May 18, 2007
The Amazing Doctor Q
A Brain Surgeon Has Surprising Roots: He Crossed The Border Illegally And Started As A Migrant Worker
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Play CBS Video Video An 'American' Success Story He's known now as "Dr. Q," a neurosurgeon at Johns Hopkins University. But not all that long ago, he was an illegal immigrant from Mexico picking crops in the U.S. Steve Hartman met up with him.
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Video First Look: An Immigrant Story Only On The Web: "Dr. Q" is a Harvard-educated neurosurgeon, but he was once an illegal immigrant working as a migrant farm laborer. Steve Hartman previews a controversial "Assignment America."
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Alfredo Quinones-Hinojosa, or "Dr. Q," entered the U.S. from Mexico by fence-hopping; he's now a brain surgeon at Johns Hopkins. (CBS)
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E-MAIL US Assignment America Do you have a story for Assignment America? Send your idea by e-mail.
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Photo Essay Assignment America Steve Hartman On Assignment. More Photos
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News Tools Immigration Reform Plan President Bush lays out his vision for comprehensive immigration reform.
He's clinically brilliant and relentlessly charming — his patients say it's almost like he was born to be a doctor.
If they only knew.
"My very first job was with these very same hands — the very same hands that do brain surgery now, back then they pulled weeds," Dr. Q says.
Just 20 years ago, this renowned neurosurgeon was about as anonymous as a human being can get in America — just another illegal immigrant working the fields of California's San Joaquin Valley, CBS News correspondent Steve Hartman reports for Assignment America.
Born Alfredo Quinones-Hinojosa, he says that as a kid he dreamed of being a doctor. But even after he jumped the U.S.-Mexico border and took up residence in a leaky old trailer, he says the moon seemed closer than medical school.
"All that I had on my mind was just to make a little money, send it back to my parents — that's it," he says.
But he says he had this passion — to learn everything.
There were a lot of little steps.
He was picking weeds, then he got a job on a tractor. Then he was a welder. Then he went to community college and learned English.
"Then University of California-Berkeley," Dr. Q says. At Berkeley he got good grades. "Absolutely. My life began to really take off."
Next he got his U.S. citizenship and a Harvard Medical School scholarship — he graduated cum laude. He also squeezed in time for a family, and is now at Johns Hopkins, scrubbing those same weed-picking hands before performing brain surgery.
It's no doubt a remarkable American success story. But the fact that it all started with some fence-hopping makes it a controversial one, too.
"The last thing that I want is for people to think what I have done is justified," he says. "The only thing I can do is try to pay back with every single thing I do."
To that end, Dr. Q spends much of his free time in the lab — trying to find a cure for brain cancer. He hopes it makes amends, but admits he'd cross again in a heartbeat.
"It's human nature to try to find ways to survive," he says. "It's human nature, it's not rocket science."
It's not even brain surgery.
© MMVII, CBS Interactive, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Best-selling author Mitch Albom on his first nonfiction work since "Tuesdays with Morrie."
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See all 41 CommentsEurope put a stop to this. One parent has to be a citizen for the children to be citizen. we too shoul this.There are closing Medical facilities.They trash our cities.Illegal immgration is a cancer.
The problem is illegal immigrants, encorage illegal immigrations and the legal immigrants do not.Are you a illegal iimmigrant ?
I recomende Dr. Q since you encorage illegal immigration.Without critizicing what is your solutions?
Great idea pearlleticia ... and you even wrote an understandable sentence. Now all you have to do is convince the wealthy corporate farmers and ranchers to sacrifice their below minimum wage pay to the Mexican workers and replace them with much higher salaried American weed pullers and crop pickers ... IF they can find any.
While your at it, persuade all the multimillionaire factory and processing plant owners to sack the Mexican low paid workers so they can hire an American at twice or three times the pay. I'm sure they will love your suggestions. I don't understand why no one has ever thought of such a clever solution before. It's soooo simple.
QUOTE by pearlleticia: "You could pay for transportation and pull weeds."
Wow, TWO comprehensible sentences in a row! Hurrah! Sorry, pearlleticia, YOU are the one who wants ALL the illegal immigrants gone. Their transportation costs home and weed pulling chores are YOUR problems, not mine.
QUOTE by pearlleticia: "I will recomend Dr Q for brain surgery"
I'm sure Dr. Quinones will thank you from the bottom of his immigrant heart. YOUR recommendation is invaluable.
I reiterate what i have stated earlier. Your comments are baseless, false and unjustifiable.
