Dr. Ryk Graf Tanalski, MD

Why I Became A Physician

I knew I wanted to be a physician during high school. I wanted a career that mixed science and people and would keep my interest for a lifetime: medicine certainly does that. I initially thought I would become a primary care doctor.

Why I Became an Anesthesiologist

During college I worked as a volunteer with Amigos de las Americas, carrying out vaccination programs in remote areas of Honduras and Ecuador. This was an exciting and challenging experience, and not at all like medicine back home, where many medical practices were much more restrictive: no surgery, no obstetrics -not exciting enough. I also realized that I worried too much about what my patients were doing when out of my care.

Anesthesiology is the right specialty for me, as I remain involved with a wide range of patients. From the youngest to the oldest, and from the sickest to the most healthy, there is plenty of excitement (intermittently), and I have a lot of control over what happens to …patients who are in my care. In anesthesiology I do not take quite so much worry home with me. At the end of the day or night, I know I did a great job with my patients' anesthesia and others are then responsible for the ongoing care.

Why I Practice At Kaiser Permanente

One of my favorite aspects of Kaiser Permanente is that we are one big team all working together. The other models of health care where each physician is a "private contractor" don't make any sense to me. It is very important to me to be a part of a great team, and Kaiser Permanente and especially Vallejo's Department of Anesthesiology is a great team. I know that when I go home there is a whole group of excellent practitioners at the hospital 24/7 ready to take care of anyone who needs their care.

My Philosophy on Healing

My philosophy on healing is that the human body is a masterful and mysterious thing. It usually heals itself. We in medicine can make interventions to help the body heal, but we rely on the myriad aspects of the body to heal itself. I have no delusions that I am responsible for the healing. I can only make interventions and assure a favorable environment so that healing can occur.

Many people have a very limited appreciation of what we achieve in anesthesiology; they just want to be asleep during surgery. I feel my most important task is to assure that the patient is in a favorable milieu. That is, I try to ensure a favorable mental state prior to surgery, protection from the various stresses of the surgery, protection from the body's own unhelpful responses to surgery, promotion of the body's helpful responses, relief of pain, and a state of unconsciousness if desired.

My Interests Outside Work

When I'm not at work, I'm a dedicated husband and father of one son. I enjoy outdoor recreation. I love to be up on two wheels cycling, trail riding, or dual sporting. I love to play in or on the water: windsurfing, kayaking, and diving, or skiing and snowboarding when it's cold.