Petar Bajic

What inspired you to work in sexual medicine?

During residency, I spent a lot of time taking care of patients with cancer. Understandably, so much of the focus was on treating the cancer and helping patients live longer. But I became increasingly interested in what happened afterward—how we could help patients not just survive, but get back to living well.
That initially drew me to sexual medicine through the lens of cancer survivorship. From there, my interest grew into men’s health and andrology more broadly. I liked that it was a field where we could have a very tangible impact on quality of life and address problems that patients often find difficult to talk about.

What is something most people don’t know about you? 

I’m a first-generation American and the first person in my family to attend college. My parents came to the United States from the former Yugoslavia with very little and built a life here from the ground up. Serbian was my first language, and that background remains an important part of who I am.
There’s also a unique connection between my family history and the career I eventually chose: my parents struggled with infertility for years before ultimately conceiving me with the help of Clomid. So perhaps a career in andrology was meant to be.

What is the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given?

“Fish grow to the size of their tank.”
I heard that early in my academic career, and it stuck with me. To me, it means that the people and opportunities you surround yourself with can have an enormous influence on what you ultimately accomplish.
I’ve been fortunate to find that kind of environment at Cleveland Clinic and through organizations like SMSNA. Both have pushed me to think bigger, take on opportunities outside my comfort zone, and look for ways to have an impact beyond my own clinical practice.

What would your ideal vacation be?

My wife and I love food and tend to plan our trips around what and where we want to eat. We had planned a big trip to Japan that was canceled during the COVID-19 pandemic, so Tokyo is still at the top of the list.
My ideal vacation would probably involve spending a week eating our way through Tokyo—great sushi, ramen, izakayas, and as many places as we could reasonably fit into the trip.