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Today, as a primary care physician, no two days look the same.“ Nothing is the same behind any door,” he said.“ And there’ s never just one problem either.”
Primary care, he explains, is a balancing act, between efficiency and empathy, time constraints and human complexity.“ You have to be timely and efficient, but you also have to make sure you’ re being heard and they’ re being heard,” he said, noting that every patient represents more than a scheduled appointment.“ Even if the appointment is only 15 minutes, that person has taken hours out of their day.”
One of his core messages to patients is deceptively simple.
“ You have a choice between lifestyle and medicine, and in between that is disease,” he said.“ If you choose medicine, you’ re guaranteed to need more medicine. And if you don’ t choose lifestyle, you have chosen medicine by default.”
For Dr. Patton, prevention isn’ t just a concept, it’ s a philosophy. But rather than placing blame, he focuses on empowerment.
“ I make sure to frame it as making their health work for them,” he said.
And when patients succeed – when they return with progress, energy, pride – that’ s when the work feels most meaningful.
“ When you can see results, when you know it’ s not just a temporary
change, that’ s one of the most beautiful moments.”
Long before he was a physician, Dr. Patton was a performer.“ I used to be a rapper in undergrad,” he said.“ I used to make CDs and go around selling them.”
That creative energy never disappeared, but rather it evolved. When his daughter was young, he began using rap to teach her anatomy.
“ It was so cute to hear her little voice singing those anatomy words,” he laughed.
That moment sparked an idea that would grow into something bigger: a children’ s book. The Miraculous Journey of Omni: The Omnipotent Cell tells the story of a stem cell discovering its purpose, using poems and rhymes to introduce kids to anatomy and physiology. It’ s equal parts education and imagination, and it reflects his belief that learning should be engaging, accessible and fun. The book also became a vehicle for giving back. Through it, he established a scholarship to help students in his hometown pay for college applications.
“ I want to make another children’ s book,” he said.“ And a MedMan comic book.”
Through his social media platform, MedMan4U, he shares health education in a way that’ s approachable and relatable. Ironically, it all started by accident.
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