Janet Shen MD, PhD, FAAP
Dr. Shen was born in Hong Kong and moved to Tokyo, Japan with her family when she was five years old. She was a nerdy kid who loved math, reading, and music, but her fondest childhood memories include roaming the neighborhood with her brother, commuting to school on overcrowded subways, playing field hockey on a small rutted field, and running on the streets during rush hour traffic for track practice. She always aspired to study in the US, encouraged by her parents who told her about the "land of opportunities". At 17, she got on a plane with one suitcase and a pair of skis to start college at Stanford University (she was not familiar with the California climate). Little did she know that she would spend the next 14 years at Stanford. She earned her BA in Human Biology and PhD in Neuroscience before starting medical school. Although she was drawn to academic medicine at first, volunteering at a homeless shelter and working with immigrant families made her realize she wanted to practice primary care medicine. She completed her residency training in Pediatrics at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford.
Dr. Shen moved up to Alaska in 1995 with her husband, who was born and raised in Anchorage, and their five-month-old twin daughters. She has been at The Children's Clinic ever since. Her son was born in 1997 and, two weeks later, she held him in her arms as she fulfilled her dream and became a naturalized US citizen. She has made Alaska her home and sees her colleagues at TCC as her second family. She loves the intimate feel of the practice and enjoys getting to know her patients and their families and feels privileged to be a part of their lives.
One of the highlights of Dr. Shen's career was a mission trip to a Chinese orphanage for medically fragile children. It highlighted the disparity in medicare care in different parts of the world and reminded her to always be appreciative of her life in "the land of opportunities". Outside of work, Dr. Shen loves to be outdoors, watch her children "adult", travel to warm places, and share good food with friends and family.
Dr. Shen moved up to Alaska in 1995 with her husband, who was born and raised in Anchorage, and their five-month-old twin daughters. She has been at The Children's Clinic ever since. Her son was born in 1997 and, two weeks later, she held him in her arms as she fulfilled her dream and became a naturalized US citizen. She has made Alaska her home and sees her colleagues at TCC as her second family. She loves the intimate feel of the practice and enjoys getting to know her patients and their families and feels privileged to be a part of their lives.
One of the highlights of Dr. Shen's career was a mission trip to a Chinese orphanage for medically fragile children. It highlighted the disparity in medicare care in different parts of the world and reminded her to always be appreciative of her life in "the land of opportunities". Outside of work, Dr. Shen loves to be outdoors, watch her children "adult", travel to warm places, and share good food with friends and family.