She’s graduating medical school in May. He’s in his final month of residency training.
When Mattie Harris and Zach Harris cross these career milestones this spring, they’ll do it not just as Wake Forest University School of Medicine alumni but with another tie that binds — as sister and brother.
Zach Harris, M.D., graduated from the school of medicine four years ago, before starting his residency in anesthesiology. On May 17, Mattie will walk across that same commencement stage with her fellow fourth-year classmates in the Doctor of Medicine (MD) Program.
“It's such a tangible good that you're doing in people’s lives and that’s the thing that keeps me excited about being a doctor,” Zach says. “I’m excited for Mattie to feel that too. The responsibility is intense, but she’s clearly so ready for it and she’s going to be so good at it.”
In July, Mattie begins her residency in emergency medicine at Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center. Just as she did for her brother four years prior, Zach and their family attended her Match Day to celebrate the achievement together.
“What a privilege it was to attend Wake and get to become a doctor, and I have less than a month until I have ‘M.D.’ behind my name,” Mattie says. “It’s so exciting but there are also a lot of expectations that come with having those letters behind your name. So, I’m working hard to be the best doctor I can be and live up to the training that the medical school has prepared me for.”
At the time they were growing up, medicine wasn’t yet a family profession. Although hindsight proves it was always in their blood — or even the water.
In elementary school, Zach took a shark anatomy class, where the final project involved dissecting a shark. Zach was hooked. In fact, he found a toy shark dissection kit under the Christmas tree that year. That interest in biology later led Zach to shadow local physicians, where he saw firsthand their impact on people’s lives.
“Just walking into a room and seeing people's eyes turn to you with such trust and expectation and knowing that you're going to help take care of them,” Zach says.
Mattie, who has always looked up to her big brother, found joy in helping other people and was also attracted to the math and science skills required in emergency medicine.
“These people are coming in on their worst days, especially in the emergency department, but having the opportunity to save someone's life is really special to me,” Mattie says.
Zach played college football as an undergraduate in southern California and began to apply broadly to medical schools, hoping to attend one near his family in North Carolina and Georgia. His interview at Wake Forest University School of Medicine left a lasting impression, making the decision to enroll there simple.
“I could tell that they were just good people, easy to connect with, and that was the sense I got for my entire four years of medical school there too,” Zach says.
Mattie enjoyed visiting her brother in Winston-Salem, along with the natural beauty and running trails in the area. When she experienced the excitement of Zach’s own Match Day, she knew going to medical school was what she wanted for her life and career too.
“Zach would do my practice interviews for medical school with me,” Mattie says. “And now, four years later, we'll both have our Wake Forest University School of Medicine degrees.”
Zach is now finishing his residency in anesthesiology at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.
They each have fond memories of their time in Winston-Salem. Although their experiences were unique, what stands out most is the mentorship and connections they made to prepare them for the challenges of residency training and beyond.
Zach’s brotherly advice as Mattie begins residency training — continue to lean on the support of those around you in Winston-Salem.
“It’s going to be so fun because now I’ll get to go and mentor medical students when I'm a resident, the way I had residents and faculty members who mentored me,” Mattie says. “That will really set you up for success because you really do need people who are there and who care about you as a person too, when you're in residency.”
As they prepare for the next chapters of their medical careers, they can also rely on the support of family. They have an older brother — Nathan Harris — who is a physician in Oklahoma, and other family members are now entering various medical professions. It all sparks interesting conversations at the family dinner table, but mostly, it’s a shared feeling of pride.
“How cool is it that I get to be the third doctor in my family and get to come alongside Zach and my brother, Nathan, and just have such great people to look up to,” Mattie reflects.
“This process of becoming a doctor is not easy and fortunately, Mattie had some older brothers that had done this before,” Zach says. “With me having gone through the medical school and then seeing Mattie succeed there in such amazing ways, it definitely feels very special.”
