Sanjay Gupta's Road to Fame: From Doctor to Embedded War Reporter to TV Health Advisor to Chief Health Educator of the USA?

What does it take to be 'Surgeon General' of the USA?

"The Office of the Surgeon General, under the direction of the Surgeon General, oversees the operations of the 6,000-member Commissioned Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service and provides support for the Surgeon General in the accomplishment of his other duties. The Office is part of the Office of Public Health and Science in the Office of the Secretary, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Surgeon General serves as America's chief health educator by providing Americans the best scientific information available on how to improve their health and reduce the risk of illness and injury."

A few hours ago President Elect Obama picked Sanjay Gupta as his nominee for Surgeon General, and that made people wonder about the qualifications it takes to be considered for this position. "Gupta, 39, is a US-born graduate of the American system whose parents, Damayanti and Subhash Gupta, moved to the US in the 1960s to work at the Ford Motor Company in Dearborn, Michigan. Sanjay grew up in Michigan and received his undergraduate degree in biomedical sciences at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and his M.D. from the University of Michigan Medical Center. He completed his residency in neurological surgery within the University of Michigan Health System." (Times of India)

"Gupta hosts "House Call" on CNN, contributes reports to CBS News, and writes a column for Time magazine. He is a neurosurgeon and is on the faculty at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta. During the Clinton administration, he was a White House fellow and special adviser to then-first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton." (Washington Post)

On a more personal note,"Gupta was named one of the Sexiest Men of 2003 by People magazine. That was before he married fellow University of Michigan graduate Rebecca Sue Olson, an attorney, in 2004." (Times of India)