volume 47 no. 4 winter 2016
TODAY’S
CHRISTIAN DOCTOR The Journal of the Christian Medical & Dental Associations
IN THIS ISSUE
Engage Advice from a physician spouse on making your family a priority
Steps for getting involved with local healthcare students
How to increase your ministry efforts by partnering with the local church
Transforming Lives AT THE PREMIER CONVENTION FOR CHRISTIAN HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS
MAY 4-7, 2017 RIDGECREST, NORTH CAROLINA WWW.CMDA.ORG/NATIONALCONVENTION
Are You Engaged? David Stevens, MD, MA (Ethics)
quest because I don’t want to hurt their feelings, not because I’m involved with them.
As the CEO of CMDA, a lot more people “know me,” but I don’t really know them. They may hear me on a media interview, listen to me on a Christian Doctor’s Digest interview, read something I wrote or see me on a YouTube video. I work hard to communicate and influence them through my writing, The meaning of words can also be altered DVDs, audio resources or an interview, but because of cultural changes. The word “infor- we are not truly engaged. I don’t know them. mation” is a great example. We live in the “information age” with unlimited amounts of inTrue engagement is something much more formation like news, commentary, Wikipedia than that. It means a bilateral relationship. and financial data available at our fingertips It means a deep connection. It means really with our smart devices. Ironically, informa- knowing people to the point of being involved tion is defined as “gathered facts” or “knowl- intimately in their lives. The faster we go and edge,” but in this day and time we have tons the more we do can cause us to be terribly of information yet greater concern that it has busy, but we are not really connected to our been filtered, altered or otherwise manipulat- patients, our friends, our family, our church or ed to “prove” a point of view or accomplish a our community. We may be present, but we nefarious purpose. We don’t trust information are not really there in that moment connectto be factual unless it is from a trusted source, ing at a meaningful level. and even then we are sometimes misled. We can’t do that with everyone, but we The same is true of the word “engage.” No, should be doing it with some “ones.” We I’m not talking about an agreement to marry, need it, and they need it as well. This level of a military battle or hiring someone to work engagement is where we find solace and supfor you. I’m talking about being truly involved port, comfort and caring, restoration and rewith people. newal. Superficial relationships are not what God designed us for. It is ironic, isn’t it? We have more contact with people than ever before. I have a FaceHe wants us to be deeply involved with Him book account with hundreds upon hundreds and other people, so in this issue of Today’s of “friends,” but I almost never engage them. Christian Doctor we are going to dig deep, I only get on Facebook to see what my chil- way deeper than the superficial, and look at dren are doing and check for new pictures of where God wants us to engage. my five grandchildren. I’m not engaged with these “friends.” I just approved their friend reIt is everyday “medicine” you and I need!
editorial
Verbal engineering often precedes or accompanies social engineering. I’ve seen it in the movement to legalize physician-assisted suicide. The Hemlock Society morphed to “Compassion & Choices,” “lethal prescription” became “aid in dying” and “suicide” was changed to a “good death.” These transmutations of words were done on purpose to desensitize people to what was going on—to make the unacceptable palatable.
INTER ACTIVE Visit www.cmda.org to learn more about getting engaged with the ministries of CMDA.
Christian Medical & Dental Associations www.cmda.org 3
contents Today’s Christian Doctor
I VOLUME 47, NO. 4 I Winter 2016
The Christian Medical & Dental Associations ®— Changing Hearts in Healthcare . . . since 1931.
5 Transformations
ngage Your Church: 26 EOutside the Walls
STORY 12 COVER Engage Your Community
by Kellie Hooker and Paul Gerritson, MDiv
Increase ministry by partnering with the church
by Scott T. Keller, DO, FAAFP, and Bill Reichart, MDiv
30 Engage Your Government
through Healthcare
How one local chapter is actively serving the local community
A collaborative article by CMDA members
Addressing important issues facing healthcare
18 Engaging with Your Family 34 Classifieds by Sharon Chatwell, MD
Advice from a physician spouse on making your family a priority
22 Engage Your Campus
by Jerry Hric, MD
Steps for getting involved with local healthcare students
INTER ACTIVE Visit www.cmda.org/classifieds to find more online classifieds.
REGIONAL MINISTRIES
Connecting you with other Christ-followers to help better motivate, equip, disciple and serve within your community
Western Region Michael J. McLaughlin, MDiv P.O. Box 2169 Clackamas, OR 97015-2169 Office: 503-522-1950 west@cmda.org
Midwest Region Allan J. Harmer, ThM 951 East 86th Street, Suite 200A Indianapolis, IN 46240 Office: 317-257-5885 cmdamw@cmda.org
Northeast Region Scott Boyles, MDiv P.O. Box 7500 Bristol, TN 37621 Office: 423-844-1092 scott.boyles@cmda.org
Southern Region William D. Gunnels, MDiv 106 Fern Dr. Covington, LA 70433 Office: 985-502-7490 south@cmda.org
Interested in getting involved? Contact your regional director today!
TODAY’S CHRISTIAN DOCTOR
transformations
®
EDITOR Mandi Mooney EDITORIAL COMMITTEE Gregg Albers, MD John Crouch, MD Autumn Dawn Galbreath, MD Curtis E. Harris, MD, JD Van Haywood, DMD Rebecca Klint-Townsend, MD Robert D. Orr, MD Debby Read, RN VP FOR COMMUNICATIONS Margie Shealy AD SALES Margie Shealy 423-844-1000 DESIGN Ahaa! Design + Production PRINTING Pulp CMDA is a member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA). TODAY’S CHRISTIAN DOCTOR®, registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. ISSN 0009-546X, Winter 2016, Volume XLVII, No. 4. Printed in the United States of America. Published four times each year by the Christian Medical & Dental Associations® at 2604 Highway 421, Bristol, TN 37620. Copyright© 2016, Christian Medical & Dental Associations®. All Rights Reserved. Distributed free to CMDA members. Non-doctors (US) are welcome to subscribe at a rate of $35 per year ($40 per year, international). Standard presort postage paid at Bristol, Tenn. Postmaster: Send address changes to: Christian Medical & Dental Associations, P.O. Box 7500, Bristol, TN 37621-7500. Undesignated Scripture references are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, Copyright© 1973, 1978, 1984, Biblica. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. Scripture references marked (KJV) are taken from the King James Version. Scripture references marked (MSG) are taken from The Message. Copyright© 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group. Scripture references marked (NASB) are taken from the New American Standard Bible®, Copyright© 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. Scripture references marked (NIV 2011) are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright© 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Scripture references marked (NKJV) are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright© 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Other versions are noted in the text. Christian Medical & Dental Associations P.O. Box 7500, Bristol, TN 37621 888-230-2637 main@cmda.org • www.cmda.org If you are interested in submitting articles to be considered for publication, visit www.cmda.org/publications for submission guidelines and details. Articles and letters published represent the opinions of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy of the Christian Medical & Dental Associations. Acceptance of paid advertising from any source does not necessarily imply the endorsement of a particular program, product or service by CMDA. Any technical information, advice or instruction provided in this publication is for the benefit of our readers, without any guarantee with respect to results they may experience with regard to the same. Implementation of the same is the decision of the reader and at his or her own risk. CMDA cannot be responsible for any untoward results experienced as a result of following or attempting to follow said information, advice or instruction.
Being Called to Engage by Ed and Debby Read Is God nudging you to become more engaged with CMDA? Is He calling you out of your “comfort zone” to plans He has for you? Are you resistant, listing all the reasons why it does not make sense? Are you hesitant, thinking of what it will cost? When counting the cost, remember God has a unique investment plan. He asks only for availability on our part. He does everything else that is required as He brings about abundant return. When God called us from our Pennsylvania home and community to serve Him in Virginia, we struggled with what those changes would bring. Honestly, we expected to stay in the home and community we loved for the rest of our lives. It was easy to justify staying. Still, we could not ignore His nudging to “something more.” As we prayed and sought His will, He led us to use our backgrounds as a physician and nurse to become area directors for CMDA and build a campus and community ministry on the Medical College of Virginia campus at VCU in Richmond. The faithful men and women of Richmond’s local council had been praying for years for someone to minister to the healthcare students at MCV. We had countless doubts. How could we possibly fill such a role? How would our children feel about us leaving their childhood home? Were we prepared to move to a place where we knew no one? Would the students be able to relate to a couple the age of their parents? Could we really live on significantly less income than we were used to? How would we work together in this role, one so different from anything we had done before? We took this step of faith 12 years ago, trusting God knew the answers to our questions. From our human perspective, so much did not make sense. Looking back, we see how different and immensely better His ways are from ours. God has more than provided for our every need, and He has also allowed us the joy of seeing how the treasures we have amassed in heaven will make a difference for eternity. Our home became His home as we hosted countless fellowship events, meals, counseling sessions, student leadership retreats, overnight get-a-ways and more. Our hearts overflowed as the local CMDA students, residents, healthcare professionals and spouses became our “family” in Christ. Previously described as “dark,” the campus became a place of “light.” The weekly Bible studies developed into a place where the students were physically and spiritually fed. They consistently grew in knowledge of God and His Word, enjoyed sweet fellowship and encouraged one another to stand strong in their faith. The local council spent more time together through informal dinners, fellowship events and student interactions. These relationships grew and deepened as we served the Lord together and strengthened one another in our faith. They recently hosted a gathering to honor and thank us for our years of service. The evening turned out to be a very special one as the group focused on what God has done in and through CMDA. It was such a joy to hear people share the great impact the ministry has had on their lives. No earthly goods come close to the precious gifts we have received as servants of our King through the ministry of CMDA. What blessings we would have missed if we had not stepped out in faith when God called. Is He calling you, too? Christian Medical & Dental Associations www.cmda.org 5
transformations
CMDA Welcomes New Senior Leadership In September, Mike Chupp, MD, joined CMDA as Executive Vice President. Mike graduated from Indiana University School of Medicine in 1988 and completed a general surgery residency at Methodist Hospital in 1993. For the last 20 years, Dr. Chupp served as a healthcare missionary surgeon and then as Medical Superintendent at Tenwek Hospital in Kenya. Mike has been married to Pam for 25 years and they have four children: Steven, Melody, Kayla and Ashley. Dr. Chupp will be transitioning into his role at CMDA over the next several months, and we are eager to see what God has in store for him at CMDA. CMDA also welcomed Bill Reichart, MDiv, as the new Vice President for Campus & Community Ministries this fall. Bill brings a wealth of knowledge from his prior role as Area Director for CMDA’s thriving Atlanta Campus & Community Ministry. In addition to this experience, CMDA will benefit from his theological training, proven administrative skills and technology acumen. Bill has been serving in vocational ministry for more than 25 years in various roles with CRU, as a local church pastor and with CMDA for the last seven and a half years. Those years of ministry have been with his wife Lauren by his side, along with his two college-age daughters, Emmy and Brenna.
