Tell us a little about yourself!

I’m Dr. Tania Samanta, and I’ve been a Paediatric Respirologist at Humber River Hospital since 2009.

In one sentence, how would you explain your job to a friend?

I’m a lung specialist for kids, so I help with breathing problems.

“It makes me so happy when parents tell me their child was actually excited to come back to see us,” says Dr. Samanta. “We can only provide the best care when patients are comfortable with our team.”

What makes you proud of how children are cared for at Humber?

Everyone on the Paediatric Outpatient team is very dedicated to the care of children and making the whole patient experience child-friendly – from our front desk staff, to the nurses, to the respiratory therapists I work with, to the dieticians.

It makes me so happy when parents tell me their child was actually excited to come back to see us. So, in addition to the medical care we provide, I’m proud that many of our young patients look forward to coming here. We can only provide the best care when patients are comfortable with our team.

Tell us about the interesting technology you work with.

I get to use a spirometer, a little hand-held device that plugs into the computer. I ask the kids to take a deep breath and blow very hard into the machine, and it gives me an objective measure of their lung function at the point of care, right here in the clinic. It’s very precise and can detect things we can’t necessarily detect with a stethoscope.

For example, if we were testing the effectiveness of a puffer, I would have my patient blow into the spirometer before and after using it and we could observe any changes right away, objectively, without them having to go to the lab downstairs.

What is one awesome thing you’ve done in the last year?

We took our kids to see Frozen on Broadway! I loved watching the pure joy on their faces.

“I love when they ask questions and come at me with something unexpected, because it refreshes my outlook,” says Dr. Samanta.

What inspires you?

My kids.

My patients.

That mix of innocence, resiliency, curiosity, and pure love of life.

I had a patient the other day who asked me why I listen with my stethoscope at the front and the back, so we talked about the lungs. I love when they ask questions and come at me with something unexpected, because it refreshes my outlook.