Jennifer Pratt, MD, spent over a year receiving chemotherapy at St. Paul-based Children's Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota when she was 11 years old, and 20 years later, she works as a physician at the same hospital, according to CNN.
As she received treatment to cure her osteosarcoma, Dr. Pratt decided she would one day work at the same hospital where clinicians worked tirelessly to treat her. Dr. Pratt, now a hospitalist at Children's, received her medical degree from Chicago-based Midwestern University.
"I have always wanted to work at Children's," Dr. Pratt told CNN. "They put kids first, and that's really where my values are aligned to. [Working here] is a dream come true."
Dr. Pratt said her own experience as a patient helps her compassionately care for children who are going through the same ordeal.
"It's a unique experience … and just feeling the sense of understanding and being able to relate with other children that are going through a serious illness," Dr. Pratt told CNN. "I think that it's important to stay positive and always look to the future."