The Journal of the Arkansas Medical Society Issue 2 Vol 115 | Page 5
COMMENTARY
David Wroten
Executive Vice President
Penny Henderson
Executive Assistant
Journal Advertising
Nicole Richards
Managing Editor
Jeremy Henderson
Art Director
EDITORIAL BOARD
Appathurai Balamurugan, MD, DrPH, MPH
Family Medicine/Public Health
Tim Paden, MD
Family Medicine
Sandra Johnson, MD
Dermatology
Issam Makhoul, MD
Oncology
Naveen Patil, MD, MHSA, MA, FIDSA
Internal Medicine/Infectious Disease
Benjamin Tharian, MD, MRCP, FACP, FRACP
Gastroenterologist/Hepatologist
Robert Zimmerman, MD
Urology
Tobias Vancil, MD
Internal Medicine
Darrell Over, MD
Family Medicine
EDITOR EMERITUS
Alfred Kahn Jr., MD (1916-2013)
ARKANSAS MEDICAL SOCIETY
2018-2019 OFFICERS
Lee Archer, MD, Little Rock
President
Amy Cahill, MD, Pine Bluff
Immediate Past President
Dennis Yelvington, MD, Stuttgart
President Elect
Chad Rodgers, MD, Little Rock
Vice President
George Conner, MD, Forrest City
Secretary
Bradley Bibb, MD, Jonesboro
Treasurer
Eugene Shelby, MD, Hot Springs
Speaker of the House of Delegates
Jim Ingram, MD, Little Rock
Vice Speaker of the House of Delegates
Danny Wilkerson, MD, Little Rock
Chairman of the Board of Trustees
Tim Paden, MD
Count Your Blessings
Health Care, EMR, Outcomes, Data, Reimbursements
A
ll those issues and others
consume our days and our
efforts. But have you been over-
seas, on mission trips? I joined a medical mission
group from Texas to Haiti in 2016. Our mission
field was located two hours up the coast from
Port-au-Prince to a medical clinic serving the
people of Gonaives and those in an orphanage
in the desolate landscape. Flying into Haiti and
traveling cross-country in an open-air bus; living
behind concrete, guarded walls; and working at
the orphanage and clinic with poverty-stricken,
destitute patients ... is overwhelming at best. Af-
ter adjusting to the environment and climate, you
provide care at the best level you can with the
supplies you brought, taking into account the abil-
ity of the patient. There are many of us in the AMS
who have gone on similar journeys. The common
thread among all these endeavors, I believe, is
how it changes your perspective on your own life
and your medical pra ctice. When you consider the
vast array of issues we deal with on a daily basis,
it still comes down to a single point of focus: our
patients’ needs. Without the patient as the prima-
ry focus, we will lose our direction in this complex
process we call health care.
I want us to consider two main points. First,
are we holding to our values in the medical pro-
fession despite the pressures of society, legal is-
sues, the health care climate, or the government
influences? I do not know of any other profession
with such high standards as the one in which we
practice. As a new member to the AMS, my inter-
est in joining centers on the direction our profes-
sion is likely to take if we do not stay engaged and
apply our own pressure to the system.
Second, I ask us to count our blessings. If you
have not taken a mission journey, I encourage you
to sign up for one. In this country or another, there
are multiple resources and locations that would
gladly accept your contribution. The benefits far
outweigh the time or commitments. Do you have
EMR difficulties? Experiencing burnout like a large
portion of physicians? Is the pay diminishing? Take
a mission trip. It only takes a week.
I recall some patients in Haiti. One patient was
an infant who suffered from microcephaly (felt to be
a result of the zika virus). The mother came to the
clinic every day for exam and nutrition advice. The
life span of the infant was expected to be short, but
the encouragement and advice were lifelong and
priceless to this mother. Another patient, an Ameri-
can male, had multiple, recurring skin abscesses.
He typically lanced them himself but one developed
in the scrotum region so we assisted him on this
one. I used local xylocaine 1%, which pleased him
greatly as he usually did not have this available. We
also provided him with sterile scalpels for him to
use in the future on himself. Another patient, with
multiple skin lesions simply required a large tub of
Vaseline to hydrate his skin daily. If used sparingly,
it would last him at least three months. This would
likely impact his quality of life more than anything
he had been given in the past several years.
When you look at your long list of patients to
see today, or the long call hours, or the system of
documentation required, just remind yourself of the
resources available to you. It may be restricted or
even denied in some cases, but we usually have
some other avenue to pursue. I have a new per-
spective on medical practice with this experience
under my belt ... and I don’t plan on stopping. I need
this again.
NUMBER 2
AUGUST 2018 • 29