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GIVE WHILE You Receive through a CHARITABLE GIFT ANNUITY CMDA’S STEWARDSHIP DEPARTMENT P.O. Box 7500 • Bristol, TN 37621 www.cmdagift.org • 888-230-2637 6 Today’s Christian Doctor Winter 16
transformations
Summer Events for Your Family We know how important it is for you to connect and engage with your family despite the busyness of everyday responsibilities, work, church, relationships and more. That’s why we are now offering three summer conferences for you and your family. Each of these conferences will give you an opportunity to reconnect with God and your family, hear challenging speakers and enjoy free time for family activities. Each week is also specifically designed to provide you with personal and spiritual renewal. We encourage you to find a date that works and make plans now to join us at a CMDA summer conference in 2017.
Deer Valley Summer Conference June 17-24, 2017 Nathrop, Colorado www.cmda.org/deervalley
Spring Canyon Summer Conference June 24 – July 1, 2017 Buena Vista, Colorado www.cmda.org/springcanyon
White Sulphur Springs Summer Conference July 14-21, 2017 Bedford, Pennsylvania www.cmda.org/whitesulphursprings
Caring for the medically underserved is a passion of mine. I was thrilled when I learned that In His Image shared this vision. Residency encouraged my passion to serve as I treated patients at the Good Samaritan Health Services (GSHS) mobile medical clinics. IHI partners with GSHS and local churches to deliver free, Christ-centered healthcare to the underserved and urban poor. Also, through the curriculum at IHI, I rotated at the county jail where I now serve as Medical Director. I am thankful for the mentorship and guidance I received at IHI that has equipped me for this work with those hurting physically and spiritually.
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Christian Medical & Dental Associations www.cmda.org 7
transformations
Engaging on a Small Campus by David Donaldson, MD
Although starting a local student chapter began slowly, God’s guidance proved faithful. I graduated years ago, so I knew the chances of being a sponsor and forming a chapter at a satellite campus with only two classes (32 per class) were pretty small. In fact, my first “call out” six years ago yielded zero results. Yet God’s victorious voice reigned louder than deliberations of defeat. Two years later, just enough people came forward to begin a campus ministry. The following year we grew from three to six, then from six to 14 over the next few years with students meeting for fellowship and participating in a number of outreaches. Now, CMDA at Indiana University School of Medicine– Fort Wayne is in its fifth year, and we hope for many more years to come. Growing spiritually and in numbers is not anything I have done, but it is what God has done through all those involved from the chapter’s infancy. Fully aware of my imperfections and inexperience in leading a ministry, I knew that in divinely inspired situations like this, availability trumps ability. And what may
seem to be initially unproductive, God can make fruit from our faithfulness. If God is prompting your heart, don’t forgo starting a chapter simply because it is a small or satellite campus. Thanks to the involved medical students at IUSM-FW, lives can continue to be transformed as CMDA continues its presence on campus. INTER ACTIVE Visit www.cmdastudents.org for more information about CMDA’s Campus Ministry.
c Memoriam and Honorarium Gifts d
Proverbs 27:23
Gifts received July through September 2017 Mr. and Mrs. Paul Belcher in memory of Ms. Esther Rudd Nease
Ms. Margaret A. Newmaster in memory of Dr. John Elsen
Mr. and Mrs. Leland Granlund in memory of Dr. John Elsen
Mr. and Mrs. Philip E. Havens, Dr. Robert E. Cropsey, Dick and Janice Badgley, Ms. Lindi Harmon, Dr. Lanette McKown Guthmann and Mr. John Guthmann, Mr. and Mrs. Larry Turner, Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth Moran, Mr. and Mrs. Richard Hill, Ms. Dorothy Bonnell, Mr. and Mrs. George Dewey, Ms. Virginia Smith, Mr. and Mrs. David Cronin, Kelly J. Williams, Mr. and Mrs. James Lundeen, Maisie King, Mr. and Mrs. Virgil Shoults, Ms. Marcia Horton Dorman, Mr. and Mrs. John Stock, Mr. and Mrs. Craig Moody, Ms. Wanda Cowper in memory of Ms. Ardith Steffes.
For more information about honorarium and memoriam gifts, please contact stewardship@cmda.org.
8 Today’s Christian Doctor Winter 16
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transformations
Event Calendar
For more information, visit www.cmda.org/meetings. Northeast Winter Conference January 13-15, 2017 Harvey Cedars, New Jersey www.cmda.org/events
Marriage Enrichment Weekends February 3-5, 2017 • Healdsburg, California March 24-26, 2017 • Healdsburg, California www.cmda.org/marriage
Grace Prescriptions Live Seminar January 20-21, 2017 San Antonio, Texas www.cmda.org/graceprescriptions
New Medical Missionary Training March 9-12, 2017 Abingdon, Virginia www.cmda.org/events
West Coast Winter Conference January 27-29, 2017 Cannon Beach, Oregon www.cmda.org/events
2017 CMDA National Convention May 4-7, 2017 Ridgecrest, North Carolina www.cmda.org/nationalconvention
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transformations
SEEN & HEARD VOICES OF CMDA
Voices of CMDA in Ministry “CMDA was very important to my spiritual growth in medical school. I loved getting to know other Christian students, and having a place to go to every week where I could pray and connect with my peers.” —CMDA student leader “Then it dawned on me: I’m not having to fight this fight alone. I knew who to come to: CMDA. I so appreciate what you’re doing on Capitol Hill.” —CMDA member forced out of his position over conscience issues “CMDA weekly meeting/Bible study provided me with a short break from school and boosted me up with spiritual food. It is really encouraging to meet with brothers and sisters who also have the love of Christ in their hearts. As a first year dental student, CMDA provides me new channels of serving God and people with other health professionals. Not only did I see great models of other Christians serving God in healthcare field, but I’ve also learned about many missionary opportunities and seen the great needs of people, which make me want to stay a part of CMDA.” —First year dental student “As a mother and a wife, I’m somewhat of a non-traditional medical student. This group of ladies with Women Physicians in Christ in Atlanta has been very supportive of me, and I feel that I’ve found a place with them. The WPC group has helped my faith grow and helped me to maintain my sanity in all the chaos.” —Medical student
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HEALING THE HURTING, BUILDING HEALTHY COMMUNITIES AND TRANSFORMING LIVES SINCE 1981
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10 Today’s Christian Doctor Winter 16
Voices of CMDA in Missions “I have not ever been really comfortable sharing my faith with other people. This trip has helped me find comfort in my beliefs. I definitely stepped out of my comfort zone and participated in group prayers. I really learned that God can use me, but I first have to step out of His way. I learned that when I want God, I have to find the source of Him. I can’t just listen to the stuff that has been polluted by the world. I need to be active in my prayer life, and when it seems like God isn’t listening to me, it’s really that I’ve just asked for the wrong thing. I learned that even though I’m tiny and unimportant, God can do big things through me. One of my friends was struggling with whether she believed in God, and one night I got to help her figure out her faith, which strengthened mine. I realized that all the things I told her were things that I believed.” —High school student serving on a GHO trip to the Dominican Republic “For our [missionary] Christmas card of encouragement, we were assigned a young CMDA missionary in Burundi, the very land where our late son found both his calling and his death. What a bittersweet joy to be able to support the kind of work that would help his memory and purpose. God bless you for effecting these spirit-filled connections.” —CMDA member who signed Christmas card for an overseas missionary “We were very impressed by the enthusiasm and openness we experienced during the teaching activities. At the end of the three-day teaching session, a faculty member commented, ‘From now on, I will try to be positive, toward myself as well as my students. Now I realize it is important to be more positive and point out the good things my students have done.’ We were always taught to be critical of our behaviors as well as thoughts so that we can achieve better things, but in the end we are usually critical of everyone else around us too. So seeing the change of hearts just after three days of teaching moved me deeply. Like what it says in the Bible, it does not depend on man’s desire or effort, but on God’s mercy.” —Team member serving on a MEI trip to Eastern Asia “I grew spiritually in that living outside my one world and my own stuff is a reminder of what should be my single minded devotion to Christ. My greatest blessing was the fellowship with the team, particularly the medical students. I sharpened my clinical skills through practicing without the usual diagnostic tools.” —Physician serving on a GHO team to Nicaragua “We loved every minute of the conference and were very sad when it was over! We greatly appreciated all the wonderful advice we received from the experience of so many long-term medical missionaries. We loved the array of topics ranging from ethics to crosscultural/religion communication to fundraising to family life on the field. It was so comprehensive and offered numerous examples of how to apply the principles being taught. Thank you so much for putting so much time, energy, and love into the conference! It was very much appreciated, and I know that God has already changed my heart in areas that needed to be changed before going to the mission field.” —Attendee at CMDA’s New Medical Missionary Training
??? HAVE YOU BEEN
TRANSFORMED? ARE YOU
TRANSFORMING OTHERS?
