facility with heavy
reliance on electronic medical records and other
computer conveniences!
Dr Abbott's health issues, along
with her personal struggles with ADD (now treated) and
learning differences (including a significant math
disability) makes her an ideal choice for families
needing guidance, referrals, or even just an
understanding perspective. She is very committed to
ensuring that her patients (and their families) receive
the help they deserve while recognizing that being
"different" can be a good thing ... and that it
certainly doesn't prevent anyone from accomplishing
their goals!
In general, Dr. Abbott likes to
make doctor visits and treatments as easy on her
patients as possible. It is well known that she
"taste-tests" any medication she’s thinking of giving,
and if there is a medically sound option to something
that is "yucky," that is what she is going to use! She
doesn’t expect your child to gulp down anything she
herself cannot stand, unless she has found something
that will make it at least palatable! She also is a
proponent of using "magic cream" (EMLA TM )
or cold spray for children 4 years old and up to minimize the
discomfort of injections ... especially those who are
extremely fearful, and also has developed ways to help
decrease the trauma of the dreaded strep test throat
swabs. While she can't guarantee that your child won't
have some discomfort at times, she enjoys the challenge
of finding ways to limit such!
In addition to seeing patients, she
serves as medical supervisor for Dyslexia Solutions,
Inc., a non-profit group which has developed special
glasses designed to make reading easier, glasses which
she herself finds useful. Form more information about
this,
CLICK HERE
to link to the website.
 Dr. Abbott has been
science-oriented since she was young, working on all
kinds of experiments and projects in the basement of the
family home. In eighth grade, her science fair
project was accidentally judged in the high school
category – and won! Unfortunately, once the error was
discovered, rules dictated that she could not move on to
the National Level. She attended Central High School in
Louisville, as a "voluntary transfer" for 4 years,
graduating in 1986. She received her B.A. in biology
from the University of Louisville, where she also
attended medical school. She completed her internship
and residency in pediatrics at Kosair Children’s
Hospital in 1999.
She has a strong artistic background. She enjoys doing pen and ink
sketches, watercolor paintings and needlepoint. She
found a way to combine her artistic skills with her
father's passion for computers by creating and
maintaining (until Jan. 2007) the first website for
Springs Pediatrics, along with it's logo, and is in the
process of doing the same for Louisville Area Pediatrics
PSC. She is also an enthusiastic gardener. Pets include
freshwater fish and chinchillas. After the recent
passing of her 11 year old grey standard
chinchilla, she has opted to replace him with three new
ones ... all born in July of 2007. The new additions
have been named Razzle and Dazzle, and Puff.
Dr. Abbott is very grateful for all
of the support she received as she worked to recuperate
from her stroke. Looking on the bright side, the
warfarin she takes to stay "stroke-free" gives her a
dandy excuse to avoid eating most dark green vegetables,
which she never really liked anyway! Of course, she does
not recommend having a stroke just to avoid
eating vegetables ... They’re normally very good for
you! However, if you would like more information on
Stroke Prevention and Dr. Remmel (a medical school
classmate of both Dr. Lanning and Abbott)
CLICK HERE.
By knowing the warning signs, and what to do if they
occur to you or someone you love, you have a much better
chance of minimizing the damage a stroke can cause! Dr.
Abbott is a perfect example of the truth behind Dr.
Remmel's "Time Saved is Brain Saved" campaign ... and
while it is not a pediatric problem, per se, a stroke
affects more than just the person who has it ... making
it worth mentioning here! |
