Going where the need is greatest every day comes with an expected amount of difficulty, but Dr. Alainya Tomanec does not shy away from confronting challenges head-on. As a wife, mother and eldest sister to six brothers growing up, Tomanec is no stranger to solving problems and has graciously accepted the roles she inhabits both in her personal and work life. Decisiveness, attention to detail and a lasting sense of empathy, she says, fill the gaps where practical knowledge simply isn’t always sufficient.
Born and raised in the rural areas of Alice and Orange Grove, Tomanec recalls her choice to go into medicine as one made from a practical standpoint of finding good work worth doing. The path indeed proved worth it, especially as she progressed into medical school at Texas A&M University, where she began to find her practice niche and community with colleagues.
As a full life—among her practice, a husband and a family—quickly took root, Tomanec’s path led her back to the Coastal Bend, where she currently serves as Program Director of the Emergency Medicine Residency program, as well as the Associate Medical Director, at Spohn Shoreline.
While leadership was not something Tomanec had readily considered at the beginning of her career, it has proven a catalyst for positive change in line with her sense of advocacy, for her patients and her team.
Tomanec describes the group of emergency medicine residents—36 of whom she oversees each year—and attendings as a tight-knit family of adrenaline junkies with whom even most micro-expressions speak many words. While certain pockets of job satisfaction might be found on the floor tending to patients, she said teaching opened up another door to something she never expected to be so fulfilling. In seeing where residents shine and offering them insight, she finds invaluable opportunities to plant seeds and watch them grow.
Tomanec’s readiness to take on different roles has also made her a vital asset in assessing, improving and in some cases protecting the hospital’s programming and operations. Last year, Nueces County Hospital District and the CHRISTUS Spohn Health System reversed their decision to close the doors on the Emergency Residency Program. The initiative to save the program was led by Tomanec and her leadership colleagues, who argued extensively that such a decision would be detrimental to both the medical community and the wider community.
A survey conducted by the Nueces County Medical Society of all physicians in the area found 40% had plans to retire in the next five years, massively affecting the already dwindling healthcare resources in the Coastal Bend. With figures like this in mind, Tomanec highlighted the necessity of working to retain providers in our region, especially those at the beginning of their careers and with a lifetime of service ahead of them.
“We love the program and we love teaching. But really what we were concerned about was how it would impact the care and the community,” Tomanec said. “We’re all passionate about [the program] because we all live here. Specifically, I didn’t want to see anything go backward in the region, because I grew up here. I’ve seen the healthcare landscape change, and we’re not where it needs to be anyway. We don’t need any steps backward; we only need steps forward.”
For all the stress and potential heartbreak the experience brought, Tomanec said she and her team felt energized to do more. Their circumstances only stood for an instance of what could realistically happen to other programs—something they hope to help avoid by providing insight through action plans and policy writing. The importance of having people across departments and disciplines meet on the same grounds of understanding was a key finding for them; and at the end of the day, being able to provide care and meet patients’ needs took focus.
As a woman in medicine, Tomanec acknowledges it is a jarring truth that she may often be the only woman in many rooms, especially in a leadership role, but has come to embrace the strengths of her perspective.
“Women are much more impactful from an emotional perspective than men are; that ability exists,” she said. “We have different levels of insight. If you’re not the majority in the room, then you have a special perspective that doesn’t otherwise exist. So, I try to tell [residents] that you need to capitalize on that.” Tomanec expressed gratitude that by watching her succeed in medicine and leadership, her two daughters will never expect anything less to be the norm.
Keeping a balanced life with room for self-care is no easy feat, but Tomanec is conscientious about even the finest details in her days. With a steady eye on the present, she finds worth in tackling each day, one task at a time. She tries to begin her day with a drive down Ocean Drive, uplifting herself by listening to hymns. To end the day in the same place she started, she often plans time to talk to someone she loves. Tomanec says the process of reaching for certain things and letting others go is one she has become willingly accustomed to—focusing on what fills her calendar today as opposed to tomorrow helps her to move forward with the constant goal in mind.
“We want people to be able to get good health care here; we need accessibility,” she stressed. “We have a lot of work to do. We don’t just focus on recruiting ER positions, we need specialty and primary care, too. It’s one of the basic things you have to have in town. You have to be able to stay here and get good medical care when you need it.”
Tomanec’s transcendent dedication to her field has proven a vital asset for the community—she’s a strong advocate for expanding the future of medicine and healthcare in the region for every individual who calls the Coastal Bend home.