We want to hear from you Send your transformation story, letter or photos to communications@cmda.org or to P.O. Box 7500, Bristol, TN 37621. Please include an email address for us to contact you.
We want to hear your story It can be a simple comment about a CMDA ministry; it can be an account of your experiences on a missions trip; it can be a profile of a member who has had a huge impact upon you; it can be photos from a campus meeting; it can be statistics showing how your trip served the needy; it can truly be anything— we want to see how your work is making a difference.
We want to hear your ideas Do you have a great idea for Today’s Christian Doctor? Send your ideas to communications@cmda.org.
TRANSFORMATIONS SHOWCASING THE IMPACT OF CMDA ONE STORY AT A TIME
Christian Medical & Dental Associations www.cmda.org 11
cover story INTER ACTIVE Visit www.cmda.org/ccm to get engaged with CMDA’s Campus & Community Ministries.
Engage Your Community
through Healthcare by Scott T. Keller, DO, FAAFP, and Bill Reichart, MDiv Cover photo courtesy of Mary Claire Photography
12 Today’s Christian Doctor Winter 16
E
very year, thousand of physicians, dentists, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses and other volunteers give up their precious time and money to serve the underserved in healthcare. Why would they become involved when they know there will be no monetary benefit and, frankly, many of those served are “unhygienic” and unappreciative of their efforts? One of the motivations to give up the sanitized offices of suburbia and help those less fortunate might be summed up in the words of one of the preeminent philosophers of the 21st century—Stan Lee, the creator of Spiderman and countless other comic book characters. Spiderman (or Peter Parker) heard it succinctly from his Uncle Ben: “With great power comes great responsibility.” We feel so overwhelmingly blessed we want and need to bless others. Another reason for those who attempt to follow Christ is described in Matthew 25:35-40. To paraphrase those verses, when we serve those who are sick or hungry or alone, we are actually serving our Savior.
“…I was sick and you looked after me…” (Matthew 25:36, NIV 2011). *************************** As we seek to follow these commands from Matthew and serve our Savior, the Atlanta chapter of CMDA participates in multiple domestic service projects in our community. We have been blessed to have access to a mobile medical clinic that allows us to partner with several homeless ministries in the city. Safehouse Outreach and the Lazarus Project are just some of the ministries we partner with to serve the homeless community in downtown Atlanta. And because of Georgia’s sovereign immunity laws, we can now offer healthcare to the needy in our state without concern of untoward legal ramifications. In order to take advantage of the law, any healthcare professional interested in volunteering only needs to submit their name and license number to the Georgia Volunteer Health Care Program, and then they can volunteer without the fear or concern of any legal reprisals. This one state-run program alone has opened up a floodgate of volunteers within the healthcare community. In addition to outreach to the homeless, we also have a bi-monthly healthcare outreach to the suburb of Clarkston. Time Magazine called Clarkston “the most culturally diverse square mile in the U.S.” Clarkston has served as a resettlement area for refugees for more than 20 years. From 1996 to 2001, more than 19,000
refugees were resettled in Georgia, and many of those refugees were resettled in Clarkston. The community has become home to people groups from every major world religion and includes both individuals and families. The refugees, although coming from everywhere in the world, primarily arrive from countries within subSaharan Africa, the Middle East and Southeast Asia. These are people who fled their own countries for a variety of reasons, including war, persecution and others, and now they find themselves facing the challenges of navigating a new culture in America. According to some estimates, half of Clarkston’s population is from outside the United States. Matthew 28:19 says, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations…” (NIV 2011). Well, all nations—practically all of our world—is literally on our doorstep right here in the suburbs of Atlanta. Lucky for us, we don’t have to travel too far to reach our world with the love of Christ. It is an amazing privilege to serve our Lord and minister to the world in our own backyard. Since beginning our work within the Clarkston refugees, we’ve been able to see more than 600 patients representing 18 different countries. They come to our country with nothing but the clothes they are wearing, fearing for their family’s lives after serving our troops in the Middle East. Others come to escape abject poverty and hopelessness in Southeast Asia. They came from Africa where they fled violence and civil war. One of our patients, Francis, watched as guerrillas slaughtered his brother Christian Medical & Dental Associations www.cmda.org 13
“Here in Atlanta, the CMDA community has been afforded so many wonderful opportunities to enter peoples’ lives and minister to them through healthcare. We have cared for the downtrodden, those cast aside by society and those who have endured unthinkable hardship. If Jesus were here in the flesh today, I believe these are precisely the ones whose company He would seek. They each have a face, a name, a personality, a story and inestimable value that the world often overlooks. I wish I could convey to each one how precious they are to the Lord! It begins with showing them compassion, respect and caring for them as a whole person. There are some patients that move and break my heart so that I can never forget them. While the world dismissively labels them as ‘homeless’ or ‘stripper,’ I have come to know them by their names and recognize that they are far more than that. They are broken people who still reflect the image of their Creator. I pray we may continue to learn to see people as Christ sees them and strive to see them healed.” —Natalie Ali, NP
and father in the Congo Republic. He was resettled in Clarkston, along with thousand of other countess souls, where he found care for his hypertension and a new faith in Christ. One of the medical students who served in the clinic put it this way, “If we don’t go out to minister to the world, I guess God will bring the world to us.” In addition to being able to serve as the hands and feet of Christ to the refugee community and others through the care and compassion of healthcare, the impact on the local ministry here in Atlanta has been unexpected. Because our serving opportunities usually require about 22 volunteers, which includes physicians, students, intake specialists, a pharmacist and non-medical volunteers, these local service opportunities have produced and made a positive impact on our local ministry. Through these opportunities, we are seeing people’s hearts broken over the lost. Several volunteers have taken the next step and have decided to go beyond the boundaries of the city and serve on an international healthcare mission trip. These medical service opportunities have also created community throughout our local ministry and have shaped mentoring opportunities as healthcare professionals connect with students. At their core, these opportunities have been life changing and transforming. 14 Today’s Christian Doctor Winter 16
For instance, through a partnership with a homeless outreach ministry called the Lazarus Project, we recently provided needed medical care to the homeless. We were only a small part of a host of volunteers who provided haircuts and foot massages, as well assisting with job placements. It was particularly exciting that we had a variety of healthcare students from area universities helping and getting to see what it means to serve through healthcare. Tiffany, one of the third year medical students who previously rotated through a local practice office for training, came with us on one trip to the Lazarus Project. She had never been exposed to anything beyond the typical squeaky-clean office, but she truly had a heart to serve. She brought her first patient back to the tent and asked the unkempt, bearded gentleman a variety of medical questions as she had been trained to do. He came to the clinic for the free food and decided to investiage our little clinic. He previously was a construction foreman in Chicago but lost his job eight years ago when building slowed down. He came to Atlanta for work, but unemployment and alcohol landed him in the streets. Tiffany listened to his story about losing his job, living on the streets and being rejected by his family. I think she expected to simply treat his diabetes, but she ended up crying with him, holding his grimy hands and praying with him. She will never treat a patient the same again.
***************************
Program began in 2005 with the passage of Georgia House Bill 166, which authorized the state of Georgia to offer sovereign immunity protection to uncompensated, licensed healthcare professionals while they provide donated care to eligible patients. Not every state offers this protection, so it’s important to know what’s available in your state. Similar programs are offered in Florida, South Carolina and Texas.
Don’t do it alone.
Too often we will find opportunities to serve and then just simply plug away by investing our volunteer hours all by ourselves. Serve differently. Take, go and bring someone with you as you serve. Bring family members, especially if the healthcare outreach is coupled with other types of mercy ministry. Invite other healthcare colleagues to serve with you. Or reach out to a medical
That’s what outreach is all about. That’s why getting engaged in your local community is so important. When we use our great power with responsibility, we all are even more blessed by our Savior. So how can you get engaged with your local community through healthcare? It’s a safe assumption that nearly every community in our country has varied opportunities available for you and your local CMDA chapter to start helping the underserved. It’s simply a matter of finding open doors and actively seeking to follow God’s call to serve the sick, the hungry, the weak and the needy. But that’s easier said than done, isn’t it? Getting started on a project like this can be daunting, quite frankly. And it’s definitely much simpler and far less intimidating to sit back and wait for an opportunity to land in your lap, but God’s call to us in Matthew 25 didn’t mention anything about waiting for the needs to come to us or be handed to us on a silver platter. We need to be actively searching for ways we can use our healthcare skills to make a difference in our communities. The needs are out there, and we have the responsibility and the power to do something about it. To help you get started, here are some helpful tips we learned through our efforts to become more actively engaged in serving the homeless, the refugees and the underserved in the Atlanta area.
Research your options.
