Justine Pierre Toussaint

“If you know what you want, no one can take that away from you. Get people to support you .”

(Excerpt from an interview with Dr. Rose-Marie Toussaint, Liver and kidney transplant surgeon, Author, and Holistic Integrative Healing practitioner and advocate)
Florida, USA

At the age of seven, I already knew I wanted to become a physician. My mother was happy about that.   I lived in Haiti until I was 13. When you're in Haiti, everyone is black. We don't have the system they have in the US.  I was raised knowing that our doctors were black and our lawyers were black. 

So we moved to Miami at age 13. I was in Miami Edison High school for about a year and a half. My last two years I went to another school and then it was time to look at prospects for my College education.  My mom said, “You need to go over and talk to the counselor about you getting in to a medical school. Then let me know what happens.”

I went and did that. I told our school’s counselor that my plan is to become a physician. She looked at me and said, “You’re from Haiti, you don't speak English very well. There’s a technical school you can go to so you can become like a technician or you could maybe take up nursing. That would be good for you instead of going to college.” I was flabbergasted. I think I was maybe 16 or 17, and I'm like what do you mean? And the counselor said,“ I think that's the best part for you”. I went home crying in disbelief and told my mom what happened.

My mom asked me to stop crying.  She reminded me that I’ve been wanting to be physician since age 7 and that no one can take that away from me. My mom insisted that I go back and tell the counselor again what I want for College and that I will not accept any redirection. My mom reminded me that I was not going to accept the option of a two year college and assured me that if I have to go out of State, we would figure something out. She also said that she would talk to the counselor’s boss.

So I went back to the counselor, did what my mother said, and she had already found me a Catholic College in New Orleans. I am certain my mom called maybe the principal and we both got the support we needed.  Without my mom instilling this in me at the tender age of 16 or 17, I probably would have listened to this lady and that could have limited my career opportunities.

“If you know what you want, no one can take that away from you. Get people to support you.” It was in that moment where this advice from my mom became very clear to me and this has empowered me all throughout my life.

Fast forward to today, I’m probably still the only female Haitian liver and kidney transplant surgeon in the United States. I also did general surgery for a little bit and also got into family practice. And now my passion is to create a team that will build a holistic, integrative healing center. I am also an author of a book called “Never Question the Miracle: A Surgeon’s Story” and now in the final stages of finishing my second book which would probably be entitled “Peace In the Midst of Chaos”. 

Another area where my mom was very instrumental in my life is in my spirituality. I grew up wanting to be a nun, always drawn to prayer and excited about going to church and participating in religious practices. I thought being in a Catholic College was perfect for me. Surprisingly during my College years in a Catholic School in New Orleans, I felt uncomfortable and I shared this with my mom. My mom gave me 2 books to read that opened my eyes to something else possible with my spirituality, something that I truly got deeply connected with. It was life changing. I became a member of the Christian Order by the time I finished college.

While I grew up being religious, my wonderful spiritual journey began with my mom. That was a tremendous contribution in my life. Everything I do today is connected to my spirituality.