If the employers will not hire illegal immigrants they will go back.You could pay for transportation and pull weeds.
I will recomend Dr Q for brain surgery
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Take your vacant head out of the sand, pearlleticia. Whether we need illegal immigrants or not, we HAVE them. What do you suggest, piling ALL 24 MILLION of them on a Greyhound bus and shipping them back to their own countries?
How about YOU go find them all and pay for their trips? When they're all gone, YOU and YOUR family can pull the weeds and pick the crops in all the farmers' fields.
As I've already stated, I am a strong advocate of enforcing our borders. I'm also a strong advocate of being extremely careful about who we allow to FLY into our country on LEGAL visas.
The last time I checked it was NOT Mexican Nationals who were blowing up our landmark buildings, murdering thousands, and threatening to exterminate American civilization
My comments are baseless, huh? Yours are NOT even comprehensible! Perhaps you should have availed yourself of the good ol' American education that the illegals fight so hard to obtain.
We do not need comprehensive immigration refoms, but the law should be enforce.As for brain surgery, i could recomend Dr Q.
Your comments are baseless and unjustifiable.
Your arguments are baseless,false and unjustifiable.We do not need any illegal iimgrants. we need to enforce the border.
I am all for building the biggest - longest - strongest - border fence our engineers can construct. Yes, let's keep all FUTURE illegal immigrants out. And let's deport all the lawbreakers and bums.
However, it makes NO sense to condemn successful, taxpaying, once-illegal businessmen, teachers, nurses, etc., who are already here. Many brilliant, educated, hardworking immigrants like Dr. Quinones have obviously become nothing less than a TREASURE to our country.
In my opinion, Dr. "Q" should have earned the respect, admiration and WELCOME of all Americans the very first time he saved the life of a fellow American. Of course if it wasn't a life valued by YOU, pearlliticia, it wouldn't matter. The many, many lives Dr. Quinones has saved DO matter to other Americans.
Like useyourbrai1 so wisely stated, QUOTE: "We should celebrate that he, (Dr. "Q") was able to accomplish what most Americans cannot. He did this with hard work and determination."
If you, pearlleticia, are unfortunate to someday need a cancerous tumor removed from your narrow-minded brain, you can pick the AVERAGE neurosurgeon whose ancestors arrived in this country on the Mayflower. I will choose the once-illegal, genius miracle-worker, Dr. Quinones.
I'll bet most SMART Americans would also choose the very BEST -- no matter how they once arrived in this country.
ALL rules have EXCEPTIONS and some profoundly benefit American's lives.
I will gladly let this Site's readers decide who is "STUPID" and who is not. As I've previously stated, it's the uneducated, inarticulate Americans who spew the MOST HATE toward immigrants who HAVE succeeded in this country. Obviously, some haters have not been successful with even a basic 8th grade English course.
The purpose of CBS's interview with Dr. Quinones was NOT to advocate illegal immigration. The whole point was to show that NOT all Mexicans who jumped the fence many years ago are a detriment to this country -- and some should be revered NOT condemned.
Dr. "Q" and those analogous are NOT 1%. There are more once-illegal-immigrants similar to Dr. Quinones already living in our country than any of the uneducated, bigoted haters like to believe.
Many have LEGALLY secured their green card, and have worked harder than most Americans even imagine working. By excelling at the difficult higher education that many Americans are too lazy to pursue, they have reached the pinnacle of humanity's highest valued expectations and therefore America's EARNED respect.
The best of the once-illegal-immigrents, like Dr. Quinones, have also STUDIED to earn their American Citizenship. I dare say Dr. "Q" understands our country's Constitution, laws, and history much better than YOU do, pearlleticia.
Those who TRULY CARE about our country's future do NOT condemn the immensely productive, unbelievably excellent once-illegal-immigrants along with the bums!
crossing the border is an act of an criminal. By supporting you too. Ignorant , STUPID and idiotic.We are expressing our opinion, write to CBS and not to individuals. Why want you invite him to your place without Rent. Give your TV.You are a Traitor.Aiding Abeting criminals are also a criminal act.
Thank you, OpenMind56. Me too!
One has to wonder if all the unreasonable condemnation is nothing more than JEALOUSLY because a lowly young man with no worldly possessions, no influential family, even unable to speak English, was able to seek out America's vast educational opportunities that many Americans AVOID -- work his rear-end off for decades and become an esteemed neurosurgeon who every day saves fellow American's lives.
Those who have CHOSEN to be the least educated, and the most lazy -- and therefore the least successful, are always the most fervent, intolerant haters.
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