Check to see what laws and programs are in your state to provide sovereign immunity and protection for healthcare professionals. The Georgia Volunteer Health Care
“As academic coordinator of the Mercer University Physician Assistant program, I have witnessed hundreds of energetic healthcare students passing over the threshold into a new adventure. Most of the students possess a deep desire to serve the least among us, and they come with proof of their passion documented in their application to school. Several of our faculty also step out and live what we believe in front of our students. As we do this, our lives are impacted and shift toward a ‘less of me and more of Him’ attitude. While volunteering with my students at the Clarkston refugee clinic, a particular moment stands out. My second year student was ready to present a patient to me, but she had a puzzled, pensive look on her face. She related the history and physical of a 43-year-old male with right shoulder pain. The patient was from Myanmar, but he had been in the U.S. for eight years and had a small family. He was doing manual labor and was noticing increasing trouble with his shoulder. He said that ibuprofen and swimming made it feel better, but lifting was starting to hurt. I reassured the student that she had gathered the appropriate information, but I would see what I could find out. As I talked with him through his 12-year-old daughter as interpreter, I kept wondering what he had done to that shoulder in the past. So I simply looked him in the eye to ask, ‘What happened to your shoulder to make it hurt like this at such a young age?’ His daughter goaded him, and he finally mentioned the time when he was jailed for five years and tortured. He had been a university student studying zoology in Myanmar when he was rounded up by the military and jailed. He was beaten regularly and forced to spend most days hanging with his wrists shackled over his head while kneeling on gravel. I looked at my student and let her know this was the pertinent history we missed. We cared differently after that, and we loved a little deeper. My student and I still recount that patient encounter and how things shifted for both of us that day.” —Jill Mattingly, PA-C Christian Medical & Dental Associations www.cmda.org 15
student and encourage them to come and shadow you. You can create meaningful and significant opportunities to build relationships all while having fun serving when you serve with someone else.
Work together. Find organizations already serving in your area and double your efforts by working together. The best types of organizations in which you’ll have the opportunity to integrate your faith with patient care will almost certainly be faith-based organizations and ministries. By doing some research, talking to colleagues or asking the leaders in your church, you may easily discover ministries already helping and providing healthcare for underserved communities in your area.
Don’t do nothing just because you can’t do it all. So many organizations and clinics to medically underserved communities are simply happy if you are willing to engage and volunteer at whatever level you can. Many of these groups are very flexible to work with your schedule and availability. Don’t allow the enormity of the need cause paralysis of inaction.
“I began volunteering at the Clarkston clinics as a premedical student with my home church. Now, as a second year osteopathic medical student at GA-PCOM, I volunteer monthly with my classmates through CMDA Atlanta. Admittedly, my initial interest in volunteering was somewhat selfishly motivated. An eager pre-med, I hoped to become a better candidate for medical school through my service, but ultimately my experiences in Clarkston have made me better in more ways than I ever imagined. Over the years, I’ve found the refugees of Clarkston to be warm, caring people who are thankful beyond measure for our interest in them. Personally, as mother to a 16-month-old son, I empathize deeply with the refugee mothers who visit our clinic. They have the same hopes and dreams for their children as I have for my son: safety, security, love, faith and opportunity. But the refugee community is full of families who have fled or been forced from their homes, people who have experienced extreme religious and physical persecution. Some of the patients we see are understandably timid and skeptical of us, but all are grateful and relieved to have their medical needs met. Through continued service, it is my hope our team will become a fixture in the community so we might foster a cross-cultural relationship of trust and understanding. As it says in James, ‘What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead’ (James 2:14-17, NIV 2011).” —Lauren McKune
Be open to other ways of serving.
In addition to going and serving within your community, another option that may be available to you is to open your practice to take on and receive referrals. Many healthcare outreaches and clinics are in need of specialists who are willing and able to take on a certain amount of referrals of patients and you can choose to negotiate with the organization the amount of patients you would be willing to receive. You can serve without even leaving your office.
*************************** Serving others is not a new concept for Christians. Preachers, theologians and great writers have been advocating the great need to serve others for hundreds of years. 18th century theologian John Wesley once said, “One of the principal rules of religion is to lose no occasion of serving God. And, since he is invisible to our eyes, we are to serve him in our neighbor; which he 16 Today’s Christian Doctor Winter 16
receives as if done to himself in person, standing visibly before us.” Isaac Watts, who wrote more than 750 hymns in his lifetime, said, “In matters of equity between man and man, our Savior has taught us to put my neighbor in place of myself, and myself in place of my neighbor.” Scottish evangelist and biologist Henry Drummond wrote, “I shall pass through this world but once. Any good thing therefore that I can do, or any kindness that I can show to any human being, let me do it now. Let me not defer it or neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again.” If you aren’t engaged in serving others in your community, don’t defer any longer. Follow the words of these wise men—and the advice of Uncle Ben to Peter Parker—and get started today.
“‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me’” (Matthew 25:40, NIV 2011). About The Authors
BILL REICHART, MDIV, is CMDA’s Vice President of Campus & Community Ministries. He is an ordained minister within the Presbyterian Church of America. With more than 25 years of ministry experience, Bill recently was the Atlanta area director with CMDA before moving into his current role with the ministry. Prior to CMDA, Bill worked on staff with Campus Crusade for Christ for more than 16 years. Throughout the years, Bill has worked with college students at University of Rhode Island, UVA and Towson University. Bill earned his MDiv from Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando and is currently in their doctorate program. Bill has been married to his wife for more than 27 years, and they have two beautiful daughters who have captured his heart.
SCOTT T. KELLER, DO, FAAFP, is a board certified family practice physician who currently practices with the DeKalb Medical Physicians Group in Atlanta, Georgia. He graduated from West Virginia University in 1975 and received his DO from West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine in 1979. He also serves as an associate professor at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine and as the medical director at Grace Medical Missions. Dr. Keller has participated in healthcare mission trips to Peru, Haiti, Lebanon, the Dominican Republic and Coast Rica. He is married to Brenda and they have five children.
Christian Medical & Dental Associations www.cmda.org 17
Engaging
with Your Family by Sharon Chatwell, MD
Y
ou’re on call, you’ve got a sick patient looming on the horizon, a ton of dictations wait for you and your spouse wants you home for dinner with the family. Which one of these causes you the most frustration? I thought so. Maybe it’s better not to answer that question out loud. Today’s healthcare professional deals with enormous pressures and strain. So how can the average physician have the time or energy necessary to engage with his or her family? However difficult it may seem, it is certainly worth the effort. God didn’t make us to be alone. We have spouses, children, family and friends, and we need to take time for ourselves to be involved with them and be engaged in their lives. It is, in fact, one of the important ways God ministers to us, as well as one of the ways we minister to others. 18 Today’s Christian Doctor Winter 16
But how do you do it? It’s one thing to say you want to be more engaged with your family and another thing to actually make it happen. Here are some ideas. Start with prayer (always a good place to start). Ask God to show you how He would have you be engaged with your family, for we can do nothing without Him. Jesus said in John 15:5, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing” (NIV 2011). We must be firmly rooted in the Vine, if we expect to see any fruit appear. Next, be purposeful. You have to identify your family as a priority and keep it as a priority. And every once in a while, if you notice it has slipped down a few notches, you have to dust if off and put it back up there as a priority. One reason to be purposeful is that you and your spouse are both busy. Busy people don’t often run into each other; they have to plan to run into each other.
INTER ACTIVE Visit www.cmda.org/sidebyside to learn more about Side By Side, a ministry for healthcare spouses.
Case in point: My husband and I were residents at a major teaching hospital in downtown Dallas. We were in the same program, but on different teams, which meant we would see each other exactly zero times a day. So, we had to make a plan that allowed us see each other at least once daily. We decided to have lunch. From that time on (admissions allowing) we arranged to have lunch together in the cafeteria. By the second week or so, the lunch ladies had us all figured out. With wide smiles and their charming, southern drawl they would tell me things like, “He’s already here, honey, and he’s saving a seat for you!” They loved us. We were famous. Young love! It worked for us. It helped us stay connected and sane. And now, many years later, we still have lunch together as often as possible. No matter what your schedule looks like, you will probably have to plan ahead a little to spend time alone with your spouse. If you are married with children, make sure you and your spouse have at least one date a week away from the kids. Find a babysitter and get away for the evening.
If there isn’t money in the budget for a sitter, find another family in a similar situation and trade off babysitting services. I watch yours; you watch mine. It’s also important to talk with your spouse at home each day, even if it is just a few minutes. If you are the husband, please note that “talk” may simply mean “sit in the kitchen with her and listen to her talk.” Every once in a while, nod your head in agreement. Be sure to smile or laugh if she tells you something funny. If she tells you she had a “horrible day” and the kids have been little “wild people” and she has gained five pounds, hold her in your arms and tell her that she is beautiful and that she is the only girl in the world for you and that you love her and that you are extremely proud of her and that you appreciate everything she does to make sure the world goes on spinning while you are gone all the time. And make sure she knows coming home to her is absolutely the best part of your day. And you must mean it. Then everything will be fine. Trust me. Christian Medical & Dental Associations www.cmda.org 19
Next on the list, your spouse and your children are extremely important, so you must pay close attention to them. As a healthcare professional, you take care of complicated patients every day—this requires attentiveness. The temptation, of course, is to turn your attentiveness “off” for a while when you come home, just to rest. This is completely understandable; however, if you do it all of the time, things are going to slip through the cracks. Often your spouse or your children will tell you when something is wrong. Don’t screen them out. You may be tempted to do so, thinking they’re overreacting or it’s not important or it will go away with time, and you may be right…but then again you may be wrong. And when you are wrong, as occasionally occurs in healthcare, the results can be serious. Let me use another one of our family experiences to illustrate the point. One of our sons had appendicitis. To make a long story short, it was missed the first time. We thought it was appendicitis and the pediatrician thought so too, but some lab tests and a resolving clinical picture overruled us. Time went by and things normalized, and we forgot. But the pediatrician didn’t. She told our son, “If you so much as sneeze again, that appendix is coming out.” Two years later the same child complained of abdominal discomfort. At first, I didn’t take his complaints very seriously. But when I took him in to see the pediatrician later that day, he had every single positive sign for appendicitis. Every. Single. One.
