Before assuming the editor's position at JAMA in 2000, DeAngelis was a professor and Vice Dean of Faculty at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.
[3] DeAngelis wished to become a medical doctor, and her high school chemistry teacher both advised her to apply to college and supported her application.
While attending Wilkes University, DeAngelis continued to work as a nurse, started a clinic, and pursued medical research in immunology.
During this time, DeAngelis observed problems related to health care access and cost and began to formulate possible solutions.
She received a grant and directed the program to introduce a new curriculum for the medical school, emphasizing "hands-on experience and contact with patients," beginning in 1992.
[18][19][20] With Frank A. Oski, director of the Johns Hopkins Children's Center, DeAngelis wrote a medical advice column in The Baltimore Sun.
[22] DeAngelis has authored or edited 13 books on Pediatrics, Medical Education and Patient Care, Professionalism and her recently published memoir, Pursuing Equity in Medicine: One Woman's Journey.