If practicing medicine is like solving puzzles, then Dr.
Rhonda L. (Cole) Shannon ’78 is a master at deciphering
how each piece fits together. As chief of pathology at St.
Luke’s Episcopal Hospital in Houston, Shannon uses skill
and experience to turn medical puzzles into solutions. It is
more than an intellectual exercise. The answers she discovers
change and save lives.
Rather than stethoscope and thermometer, Shannon’s
primary tools are microscope and slide.
Few patients know her as their doctor,
but Shannon and the staff she supervises
are involved in some aspect of the
care of nearly every one of the thousands
of patients who comes through
St. Luke’s each year.
“Every patient, or almost every
patient, at the hospital is going to have
some type of laboratory test when they
come into the hospital. The laboratory
is an integral part of making diagnoses,”
Shannon said. “We provide
services for almost every patient and
for almost every physician.”
In most cases, pathologists like
Shannon and her team have more
interaction with other physicians than
they do with patients. Unlike some
other medical specialties, pathology is
very much a laboratory-based discipline.
Shannon’s work in the St. Luke’s
laboratory has earned the respect of the
medical staff of more than 600 physicians
and given her a part in improving
the care of countless patients.
“The work itself is very challenging,”
she said. “There are many diseases
that I diagnose by looking at tissues
under a microscope. It’s a very
rewarding job to be able to make the
diagnosis so that the patient can get
the right treatment.”
Shannon has served as chief of
pathology and medical director of the
hospital’s pathology laboratory since
2000. She joined St. Luke’s in 1989
after completing medical school and a
residency at the University of Texas
Health Science Center in Houston and
a fellowship in surgical pathology at
M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. Since joining the St. Luke’s
staff, Shannon also has served as clinical associate professor
for the University of Texas Health Science Center in
Houston. She later added duties as an adjunct associate
professor for Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.
The opportunity to share her knowledge has been a
good experience, Shannon said. In her associate professor
role, she works with medical school graduates who are
working through what generally is a four-year residency in pathology.
During their pathology residency, Shannon works with the new doctors
to teach them how to make diagnoses and how to write pathology
reports that convey all the important information other doctors
will need to properly treat their patients. The new doctors are not the
only ones learning in the process.
“They certainly ask many questions, and being able to teach helps
pathologists stay up-to-date on the current pathology literature and
current technology so we can share the most current information with
residents,” Shannon said. “It provides an additional stimulus to stay
up-to-date on my own reading.”
Not that Shannon needs much prompting to continue exploring
her chosen field. The intellectual stimulation of the profession was
what first attracted Shannon to
medicine, and particularly to the
specialty of pathology. At Lamar
University, Shannon earned a bachelor’s
degree in medical technology, a
program offered through the biology
department. After graduation,
she worked as a medical technologist
at Baptist Hospital, primarily in
the blood bank. That exposure to a
pathology lab and to the pathologist
who worked there deepened her
interest and provided the push that
propelled her to medical school.
“While I was in medical school,
I did consider other specialties, but I
decided that pathology was the best
fit for me,” Shannon said. “I have
been very happy with that decision.”
Although pathology provides
little one-on-one interaction with
patients, it requires communication
with medical colleagues from a wide
spectrum of specialties. The staff at
St. Luke’s Hospital includes wellknown
physicians in numerous areas, including cardiovascular,
pulmonary and gastrointestinal specialties. Shannon has built solid
relationships with the hospital’s other doctors, as evidenced by her
election as chief of staff beginning in January 2006. She recently
completed her two-year term in the challenging volunteer position.
“The physicians here have an excellent reputation, so it’s been an
honor to serve as the chief of staff,” she said.
During her tenure, Shannon was responsible for ensuring that the
hospital maintained high quality medical care. She also oversaw the
implementation of new rules related to documentation for Medicare
and for the government agencies that regulate hospital accreditation.
“The physicians take care of the patients extremely well, but we
have to document everything we do in certain ways to show the evidence
that we’re doing what we need to be doing,” Shannon said.
Educating physicians about required changes to comply with new
rules was a primary focus of her time as chief of staff. “Sometimes it
means the physicians have to change the way they’ve practiced for
many years. It’s hard to change practices.”
In addition to those volunteer duties, Shannon maintained her
demanding long-term responsibilities for the hospital’s laboratory. In
2007, St. Luke’s had more than 33,000 admissions, more than 29,000
emergency room visits, more than 207,000 outpatient visits and performed
3.4 million lab tests.
Shannon believes the education she received in her hometown at
Lamar University prepared her for
the challenging career that followed.
“The specialty of medical
technology was very important in
providing me a good baseline for
learning medicine and pathology,”
she said. “The education in medical
technology was an excellent foundation
for my continued education.”
An education at Lamar
University has been an important
part of the life of just about every
member of Shannon’s family. Her
father, Melvin Cole ’65, received
the first doctoral degree ever
awarded by Lamar, a doctor of
engineering in 1973. Her mother,
Betty (Burns) Cole ’77, ’81, graduated
as an education major in the
1970s and returned later to earn a
master’s degree in history. Her sister,
Anita (Cole) Harman ’75, ’83,
earned bachelor’s and master’s
degrees in elementary education,
and her brother, Dr. Mel Cole Jr.
’77 is a surgeon practicing in Lufkin. Shannon’s husband, Ted
Shannon ’79, also graduated from Lamar University with a bachelor
of business administration degree. They met prior to enrolling as LU
students.
From her foundation at Lamar University, Shannon has built a
strong and respected career as the lead physician in the indispensable
laboratory of a bustling Houston hospital. Although she dedicates
many hours to training the next generation of pathologists, her own
work is nowhere near its end. She still has more patients waiting for
answers she can find by studying their tissues under a microscope,
more puzzles to be solved.