A textbook case. Three hours later, after his appendectomy, the surgeon said, “You know…this isn’t the first time he’s had appendicitis.” In healthcare, attentiveness plus a high degree of suspicion often leads to the correct diagnosis. It is the same in the family. Being attentive pays big dividends. For example, recognizing when your child has moved from being happy and engaged in school to being unhappy and disengaged is extremely helpful. This doesn’t happen overnight. Typically, it occurs over a period of time. The sooner you recognize it, the smaller the problem usually is and the sooner you can do something about it. In this way, it is a bit like cancer screening. If you find yourself wondering, “Why is the child unhappy or disengaged?” it’s okay to start asking questions. Start with the child, the schoolteacher, the school counselor or the child’s friends. Sometimes the problem is just that your child doesn’t know how to address a new situation. Figure out what it is and discuss it with the child. Ask your child, “What does God’s Word say about this?” Look up the answers in the Bible together. Help your child understand that when we hear God’s Word and put it into practice in our lives, we are like a wise man who built his house upon a rock, but when we hear God’s Word and don’t put it into practice, we are like a foolish man who built his house upon the sand (Matthew 4:24-27). This brings up the next point—you have to know God’s Word. One of the best ways to do this is to be in church. I know…you’re still busy. It doesn’t matter. You still have to go to church. If you’re on call, set your phone on “silent” and sit at the end of the pew. No one will care if you get up to go deliver a set of twins. Church is important for a variety of reasons, but one of the most important is that your family (and that includes you) needs the spiritual growth that only comes with regular study of the Bible. You need a church where they read and teach the Bible, and your children need the Bible stories they teach in Sunday School. Additionally, you and your family need the community. A supportive church family provides a wonderful place to grow. It is there, as well as at home, that you first put new spiritual insights into practice.
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well. They notice and may even come and talk to you about it. My husband and I don’t have a perfect marriage (we are sinners saved by grace, just like you), but by the grace of God we have been married now for more than 30 years. One day a young man at church came up to us and said, “I didn’t grow up in a Christian home. I never knew what a loving marriage looked like. I have learned so much just from watching you. I want for myself what you have.” (By the way, no one was more surprised by this sweet confession than we were!)
Remember that being in community with other people (even with Christians) occasionally includes being in conflicts. Don’t be discouraged. That’s one of the ways we grow as well! The trick is to find out what God’s Word says about those particular types of conflicts and put into practice what He says about them. Last, but by no means least, engaging with your family means you must love and be faithful to your spouse. Your marriage requires your complete personal commitment. Nothing else will do. It is completely necessary. As my husband likes to say of us as a couple, “It all starts here, with us; if we don’t work, nothing else works.” He’s right, of course. If things are good between you and your spouse, your family has a better chance of being healthier and more stable. As a physician, you have countless things to distract you. Don’t let that happen. Jealously guard your relationship with your spouse. Have time away together; pray together; listen to one another. Don’t let other responsibilities or persons (including your own children) come between the two of you. It is harder for other things to intervene, if your relationship with your spouse is strong. When you love your spouse and are committed to being engaged with your family, not only are you and your family blessed, but other people are affected as
It is a form of witnessing to others that I had never imagined possible. But, of course, nothing is impossible with God. He is able to accomplish the most amazing things, even with the humblest of offerings. May God bless you as you continue to engage with your family.
About The Author
SHARON KAY CHATWELL, MD, is a native of Texas who currently resides in Lincoln, Nebraska with her husband Dr. Rick Chatwell, who is a rheumatologist. Trained in internal medicine, Sharon is not in practice, having decided early on to stay home and help raise their family. The Chatwells have four adult children, (Christopher, David, John and Anna) as well as two beautiful daughters-in-law and a brand new grandson, Benjamin! Sharon is a Christian writer who contributes regularly to On the Side (CMDA’s e-publication for Side By Side, its ministry to women in healthcare marriages). Sharon also has an international ministry through her website Sunday School Center, which was designed specifically to address the needs of Sunday School teachers and administrators. Her site, offering lessons and skits she has written, has nearly one million visitors annually, including Christian brothers and sisters from more than 175 countries. Christian Medical & Dental Associations www.cmda.org 21
Engage Your Campus by Jerry Hric, MD
A
round 6 p.m. on any given Tuesday night from August to May, cars begin to line the street in front of our house and medical students from Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine parade into our home. Together, we share a home-cooked meal, praise God with worship songs, participate in a Bible study and hang out afterward for a time of fellowship. In the last five years, we have hosted about 150 gatherings, served more than 2,000 meals and met hundreds of students. But how did this all start? A little over five years ago, Dr. Eric Bantz, a fellow physician, put me in contact with Bryan Stoudt, the local CMDA Philadelphia Area Director. Brian made me aware of a small group of Christian students who were meeting at a medical school just 10 minutes from our home. They were looking for a physician mentor to help them. My wife and I met with the leader of the group and birthed a plan to host a weekly dinner and Bible study in our home. This would become the start of an intense and exciting series of ministry opportunities God laid before us. New Jersey is one of the most ethnically diverse states in the United States. Rowan University’s School of Osteopathic Medicine intentionally recruits an ethnically diverse student population. Over the last five years, we have had students in our home whose families are from all over the world. At last count, we have had the opportunity to meet students hailing from 22 different countries. My wife Susan says, “Every Tuesday night, we open the door and watch the world walk in.” We have learned so much from these students as they have shared their customs, their food and their unique perspectives on God and worship. In addition to our Tuesday night studies, we also make ourselves available to meet with students one-on-one
22 Today’s Christian Doctor Winter 16
INTER ACTIVE Visit www.cmda.students.org to get engaged with CMDA’s Campus Ministry. Christian Medical & Dental Associations www.cmda.org 23
the school, Dr. Thomas Cavalieri. After meeting with Dean Cavalieri, he invited me to become a voluntary adjunct faculty and later a clinical assistant pediatric professor. I started providing shadowing experiences in neonatology for students. In addition, about a year ago Dean Cavalieri invited me to be on the dean’s advisory council that meets quarterly to support his initiatives and give him advice.
for counseling, encouragement and prayer. Medical school can be a fragile time for a countless number of students. It is often a time wrought with insecurities, loneliness, depression and relational difficulties. We have had the sacred privilege to accompany students as they have wept over broken engagements, confided in us about their battles with depression and struggled with their choice to pursue medicine as a career. As we have offered hugs, a listening ear, words of encouragement and especially prayer, we have often seen God bring healing and wholeness in these struggles. Getting to know the students on a deeper level has also opened up other ministry opportunities. We have had the privilege to offer premarital counseling to two couples. One summer we hosted a six-week study on marriage for physicians, residents, medical students and their spouses. Susan also started a Side By Side chapter for wives of healthcare professionals that offers encouragement, especially to wives whose husbands are in residency. (Side By Side is a ministry of CMDA with more than 60 chapters across the country. For more information and to get involved, visit www.cmda.org/ sidebyside.) As a physician executive, my schedule has been flexible enough to meet with students on campus for lunch, serve a few years as a panelist for the Pediatric Club and be available to attend other student activities. I even participated in a table tennis tournament and came in second place! My presence on campus also afforded me the opportunity to get to know the dean of 24 Today’s Christian Doctor Winter 16
The dean wanted me to share with his medical students the same business principles I learned from my business coach. My business coach for 16 years, Richard Zalack, gave permission to use his proprietary information for the medical students. I then created a course entitled “How to Survive and Thrive in Medical School, Residency and Life,” which was approved by the curriculum committee for credit. This year, the dean wanted me to add workshops on character development. As a result, I am now presenting 16 times throughout the first semester, for 45 minutes during lunch each Monday. Topics include compassion, balance, goal setting, humility, transparency and forgiveness. Last March, my wife and I took six medical students and two pre-med students on a Global Health Outreach mission trip to the Dominican Republic. The experience included partnering with a wonderful host church from Santiago, working alongside local physicians and caring for the physical needs of medically underserved people in the Dominican Republic. The trip was a blessing to all who attended, and several of the students voiced the desire to incorporate healthcare missions into their lives on a regular basis as a result of the trip. In reflecting on the trip, Anne Oh, a third year medical student said, “This mission trip was life changing for me. I can only imagine how cliché that sounds, but really, there are no other words to describe it. I cannot point at one single thing and identify it as what changed me, but rather, it was how everything unfolded that allowed me to see and experience God’s love.” We plan to return to the Dominican Republic in March 2017 with another group of students. Of course, we have not done this alone. Physicians from the South Jersey chapter of CMDA have engaged with us to reach out to students. One couple attends the Tuesday night gatherings at our home and serves as mentors to the students. Some physicians have had students over for dinner or met with them for lunch in the hospital cafeteria. Other physicians have permitted students to shadow them in their offices, giving them
a chance to get to know them personally and engage them in conversations about life and faith. Several physicians gave financial contributions to the mission trip in order to make it possible for all the interested students to attend. After hearing the students’ excitement about their mission trip, one physician donated a wheelchair that was taken to the Dominican Republic on a subsequent trip. Local Christian physicians regularly speak to the Tuesday night group, sharing how they incorporate their faith into their practices or spiritual lessons they are learning. We are grateful to partner with our local attending CMDA chapter to minister to students. When you see it all written out on paper, I’m so amazed by all that God has allowed us to accomplish in just a few short years. Weekly dinners, Bible studies, lunch meetings, open doors for new ministry on campus, mission trips and so much more. And it all started because we were open to God’s leading to get involved and engage with our local campus. So I encourage you to take this opportunity to get engaged with a CMDA campus chapter in your community. As our ministry with students on the local campus continues to develop, here are some specifics we have learned that might be helpful to you as you get started: • Maintain a two-hour time frame for a weekly gathering. For the dinners and Bible studies we hold at our house, we are very intentional about beginning at 6 p.m. and ending promptly at 8 p.m., so the students can return to their studies. • The home environment is extremely impactful. A change of venue that affords the opportunity to pet a dog, play Ping-Pong or play a game of basketball helps relieve stress and gives them a “home-awayfrom-home.” • Welcome ALL who come. Though this is a Christian ministry, we often tell students we are all on a spiritual journey and everyone is welcome. We have had Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist and Jain students join us for Bible study. We encourage the non-Christians who are attending to learn about Christianity so they can better understand and serve their future Christian patients. • Social media is important. The students have a Facebook group they use to communicate upcoming events. I will admit I am not great with this, but as Susan drags me into social media literacy, I am finding entirely new avenues of communication and relationship with the students. • Be aware and sensitive to their schedules. We have discovered that planning events to occur within a few days after exams is most optimal. For example, we host a “pizza and game night” at our house each semester after major exams.
