Amalia Nastase's Interview with Dr. Alexander Marmureanu

Dr. Alexander Marmureanu, one of the best cardiothoracic surgeons in California, was recently invited to Mrs. Amalia's show "Wait, what?" He talked about his career as a cardiothoracic surgeon, and about his passions. Although Dr. Marmureanu considers medicine to be his foremost passion, he very much enjoys leisure activities such as tennis, windsurfing, skiing, and competitive car racing. Dr. Marmureanu is the Chief of Cardiothoracic Surgery in a couple of hospitals, he is the founder of the California Heart & Lung Surgery Medical Center, he is invited to teach and perform surgeries in different countries. In this interview, he explains how he maintains the balance between his profession and his personal life. The key is that he always finds time for things he really wants to do, even if he performs hundreds of surgeries every year. Talking with enthusiasm about his passion for cars, he mentions that he is the only civilian in LA who has a military car, an AM Hammer.

During the conversation, Dr. Marmureanu speaks about how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the work of medical professionals. He explains that given the current situation, it's more difficult to operate. Even if they mostly take emergency cases to prevent contamination with coronavirus, many patients who are hospitalized with negative COVID-19 tests, after a week are tested positive, thus it is difficult for doctors to protect themselves. Mrs. Amalia points out the differences between the doctors in Romania and the ones in the U.S. In the U.S. a doctor needs to be professional, but also friendly and available for his patients. Dr. Marmureanu, a charismatic personality himself, expresses his belief that only a doctor with a positive attitude can earn the trust of his patients. Being asked about the Romanian healthcare situation at this moment, Dr. Marmureanu answered that in his opinion, Romania has very good specialists, but there is a need for a major change in the Romanian medical system.