Becoming a champion of children’s health
Becoming a physician
As a child, Laurentiu (Laurence) Givelichian considered physicians to be superheroes.
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As a young man, he decided he would become one to champion children’s health.
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“I always knew that I wanted to do medicine. As a seven-year-old, I was curious about the work they did in hospitals and ambulances, and I idealized physicians. I wanted to be one of them.”
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Growing up in Romania playing competitive tennis, Givelichian encountered a fork in the road at the age of 15.
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“I realized that to be successfully gain entry to medical school and to continue my dream, I had to give up a competitive tennis.
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“And that is the road I chose at that time.”
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Once he was in medical school and began his rotations, he had another crucial decision to make.
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“I realized that the most significant impact I can have is going to be in pediatrics and that is where my passion has always been -- in pediatrics.”
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Dr. Givelichian – known by his patients and their families as Dr. G -- has been dedicated to caring for the health of Saskatchewan’s children for more than two decades.
Becoming a neonatal and pediatric critical care specialist
His specialty is neonatology, meaning he is a pediatrician trained to handle the most complex and high-risk situations in newborn infants.
He became a neonatologist by earning his Doctorate in Medicine at the Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Romania in 1985 before completing a residency in neonatology and pediatrics at the University of Saskatchewan between 1994 and 1995 as well as a fellowship in neonatology at the University of Manitoba between 1998 and 2000.
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Treating neonatal or pediatric patients who are recovering from traumatic brain injuries is his specialization. He participated in a pilot study in 1999 designed to look at the safety of maintaining a lower-than-normal body temperature in babies who experience a lack of oxygen during delivery.
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What the research found was that lowering the body temperature to less than normal for 72 hours creates an environment that allows the brain to rest without needing too much oxygen which can reduce complications and side effects from an initial trauma. This method of treatment has become a standard of care around the world for people of all ages who have experienced a brain injury.
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In addition to seeing and treating patients for decades, Dr. Givelichian has been a key figure in Saskatchewan advancing major improvements to how health care is delivered to children in this province.