My wife and I never imagined we would be involved with medical students, but looking back over the last five years, our lives have been so much richer for having followed God’s initial promptings. How is God calling you to get involved? CMDA has campus chapters on more than 270 campuses across the country, and they need healthcare professionals to engage with them and invest in them as they seek to live out the character of Christ on their campuses. Perhaps you can do what we did and start with a regular Bible study. Or maybe you can carve out time in your schedule to join students for lunch on campus. Don’t let it seem overwhelming and just start small. God can use even a small act to make a vast difference in the lives of these students. And then who knows where God will lead you from there?
“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen” (Ephesians 3:20-21, NIV 2011). About The Author
JERRY HRIC, MD, received his medical degree from Hahnemann Medical College in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1981. He became a Christian during his second year in medical school through the ministry of the Navigators. His wife Susan also became a Christian through the Navigators, when she was a freshman at the University of Connecticut. They did ministry together at the University of Florida where he completed a pediatric residency and Susan was a nurse. They were married while he completed a neonatology fellowship at the University of Michigan. He has been practicing neonatology for nearly 30 years and is the founder and CEO of Onsite Neonatal Partners, Inc. They have been blessed with five children, two sons-in-law and one granddaughter. In addition to his work serving with his local CMDA campus chapter, Dr. Hric also serves on CMDA’s Board of Trustees. Christian Medical & Dental Associations www.cmda.org 25
Engage Your Church Outside the Walls by Kellie Hooker and Paul Gerritson, MDiv
INTER ACTIVE Visit www.cmda.org/resources for more resources and services to help you engage with your church.
A
few months ago, a student came up after our CMDA weekly campus luncheon and exclaimed, “I am so glad for CMDA! This is my church.” That statement is great affirmation of the work God is doing in our local groups and in the lives of students. However, it also raises an important question about the role of CMDA within the broader body of Christ—the church. All parachurch (“helping” ministry alongside a local church) organizations like CMDA face an inherent tension: how do we come alongside a local church to undergird and extend its ministry in a spiritually healthy, biblically supportable way, without being perceived as a replacement for the church? As we serve as leaders in CMDA’s Campus & Community Ministries, it behooves us to be biblically sound with our definition of local church and sensitive to our own articulation of the legitimacy of our particular role (CMDA) within the larger church. In articulating that role, it’s helpful to remember that CMDA is non-denominational; CMDA groups usually include members from different churches across our individual communities. It’s also helpful to recognize that CMDA has a specific missionary calling to the distinctive culture of the health-
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care professions. We need to recognize this distinctive as a strength and be able to articulate effectively the ways we can walk alongside local churches as they try to reach the healthcare professionals (and those they influence) within their communities. Rather than risk being perceived as rivals for the same pool of potential participants in our separate ministries, then, a local CMDA can invite the participation of local churches in their campus and community ministry in ways that will augment both ministries and at the same time embody together what it means to be Christ’s body, the church. As you read through the following suggestions for ways CMDA groups can work together with local congregations, hopefully you’ll find some suitable to your CMDA situation. Maybe these ideas will also spark fresh ones of your own.
Hospitality
One of the most rewarding ways a church and campus ministry can partner is through hospitality. Generous hospitality is essential for community building—and a major ingredient of hospitality is food! To illustrate, a local campus CMDA can invite folks from a local church to help with the food for a meal that would accompany a talk, Bible study or worship time; and a group from that church can come to serve and participate in the fel-
the form of compassionate, free healthcare and a message of hope in Christ.
Sharing Facilities
Many congregations take pride in their facilities and are eager to use them for Christian fellowship or education. At the same time, CMDA members could benefit in a number of ways from using those church facilities in their own ministries. The following are a few ideas: • O pen CMDA speaker-events to a congregation or their community in exchange for using their space to hold the event. • Resilience coaching (learning to cope with repeated trauma or stress) is an important part of training for missionaries and residents, so hold joint resident and missionary training at a missionarysending church. • Ask missionary-sending or supporting congregations to host your next healthcare missions informational or enrollment event.
Community Education
lowship over the meal. A good place to begin cultivating that kind of relationship is with the churches of the student leaders and participants in a campus ministry, or you could start with churches of the local professionals in a community CMDA group or council. A specific example is the weekly luncheon on the University of Texas Health Science Center campus in San Antonio, Texas, where 16 churches of all denominations currently take turns providing the food. Often, that church’s pastor or a local healthcare professional in the same church will bring a timely message. Local churches have also participated with providing food for smaller Bible studies or events such as welcome parties.
Mission Trips Going “on mission” together is another way to forge a rewarding partnership. For example, mission teams from the CMDA chapter in San Antonio have taken groups of people from local churches, including Spanish-speaking members, on their mission trips to the Texas border to do children’s ministry and help with translation and logistics. Conversely, local churches trying to be missional with the gospel can host a CMDA team. Together, the congregation and the CMDA participants reach into their community with the gospel in
One important way to foster cooperation and improved whole-person care is to devote time to clergy and elder education. This is particularly important, as these are the shepherds of the flock commonly called upon when a congregant’s health is failing. Helping church leaders understand more about the challenges and opportunities patients, loved ones and healthcare professionals face at such times can go a long way toward enhancing clergy support for them. It also reduces potential confusion or misunderstanding in highstress dialogues between concerned parties.
Clergy Resources
A great way to educate is to offer a half-day or fullday community-wide conference for clergy and elders, hosted and taught by healthcare professionals. A terrific resource to develop the conference around is Dr. Robert Orr’s Medical Ethics and the Faith Factor: A Handbook for Clergy and Health-Care Professionals. (This resource is available in the CMDA Bookstore at www. cmda.org/bookstore.) After the presentations, sharing a meal allows time to address questions and build relationships between clergy and healthcare professionals. Additionally, congregations and CMDA chapters could develop a pool of healthcare professionals who are able and willing to have clergy and elders shadow them in a variety of locations. These might include family practice, ICU, oncology, cardiac, geriatric and hospice settings. Hearing patients’ concerns and seeing the healthcare professionals in action would help clergy be more informed when their flock asks for counsel. There would likely be plenty to draw from for meaningful sermon material as well. Christian Medical & Dental Associations www.cmda.org 27
Being a resource for and having relationships with clergy opens doors to further opportunities. Educating congregations and communities is an important one, as you work with the church as the facility and conduit. Presenting material as a Christian who practices healthcare helps address spiritual and physical concerns many people have. Here are just a few topics healthcare professionals could speak on which would be meaningful to a general audience: • Recent research on improving personal and community health • Patient Autonomy and Right of Conscience – Clash or Cooperation? • Suffering – Theological Considerations as a Christian in Healthcare • Suffering – Pain Management and Palliative Care • Hospice Care Doesn’t Mean Quitting Care • Putting More Life in Your Days – transitioning from extending life to not prolonging dying means helping patients gain fresh perspectives and adding great value to their remaining time • Dying Well – what to expect, optimizing dignity and creating momentous memories • Physician-Assisted Suicide – a Terrible Non-Solution
Developing Relationships
One challenge of healthcare is isolation, or “silos,” of practice. It is surprising and sad how many Christians in North Carolina, for example, are involved in healthcare and yet they don’t know others who are. It turns out many even attend the same churches in a community but don’t know about each other. Having created a trust between clergy and healthcare professionals, CMDA members could do several things to break down these silos of isolation, in cooperation with congregations. Host a group event in your own fellowship to introduce healthcare professionals and students. Work with the pastoral and membership leaders to facilitate the networking of existing and newly arriving students with healthcare professionals. Multiple clergy could be invited to come introduce themselves at a student lunch meeting early in the new academic year. A pastor could be invited to give a single or short series of talks at campus events. The only caveat would be that the talk be ecumenical, not denominational or for the purpose of recruiting sheep, and be consistent with the CMDA Statement of Faith.
********************* As affirming as it is to hear a CMDA student and professional describe our meetings as “being in church,” it is even more exciting to see them join the congregation of a local church partner or bring their own church con28 Today’s Christian Doctor Winter 16
gregation on board as a CMDA partner. Each time that happens, it highlights the privilege we have of nurturing within our members a thoroughly biblical picture of what it means to be fully engaged with a local body of believers in a church even as they participate in their local CMDA group to reach their peers and colleagues in their own profession for Christ. It also illustrates vividly the opportunity, indeed the unique calling, we have with CMDA to bring churches in our communities together with CMDA ministry in ways that model service and unity within the church. May we embrace that calling and bring Him the glory!
About The Authors
KELLIE HOOKER has worked in full-time ministry to healthcare students, wives and professional women as the CMDA Associate Area Director in San Antonio, Texas since 2002. Her love of missions was born out of a life spent on the mission field, first in Africa and then in New Mexico at the Navajo Methodist Mission School. She graduated from Trinity University in San Antonio with a bachelor’s degree in English and history. Kellie and her husband Robert joined the International Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention in 1989 to work in Canada, Guatemala and Mexico, with a year-long stint in language school in Costa Rica. They have two children and five grandchildren. She also loves Bible study, reading, traveling and mission trips. PAUL GERRITSON, MDIV, currently serves as the CMDA Area Director in the Triangle area in North Carolina. He serves healthcare students at Duke and UNC, as well as healthcare professionals in the Chapel Hill, Durham and Raleigh region. Paul was in EMS from 1993-2004, beginning with 911 response as an EMT, paramedic and then as a paramedic preceptor. Subsequently, he became the Operations Director of a critical care EMS service in the Southwest, serving four states. His first ministry was to his patients while in EMS: healing the bodies, teaching the souls and preaching to the patients and their families. Since 2005, he has pastored three congregations and earned his master of divinity degree from Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary.
