Computers, Lemurs, and Veterans: the story of a TVHS Physician

Dr. David Scott Trochtenberg, physician and clinic supervisor at the Charlotte Ave. Clinic in Nashville, has worked with Veterans at VA for more than 10 years. Honored as one of the physicians of the month for Tennessee Valley Healthcare System (TVHS), Trochtenberg or “Dr. T” as his patients refer to him, has had quite a storied life and career.

American College of Physicians faculty member, Master of Science in clinical investigation degree holder, and former Meharry Medical College Assistant Dean - all are accomplishments of Trochtenberg. If that wasn't impressive enough, he has completed stints as an ER provider at Memorial Hospital in Madison, Tennessee, along with working in his own private practice. Surprisingly, his patients have been men, women and even a few animals.

“For a time, I was a medical adviser to the Nashville Zoo,” he said with a smile. “I did that for six years, performing a lumbar puncture on a lemur after an abnormal brain MRI and receiving a scratch on my hand from a snow leopard.”

For Trochtenberg, he always wanted to pursue a medical career. His father, who was in the U.S. Army Reserve, encouraged him to get a university education. Diversifying his studies, he took college classes in computer science at Brown University that gave him access to one of the first virtual machines or advanced computers at the time. Another series of studies, aside from his pre-med courses, were Greek culture and philosophy – he got hooked on the heroes in Greek and Roman mythology. The lessons and skills he learned during his Greek studies would heavily influence his ability to succeed in the medical field.

“I took a Greek course where we took fragments of statues and inscriptions that survived and came up with the history of democracy. That ability to take bits and pieces here and there have made me a very good clinician. Someone can have a lab test here and a weird symptom there, and my brain knows how to put that together in a picture,” he said, highlighting his art studies for assessing situations and issues to reach accurate diagnoses.

Growing up, Trochtenberg admired the general surgeon of both the St. Louis Cardinals baseball team and St. Louis Blues hockey team as his hero. With this inspiration, Trochtenberg’s career aspirations was to become a surgeon. Trochtenberg was able to meet his hero, who demonstrated exceptional assessment skills by diagnosing Trochtenberg, after the surgeon’s dog jumped on his belly, with acute appendicitis. Witnessing the ability and skill to identify issues and concerns to help someone had sealed the deal for what path Trochtenberg would lead.

Besides the litany of different locations and achievements, Trochtenberg has served in different clinical positions during his more than 30 years of working within the medical field. He has worked with TVHS as a medical student with Vanderbilt University and while working at Meharry, but he officially joined the ranks as an employee of TVHS 10 years ago. During his time at TVHS, he has enjoyed working with Veterans and has helped TVHS to strive to develop innovative ways to provide the best support to Veterans in person, over the phone, and even on screen.

“The VA pioneered tele-medicine before anyone else in the country,” he said. “Because I thought it was cool, I became one of the first alpha-testers in Tennessee Valley and also became one of the first to pursue video visits.”

Trochtenberg assisted the program anytime there were bugs with the system; something that his analytical studies and classes in computer science provided support. He was proud to be the guy that went through the first iteration or two of video connect to provide another form of care for Veterans.

It has been the same kind of drive to support his patients during his practices in the past, and Veterans today, that motivates him to find ways to connect with Veterans in person, over the phone, and through video appointments. Even after catching COVID-19, Trochtenberg utilized tele-medicine to work with Veterans to provide them with care and support.

“I did telephone medicine on oxygen for a month [and] a half! Then when I got off oxygen, I went back to video medicine,” he said, as he recounted that it took nearly a year for him to recover enough from COVID-19 to return to the clinic to see patients. It was his determination for the Veterans, and the support of his co-workers, that encouraged him to return.

This support to Veterans has been a two-way road. Trochtenberg has learned something new about the military and the people who join through every Veteran he has met. One thing that impressed him was how physically demanding and capable some of the Veterans are after serving.

“I couldn’t understand how a 28-year-old’s knees could be [so worn down] with a normal x-ray,” he said, remembering the story. “But not for Veterans that have been jumping out of [High Mobility Multi-Wheeled Vehicle] with full equipment! I didn’t get it at first as a non-military person.”

Trochtenberg has lived and worked a storied life that spans multiple positions, jobs, locations, and studies. He has endeavored to provide care and support to everyone that he meets. It is a journey that has earned him accolades, but most important to him is the well-being and the health of the Veterans that come across his phone, his screen, or into his room at the Charlotte Ave. VA Clinic.

After more than 30 years in the medical field, he is not slowing down. Providing care, candor, and support is what continues to drive “Dr. T” to help the next Veteran.

“What gratifies me the most is when a Veteran asks, ‘you're not leaving, are you?’,” Trochtenberg said. “I find that the most gratifying because that's an extra compliment that not only are they thankful for what you've done, but they're implying that they'll be thankful in the future.”