Dr. Crystal Campos remembers setting her sights on becoming a doctor at just 4 years old. As a young girl with asthma who spent much of her childhood in a doctor’s office, she was determined to make a difference in the lives of those suffering from medical ailments.
“I was always the kid who took care of everybody, too,” Campos says, laughing.
Plus, it didn’t hurt that her mother was in the medical profession for 36 years. She spent much time at her mother’s various medical offices throughout her childhood, where the doctors always encouraged her interest in medicine.
“My dad taught us to believe in ourselves. He told us with hard work, you can accomplish anything. I saw how hard he worked to transform his own life as a migrant worker to become a safety professional. He dropped out of school to work for his family, but eventually earned a bachelors degree in mathematics,” she recalls with admiration.
Campos, 32, was born in Temple and was raised there until her family moved to Laredo, where she was able to perfect her Spanish. Her bilingual skills serve her well in her position as a family practice doctor at the CHRISTUS Spohn Family Health Center Westside on Greenwood Drive.
“It’s truly unbelievable how patients respond to you when you speak their native language,” Campos says. “They are able to tell me exactly how they feel without relying on the assistance of a translator like their grandchildren or neighbors.”
By the time she was in high school, it was time to move again, this time to Corpus Christi, where she graduated from Calallen High School. Campos attended St. Mary’s University in San Antonio where she majored in biology with her sights set on medical school. At 25, she graduated from medical school at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston. She said one of the hardest parts of medical school was the long hours.
“It was an endurance test. You have one obstacle after another, like holidays without your family and parties with friends you’ll miss along the way,” she says.
While her fellow medical students were struggling to keep up with the rigors of the intense program and excessive hours, Campos decided to help establish a medical clinic in the colonias of Brownsville.
“Residents there were on a three-month waiting list for a simple exam,” Campos says. “So we recruited a few other medical students and provided these critical services to the residents there.”
At the time, Campos was a 22-year-old medical student, but she soon became the director of education, teaching residents about diabetes awareness and other health issues. Today, the successful program has flourished into Frontera de Salud, with branches in several locations throughout Texas.
It was also a crucial time in Campos’ life where she learned it was OK to ask for help, finally realizing she would become a better doctor with the assistance of others who are also trained to work with patients, such as clergy, social workers and nurses.
Campos completed her residency from the Corpus Christi Family Practice Residency Program and is thankful for her daily interactions with patients. This is where her true passion exists and her skills as a physician thrive.
“My patients help me look at life differently and to value my own blessings. I have learned that while my patients face many challenges, most have an unwavering faith in God,” she says.
Campos insists there is no magic recipe for her special rapport with patients and their families.
“I simply give my patients all their options and tell them exactly what they’re dealing with, while at the same time trying to put myself in their shoes. I try to imagine how I would feel if I were in that same situation.”
She recalls one instance as a medical resident when a 26-year-old student visiting Corpus Christi for the Thanksgiving holiday died from a simple nose bleed. He lost too much blood for his heart to endure.
“I spent all day with the family, who were obviously devastated,” she says. “They wanted him to serve as an organ donor, so we spent all day helping them through that process. It was an experience I will never forget.”
She is also acutely aware of how many patients can barely afford to keep their electricity on at home and feed their families, let alone seek medical care.
“More than 80 percent of my patients are on the Nueces County Indigent Care Program and those with Medicaid or Medicare make up the rest of my practice,” she says. “Those on county aid spend $5 for their medications, so I think long and hard when I’m prescribing medicine for them. Many times, those $5 are hard to come by.”
The county’s program provides medical care to residents who may not qualify for any other state or federal medical assistance programs.
Campos says helping the working poor at her clinic is the most rewarding part of her job.
“All my patients get my optimism and respect, but most of all I enjoy being their biggest cheerleader,” she says proudly. “That could easily be you, you just never know. I believe it’s very important to never judge people.”