MY CMDA STORY
Dr. Karen Glover (middle) at the 2015 Women Physicians in Christ Annual Conference with Dr. Tiffany Owens (right) and Dr. Karen Russell (left).
“The first CMDA event I attended was the WPC Annual Conference in 2007. At that time, I had already been in private practice in OB/Gyn for more than 10 years. I haven’t missed an annual conference since that first one.
I wish I had been involved with CMDA starting in my medical school and residency days. In 2008, while both my husband and I were on active duty in different states, we participated in Completing Your Call, a year-long course offered by CMDA. It was through those meetings that I became more aware of the amazing scope of the CMDA mission. I later served as a CMDA state representative for a few years and a local graduate chapter met in my home during that time. I have certainly been blessed by all the friendships I’ve made and the wisdom and teaching I’ve received at the conferences and through CMDA.” —Karen Glover, MD P.O. Box 7500 Bristol, TN 37621 888-230-2637 www.joincmda.org memberservices@cmda.org
JOIN CMDA TODAY You can join Dr. Glover and more than 17,000 healthcare professionals across the country who are part of this growing movement to change hearts in healthcare. Visit www.joincmda.org or call 888-230-2637 to join us today.
B
y the time you read these words, America will have finally chosen a new president after seemingly endless years of primary races, campaigning, debates and grudge matches pitting candidate against candidate. Chances are, whether you voted for the eventual winner or not, you shoulder at least some measure of concern for the future of our country. (And, if you’re being honest, you’re probably wishing you could wash your hands of the entire thing.) Nevertheless, as Christians in healthcare, our concern should be even greater as we face the uncertainty of the state of affairs in healthcare. New legislation crops up on an almost daily basis that puts you and your practice at risk, and there’s no question the last two years have been the most challenging years we have ever seen on the public policy front. More is expected on the horizon, and it very well may determine the future of Christians in healthcare. It’s concerning, to say the least. But the Scriptures extol, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your
hearts be troubled and do not be afraid” (John 14:27, NIV 2011). God’s Word also reminds us we have a responsibility to be ambassadors for Christ and reach our neighbors with our Savior’s love. That’s why we continue to seek His peace and will for the future as we compassionately engage our government to transform our culture and our world for Christ. From right of conscience to pro-life issues and physician-assisted suicide, CMDA is at the forefront of today’s discussion. We remain on the front lines of this cultural struggle with our government, and we stand ready to serve as your “voice” on crucial issues affecting all of us. But we can’t, and certainly don’t, do it alone. We rely on the ongoing support and engagement of CMDA members who decided they could no longer sit on the sidelines. Healthcare professionals who felt God’s call to be voices of righteousness in our courtrooms and legal system. Healthcare professionals who are standing up for what is right and just. The following stories are from CMDA members just like you who are responding to God’s command and engaging our government.
Engage Your Government A collaborative article by CMDA members
INTER ACTIVE Visit www.cmda.org/publicsquare to get engaged and be a voice in your local government. 30 Today’s Christian Doctor Winter 16
Engaging with Leaders by Drs. David and Janet Kim
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n his open letter to the Jewish captives in Babylon, Jeremiah advises the people to “…seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to the Lord for it; for in its peace you will have peace” (Jeremiah 29:7, NKJV). One must wonder if young men like Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego heard this letter, because in their lives they certainly lived this command out. The English word “peace” in this verse translates in the Jewish to “shalom,” and I think Jeremiah gives us present-day “captives” of our culture a succinct but powerful instruction on how to engage our culture and our government. Or, to borrow the imagery, it’s a way to prove that the “fruit and vegetables” we as Christians are eating are better than the “rich food” being offered by our culture. But how do we do that in healthcare? We are the founders of Beacon Christian Community Health Center, a federally supported and faith-based community health center serving the uninsured and underserved in Staten Island, New York. As physicians, we spend our days caring for and loving our patients with a wholeperson, relationship-based, Christ-focused model of care. Our relationship with God translates into how we care for our patients, and it translates in such a way that people can’t help but stop and take notice. As our efforts are making a difference in our community, this approach to healthcare has garnered a bit of local attention. In the same way Daniel showed his results through his experiment with the Babylonian court official in Daniel 1, we have begun justifying our own “fruit and vegetables” experiment of comprehensively
addressing our patients’ physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health. And now God is allowing us to use that practical impact of our whole-person approach to address important issues facing healthcare. We both serve as state directors with the American Academy of Medical Ethics (a DBA of CMDA) and are actively involved in the fight against the legalization of physician-assisted suicide in New York. Doing the missional work we do in our community has given us “the right to speak” in certain arenas, and we have found open doors to engage with local leaders, legislators and even federal policymakers about these issues. We have had opportunities to sit on our state primary care association’s Board of Directors; lovingly address emotionally affected supporters of physician-assisted suicide, abortion and transgender policy in Albany and beyond; and even engage with other national leaders in Washington, D.C. on the clear qualitative and quantitative advantages of a future national faith-sensitive approach to healthcare. We are “speaking the truth in love” (Ephesians 4:15, NKJV) as best as we are able to, because in the bigger picture, we know how desperately we all need to be led to the ultimate healing that only comes through the blood of Jesus Christ. But engagement isn’t just about lobbying politicians and writing pieces about bad legislation, although these things are important. Engagement ultimately means we are in real relationships with these leaders, genuinely seeking their shalom and the shalom of the communities we Christian Medical & Dental Associations www.cmda.org 31
all live and work in, and then showing them we genuinely care about them specifically as well as the people in our communities. We never asked to engage with culture and government; to be honest, we didn’t think about it when we started Beacon and it’s the last thing we would ever want to willingly do. It’s hard to put oneself out there, and the pressure and criticism have been withering at times. But God literally dropped these opportunities into our lap because, in our obedience to His calling, someone heard about what we do and wants to learn more about why we do it. It has made us awestruck and extremely humbled, thinking we are seeing our poor attempts to live out Matthew 5:16 played out as Scripture predicts: “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven” (NKJV). If Daniel and his three friends were able to live out Jeremiah 29:7 in their context and become influencers within the kingdom that had enslaved them, we can do no less in the culture and government that “enslaves” us by truly loving our enemies and letting our light shine to bring shalom in the areas of darkness in our country—be they in our government offices, our hospital floors, our doctors’ exam rooms or our health professional schools.
About The Authors DRS. DAVID AND JANET KIM are both internal medicine/pediatrics physicians, and they work together in the ministry of Beacon Christian Community Health Center in Staten Island, New York. As a medical student in the mid-1990s, David was involved with the startup of New York City’s medical and dental student campus ministry, Intermed. David has been the chief executive officer for Beacon since its inception in 2006. Janet joined Beacon as a staff physician in 2006 after completing her residency at Staten Island University Hospital, now serving as the chief medical officer. They are both involved with student and resident mentoring and teaching, focusing on the roles of Christian healthcare professionals in a secular society. They have four children and are active CMDA members.
32 Today’s Christian Doctor Winter 16
Being Salt and Light to Engage by Thomas Walton Eppes, Jr., MD
“All politics is local.”
T
his famous quote from Tip O’Neill, former speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, very concisely tells us where to start as we attempt to add salt and light at the dinner table of our government and culture. Whether we like it or not, we as Christian healthcare professionals are at the head of the table as leaders in our local communities, churches, schools, children’s programs and more. No one is more qualified in healthcare than healthcare professionals, period. We educate patients in the exam room on a daily basis. We are needed to educate school boards for nutrition and fitness education. We are needed to educate church parishioners about health and ethical issues such as end of life, terminal care, abortion, etc. Our local government needs us for public health. You name it, our influence and guidance is needed. And our legislators need us. The vast majority of legislators know little to nothing of the myriad healthcare issues they confront each session. Each of us should communicate with them, shine a light on the issues and offer to help in any way we can. Support them financially to be elected if you find them close to your beliefs. (Remember, the only person who totally agrees with you is you.) Finally, nothing impresses a lawmaker more than a visit to the Capitol, whether it is your state building or
go to a state or national meeting or attend a reference committee and listen to what is discussed. The potential impact on your practice both immediately and over a lifetime will be quickly evident. Standing at the podium is not for everyone. If that’s not your calling, then you can certainly write, email, meet and contribute to the debates. Support your colleagues who give their time to engage with the government, cover for them and value what they do. Throughout your career, it is stunning what legislation can do to make your professional life either miserable or fulfilling. And there’s no doubt the fight will hit you and your practice at some point. So actively start being prepared and participate in the battle now, because you can be part of the process in countless ways. God has given us the tools we need to shine a light on the issues, and we can be the salt to make it not just palatable but tasty. But you have to get involved first. It’s up to you! the federal buildings in Washington, D.C. My experience is these lawmakers work extremely hard, and they are motivated for your success in the laws they write. No law will ever be perfect, and lawmaking is like making sausage. It’s not a pretty site. That is why they need your “salt” and light of input, wisdom and knowledge. Why should Christian healthcare professionals get tainted in such a messy process? We cannot be salt and light, as we are called to be in Matthew 5:13-16, unless we are determined to be engaged and get involved. Things will never change if we are not involved. Your state and local societies are great starting points, so
About The Author THOMAS WALTON EPPES, JR., MD, graduated from William and Mary in 1974. He graduated from University of Virginia Medical School in 1978 and joined a family practice in Forest, Virginia in 1981. He continues to work at this practice today, which has grown to a group of nine physicians with three urgent care centers, a diagnostic center and an increasing affiliation with Liberty University’s College of Osteopathic Medicine. He was the founding physician of a local free clinic in the 1980s, in addition to serving as the team physician for the local high school. His practice also actively teaches medical students from three schools. He served as president of the Medical Society of Virginia in 2008-2009, and he also now serves as the Virginia State Director for the American Academy of Medical Ethics.
