The Uphill River The Memoir of a Boy Chosen by God and the Universe to Become a Physician written by Bruce R. Kelly, M.D.

   Bruce R. Kelly, M.D. grew up in a blue-collar family in Creighton, PA. He had one brother, Robert W. Kelly and for seemingly different reasons, they both became physicians. They were the first college graduates in their immediate family. Bruce met his soulmate, Dolly Caldwell at Harmarville Rehabilitation Center when he was an orderly and she was an LPN. They married his senior year of college, and she has been his more-than-understanding partner for forty-eight years. With minimal help from him, she raised three children - two of whom became physicians and one a cyber security analyst. They have five grandchildren ranging from three to sixteen years old. As his niece explained to a mutual friend, Bruce was more artsy and his brother more athletic. Bruce was a pianist and an oil painter (not an artist). In his later life, Bruce developed an interest in wood projects. He retired in 2016 after thirty-three years as the medical hospitalist on the spinal cord unit of HealthSouth Harmarville Rehabilitation Hospital and spent the last six months as the interim medical director. Now he reads, writes, exercises, watches crime dramas, and enjoys his grandchildren.

He attended medical school and family practice residency before doing rural medicine in Punxsutawney, Pa. From there he went to Harmerville Rehab in Pittsburgh where he worked as a hospitalist on the spinal cord unit dealing with multiple sclerosis, quadriplegia, paraplegia, Baclofen pumps, spasticity, Guillian Barre, cerebral palsy, transverse myelitis and end of life issues.