MARION – Jason Lauf owes his success to his upbringing.
“Growing up, I spent most of my time outdoors with my two brothers and a cousin who was raised like a third brother,” Lauf said. “We raised all sorts of animals, and I participated in the local 4-H club where I did livestock, woodworking, amongst other projects. I was also very active in sports. I played soccer, swimming and tennis through high school.
“My parents instilled hard work from an early age. But I never dreamed I would be doing what I am today. My initial dream job was to go into agricultural engineering and work on tractor design.”
Today, Dr. Jason Lauf is a physician with Midwest Internal Medicine Associates.
“My role at MIMA is to take quality care of patients every day,” he said. “I also see our patients in Marion General Hospital, and I help take care of patients at Gentiva Hospice. I also enjoy teaching medical students from Ohio University and physician assistant students from Ashland University. And I speak at North Union High School as they have an introduction to medicine pathway within the school.”
Lauf, 32, grew up on a farm near Lima, graduated from high school in 2012, then Ohio State in 2016 with a bachelor’s in biomedical engineering and a minor in biology.
“I intended to go to medical school from the time I started college,” he said. “But I did engineering to provide a backup plan in case medical school didn’t work out.”
Lauf graduated from Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine in 2021 and did his residency at University Hospital Parma Medical Center.
“My interest in medicine began in high school,” he said. “My mother pushed me to shadow different health care fields including radiation oncology techs, chiropractors and others involved in the medical field. None of them seemed to be a good fit. I then had a soccer injury on my hand and had surgery on a ligament. The surgeon was extremely caring and took significant amounts of time with me. He offered to let me shadow him, and after the first day I was hooked. I knew after one day of physician shadowing it was my dream. I dedicated myself that day to becoming a physician.”
“I initially wanted to do orthopedic surgery,” he said. “But through the medical school process I ended up in internal medicine and I am extremely thankful for it.”
Lauf started with MIMA immediately after his residency.
“I knew I wanted to work in a small community,” he said. “I want to be able to get to know my patients and be involved in the local community. I also always knew I wanted to work in private practice. I want to be able to intimately know my supervisor and have a family feeling when I go to work every day.”
RaKay Dunlap is a certified physician assistant at Midwest Internal Medicine Associates.
“Dr. Lauf is truly a community-minded physician, and that shows in everything he does,” Dunlap said. “His passion for his patients is evident. So much so that we often have to help protect his schedule because he genuinely wants to make sure no one’s needs go unmet. His commitment to Midwest Internal Medicine and to the people we serve is something I deeply respect and appreciate.”
“I do it as I love helping others,” Lauf said. “I love taking care of people and trying to educate them about their health.”
“I believe it all originates from my upbringing on the farm,” he said. “Being involved in sports and market animals helped develop who I am today.”
Aces of Trades is a weekly series focusing on people and their jobs – whether they’re unusual jobs, fun jobs or people who take ordinary jobs and make them extraordinary. If you have a suggestion for a future profile, let us know at news@marionstar.com.
This article originally appeared on Marion Star: Dr. Jason Lauf cares for patients as this week’s Aces of Trade
Reporting by Drew Bracken Special to the Marion Star, Marion Star / Marion Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