Christian healthcare professionals, including you, are now operating in a world that doesn’t value our strongly held religious beliefs. And it’s a world that is more determined than ever to put us out of healthcare completely. Are you ready to take action and engage our government? CMDA has a variety of resources available including media training each year to prepare you to speak to the media, well researched ethics statements, books to learn how to respond with compassion and more. To get involved, visit www.cmda.org/issues. Christian Medical & Dental Associations www.cmda.org 33
classifieds International Overseas Rotation — One to two month missions hospital rotation for Christian FP or IM senior residents only. See www.mercymedcambodia.org/rotation for information and application.
Academic Faculty Positions — Liberty University College of Osteopathic Medicine (LUCOM) is currently seeking for the following faculty positions. Associate Professor: Anatomy, Assistant Professor: Immunology/Microbiology (Emphasis in Bacteriology), Assistant Professor: Internal Medicine, Assistant Professor: OMM, Assistant Professor of Psychology (PhD or PsyD), Assistant Professor: Pathology, Associate Professor: Psychiatry, Professor of Pathology (Board), Professor of Pathology. We invite you to explore this exciting opportunity to become part of the faculty of a new osteopathic medical school and to shape an innovative curriculum and education program with a Christian foundation. We seek qualified applicants with a passion for medical education and the development of exceptional osteopathic physicians who will be servant-leaders in providing patient-centered healthcare. Interested candidates may email a letter of interest with CV to vbolden1@liberty.edu; call the LUCOM office at 434-592-6400; or visit the Liberty University HR website at https://jobs.liberty.edu/applicants/ jsp/shared/Welcome_css.jsp to find the job posting online. Liberty University is an EOE.
Dental General Dentist — General dentist opportunity in Sierra Nevada Mountain community — Seeking general dentist with minimum two years’ experience to practice in hospital-owned rural health clinic in Quincy, California. Established patient panel. Five exam rooms, hygienist and support staff provided. Personal and financial incentives, including guarantee, production incentive, paid malpractice, health benefits, relocation. Outdoor recreation close to Reno/Tahoe. Email kstory@pdh.org or call 530-283-7161. Dentist Associate/Partner — in Illinois near St. Louis — Are you looking for an opportunity to create a lifestyle that you and your family truly deserve? We are an innovative dental practice seeking an associate with high integrity and the desire to learn our proven systems and case acceptance methodology for efficiency. We value the oral-systemic link and do our dentistry to the true tune of a healthy mouth. The ideal candidate must love interacting with patients, be humble, detail oriented and a team player. We have a top-notch purposedriven team with world-class customer service, the latest tech and too many patients to handle! We offer FUN, competitive salary, performance-based incentive, opportunity to become owner/partner. Prefer 2+ years experience. To apply, please submit your resume with the subject line “I’m your dream associate” to klgoodwin1@gmail.com.
To place a classified advertisement, contact communications@cmda.org.
medicine physicians in Denver, Colorado. UCHealth and the University of Colorado School of Medicine are seeking family medicine and internal medicine physicians to serve the growing Denver community. We offer multiple employment and affiliation options (communitybased), as well as a variety of partnership approaches for existing practices to include contracted service arrangements and affiliations, IT resource relationships and Clinically Integrated Network (CIN) affiliations. We offer competitive benefits packages to include base with productivity-based bonus and no call. New and existing practices in Cherry Creek, Highlands Ranch, Broomfield, Castle Rock and the entire Metro Denver area. Contact us today to learn more. Jessica Mestas: 720-848-7847, Email: Jessica.mestas@uchealth.org, website: www.UCHealth.org. Family Medicine — Sentara RMH Medical Center is seeking a family oriented, mission minded BC/ BE family medicine physician to join a busy and established, hospital-owned care team of seven providers in an outpatient-only group practice in Timberville, Virginia. Beautiful new facility with onsite lab, x-ray and physical therapy designed for efficiency and fully equipped on Epic. Minimal after-hours phone call shared weekly 1:8. The town is located 15 miles north of Harrisonburg nestled in the Blue Ridge and Appalachian Mountains in the Shenandoah Valley with awardwinning school systems, strong economy, vibrant municipalities, historic roots, abundance of outdoor recreation and cultural venues. Contact Stephanie Hutchens at sxhutche@sentara.com. Family Practice — Family practice physician needed in rural Northeast Oregon — Wallowa Memorial Hospital / Mountain View Medical Group is looking for a family practice or FP/OB physician to provide care in our RHC, ER and hospital. Within Wallowa County community there are 12 providers. Our medical group has three family practice physicians (FP and FP/OB), a family nurse practitioner and a general surgeon. Loan repayment option. Great compensation and benefits! WMH is a highly recognized rural/critical access hospital. Our mission is to provide premier healthcare for Wallowa County. Contact Larry Davy at 541-426-5301, Email: larry.davy@wchcd.org, website: www.wchcd.org.
Medical
Family Practice — Spectacular Sierra Nevada Mountain community. Perfect for balancing career and family! Plumas District Hospital is seeking a BC/BE family practice physician to join five others in practicing broad-scope inpatient and outpatient family medicine. Regular ED shifts optional. Excellent visiting specialists. Active telemedicine program. Flexible work schedule. Excellent compensation and benefits package with first year guarantee, production incentive, health benefits package. PDH ranked among Top 100 Critical Access Hospitals for the last two years. UC Davis Rural Center of Excellence candidate. Serving population of 15,000. Contact Karen Story at 530-283-7161 or kstory@pdh.org. Website: www.pdh.org.
Family Medicine and Internal Medicine — UCHealth seeks family medicine and internal
Family Practice — Full-time clinical position. Excellent opportunity to join two other Christian
34 Today’s Christian Doctor Winter 16
doctors in Chicago, Illinois western suburb. BC/ BE required, no OB, no IP, health system owned. Send resume to physician.stratford@gmail.com. Infectious Disease — Christian medical school seeking infectious diseases physicians — Loma Linda University Faculty Medical Group in Loma Linda, California is offering positions for full-time BE/BC infectious diseases faculty and hospital epidemiologist. We welcome the application of fellows and experienced physicians. Our faith-based multi-specialty group is affiliated with Loma Linda University School of Medicine, which is dedicated to the formation of Christian physicians. The school is affiliated with mission hospitals worldwide. The campus houses a Center for Spiritual Life and Wholeness and a Global Health Institute. Our mission is to make man whole by continuing the healing ministry of Jesus Christ. The candidate will participate in hospital consultation, clinic and medical education. Basic science teaching is an option. The ID Division manages electives and pathways in tropical medicine, global service and HIV medicine. See full ad on our job board. Contact: Darren Thomas, Physician Recruitment Coordinator, recruitmd@llu.edu. OB/Gyn — Independent OB/Gyn practice has been blessed to expand and is seeking to add a BE/BC OB/Gyn. Currently there is one board certified OB/Gyn and two mid-levels with another mid-level being added in December. Call is two-on two-off, every other weekend with a 4½ day work week with an average of 25 patients seen per day and 170 deliveries per year. Excellent insurance panels with all commercial patients. Our practice has grown rapidly and we look forward to also adding a family medicine physician to our team and expanding to an additional facility. Located in Southwest Georgia and just a short drive to the coast, our community is rich in Southern hospitality with many outdoor activities and a great place to raise a family. Additionally, there are many wonderful churches in our community to find Christian fellowship. Our office staff meets every Wednesday morning for encouragement and to pray for our patients and one another. Philosophy: Life is a gift and our practice is a ministry. We strive to treat every patient with the love of Christ from the time the appointments are scheduled until the patient checks out. Our staff and practice atmosphere is dedicated to being pro-life, pro-family and pro-faith. We offer an excellent benefit package and a competitive salary that will ultimately shift to production compensation as your practice grows. For more information, please contact Dr. Paul Payne at 229-434-7640. Physician Assistant — Physician assistant needed for vein center. Busy practice in Prescott, Arizona seeking a full-time PA. Must be able to work in a fast paced, challenging environment. We will train you in ultrasound imaging and procedures. FAX resume to 928-445-4732 or email drbrian@northlink.com.
CMDA PLACEMENT SERVICES
BRINGING TOGETHER HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS TO FURTHER GOD’S KINGDOM We exist to glorify God by placing healthcare professionals and assisting them in finding God’s will for their careers. Our goal is to place healthcare professionals in an environment that will encourage ministry and also be pleasing to God. We make connections across the U.S. for physicians, dentists, other providers and practices. We have an established network consisting of hundreds of opportunities in various specialties. You will benefit from our experience and guidance. Every placement carries its own set of challenges. We want to get to know you on a personal basis to help find the perfect fit for you and your practice. P.O. Box 7500 •Bristol, TN 37621 888-690-9054 www.cmda.org/placement placement@cmda.org
EVERY STEP OF THE WAY “CMDA Placement Services was with me every step of the way—for prayer, communication, whatever the need may be. I am overwhelmingly impressed by CMDA and their commitment to the Lord, first, and their diligence in seeking the Lord’s will for each medical professional they meet. God led me to CMDA to ultimately direct me to the career that will develop me professionally, spiritually and use me to glorify His kingdom. For this, I am boundlessly grateful!” —Alyssa Allwardt, PA-C
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