Get to Know a BHC Doctor

Phillip Beck, MD

Boone Hospital Center Infectious Disease

Igrew up in the small town of St. Elizabeth, Missouri. I completed my undergraduate studies in biology at the University of Missouri and stayed at MU for medical school. I completed my internal medicine residency program, followed by my fellowship in infectious diseases, both with MU Health Care. I have had the pleasure of serving as the infectious diseases specialist with Boone Health Medical Group since July 12, 2021.

Why did you get into the healthcare field? I always had an a nity for science, including biology and chemistry, during my formative years. Two of my older cousins went to medical school, which was a large part of why I considered entering the healthcare eld. I eventually decided to apply my love of science and desire to help others by pursuing a career in medicine as a physician. It turned out to be the perfect career choice for me, and I love what I do.

What interested you in your particular specialty?

Internal medicine was attractive due to its cerebral nature and variety. I discovered that the infectious diseases specialty is internal medicine on steroids — incredible amounts of problem solving, critical thinking, and detective work — which led me to select that as my specialty. ID a ords the chance to see a wide variety of patients in both inpatient and outpatient settings with a multitude of infections including bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites that can all a ect di erent parts of the body. We get to be on the cutting edge of medicine and technology to tackle newly discovered infectious organisms (such as SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19) and combat other new problems such as antibiotic resistance.

What is the most rewarding aspect of your job? e most rewarding parts of my job are helping solve a di cult or complicated case and making the diagnosis that allows a patient to be cured.

What advice would you give someone looking to

become a doctor? Be sure to have adequate exposure to the eld by shadowing physicians, researching all required schooling and training, and understanding the time and work demands of the profession. If you think you will enjoy medicine and have the desire to achieve that goal, then go for it. At the end of the day, you have to do what you love or you won’t be happy.

What do you enjoy doing outside of work? I enjoy spending time with my family, friends, and my wife, Danielle Linneman Beck. We were married in 2019 and will be celebrating our second anniversary this month. We enjoy trying new restaurants around mid-Missouri and watching TV shows and movies. I am a huge sports fan; I enjoy watching and attending games of the Mizzou Tigers, St. Louis Cardinals, and Kansas City Chiefs. During April through October, I play slow-pitch softball with friends at Cosmo Park in Columbia. I enjoy hunting deer and turkey in my hometown during the fall and spring, respectively.

What is the most challenging aspect of your job? e most challenging aspect of my job is when a patient has an infection and either there’s no good treatment available or the available antimicrobial has signi cant side e ects, such as organ damage.

What do you see changing in health care in the next

five to 10 years? Telehealth will have an increasingly important role to provide specialty care to more rural areas that otherwise wouldn’t have that added expertise available. Medicine will likely continue its trend of being more sub-specialized.

What advice would you give to someone who is going to be a patient in a hospital for a period of

time? I would encourage patients to get to know their physician and the rest of their care team. It’s important to build this relationship so everyone involved can share information more easily and be comfortable with one another. Patience is important as well, be it waiting for a procedure or a test result — having that in mind from the start will lead to a more satisfying experience.