Diving Into the Life of Family Practitioner Dr. Diana Sood

Recently, I got the wonderful opportunity to interview my medical terminology teacher at AHS, Dr. Sood. Dr. Sood was born in New Orleans and moved here in the late 1980s to get her B.S. in Biology at FIU. She attended Universidad Iberoamericao later on, where she earned her medical doctorate. 

She is a full-time teacher at American Heritage, teaching biology and medical classes, the co-director of the medical program and supervisor of 3 clubs, and the manager of Quick Family Urgent Care. “My life is crazy.” 

Since Dr. Sood is always so busy, we decided to have this interview after the HOSA meeting (one of the clubs she supervises) on Thursday, after school, in the student center. I was already interested in Dr. Sood's work because I also want to work in the medical field in the future. Still, after this interview, I was even more captivated.

When asked why she decided to pursue the career path she did, Dr. Sood said that she always wanted to teach. One of her dream goals was to teach medicine, so when Mrs. Joykutty was looking for someone to teach biology at AHS, she said, “Oh, I’m interested in teaching,” and took the job opening on a whim, not knowing that she would get it. 

She was interviewed and hired on the spot. As a child, Dr. Sood was interested in pediatrics. Still, she never really got into it because seeing all the sick kids upset her after working in the field at the Memorial Regional Hospital. She, herself, would sometimes get sick too. 

So, she began having an interest in orthopedics and cardio. After finishing high school, graduating from FIU, and getting her medical doctorate, she went on a different path. She learned about the business aspect of medicine and the different techniques that went along with it. During this time, she also researched and taught patients how to take better care of themselves. 

When Dr. Sood was in high school, they didn’t have a pre-med program like ours, so she learned a lot from her parents, who also worked in the same field. Her mother was a nurse, and her father worked with ultrasounds. Her mother always told her not to be a nurse but something higher. Dr. Sood always wanted to help people but never knew how.

At just 14 years old, Dr. Sood started working as a gopher for a chiropractor. Her parents weren’t wealthy, so to get the things she wanted, she decided to start working herself. She would keep half of the money for herself and give half of the money she earned to help her parents. From the work she did, she learned about insurance, filing, and different things in the office and eventually got into sales as well.

“Throughout my life, all the jobs I did made me who I am now. They taught me responsibility, how to take initiative and look at things in different aspects, and overall, how to be a better human being and business person.” 

Working as a cashier taught her how to make money, and helping out a chiropractor introduced her to the different types of people in the world. She even worked at a cosmetics place in her earlier years, teaching her how to do makeup, work, and interact with others. This surprised me because I could’ve never guessed that Dr. Sood had previously worked at a cosmetics store! 

Dr. Sood likes to do a little of everything, whether it be party planning or crafting, you name it. “If someone can’t do it, I’ll figure out how to do it and do it myself.” When asked about advice she would give someone looking to go into medicine, she said, “Stop, think again.” All jokes aside, she said that if you seriously want to work in the medical field, you should do what you can now. “Do everything now, learn as much as you can, and don’t wait. That way, it’ll be easier for you later on.”

Besides being a doctor and teacher, Dr. Sood is also the manager of Quick Family Urgent Care, a business started by her late husband. Ajay Sood was an urgent care physician who didn’t want anyone telling him what to do, so he started his own clinic. He passed away in 2020, and Dr. Sood has taken over and managed it ever since. 

For Dr. Sood, one of the toughest parts of the business is the employees and letting them go. She compares this to how if her students are succeeding, she’s succeeding as their teacher, but if they’re failing, she is as well.

“If they’re not helping you out, they’re hurting you. You have to find people that are good for your company to make it stronger. If they succeed, you succeed.” 

Throughout our interview, I could see a very different side of Dr. Sood compared to her usual stern but friendly personality in class. Even she has a softer side. The smile she showed me during this interview differed from her everyday smile. 

Dr. Sood is a very lively, light-hearted, and hardworking person. I can relate to her wanting to help others but not knowing how. Her advice and answers resonated with me, and I aspire to be like her when I grow up.