by David G. Nelson*
This article is number 4 in the series, A Living Faith for a Vibrant Mind, where you may access the other articles by following the link.
"My desire was to become the best physician I could be. While on the surface this may seem like an admirable goal, I found that pursuing this goal came at the expense of the most important relationships in my life. Specifically, my relationships with Christ and with my wife both suffered from neglect during these years.... My advice to any believer who finds himself slipping into this same trap would be this: Do not forget why you are engaged in whatever field of study you have chosen."
Recently, Brian Rickett approached me with the idea of
writing a brief article about the effects of engaging in rigorous high level academic
training programs. I will confess that
initially I felt completely inadequate to write such an article, knowing that
the audience would most likely be composed of scholars, philosophers, and
academicians. However, I decided to take
him up on his offer, but to approach it from a different angle than the other
articles in the series. What follows is
a simple, informal essay drawn from my own experiences. I hope that its readers, many of whom may at
present be involved in their own educational pursuits, may be encouraged during
a trying time in their lives.
I would like to begin by giving a little biographical
information about myself. I have been
married for almost 11 years to my wife, Kristen, and we have two sons. Our oldest is 3 years old and our youngest is
19 months. Kristen and I were married
after my first year of medical school, and she started medical school two weeks
later. We both have busy medical practices,
she as a Pediatrician, and I as an Obstetrician/Gynecologist. To say our lives are busy would be an
understatement. It is a constant
struggle to maintain balance in the spiritual, physical, mental, and social
areas of our lives.
I don’t want to bore you with too many details, but I want
to give you a basic idea of what is involved in becoming a physician in the
United States. Almost every student
entering a U.S. medical school has a Bachelor’s degree, and let’s assume this
took four years to obtain. Most students
graduate from medical school in 4 years, but this can take longer if they take
any time off due to circumstances such as serious illness or having a baby, or
if they have to repeat any courses.
During medical school, there are four separate licensing exams that must
be passed, each of which requires weeks of study. After medical school, residency and
fellowship programs can take another 3 to 9 years to complete depending on the
specialty. In my case, I completed a 4-year
B.S. program, 4 years of medical school, and a 4-year Ob/Gyn residency, for a
total of 12 years of study following high school.
Medical school is difficult.
The first two years are spent mostly in the classroom (except for the
time spent in the Gross Anatomy lab dissecting your human cadaver, but we won’t
go into that). The amount of material
that is covered in the first two years is so great that many professors
describe it as “trying to drink from a fire hose.” From my discussions with friends who went to
law school or seminary, I know that they experienced similar challenges.
If medical school is difficult, then residency is
insanity. I’m not sure how to describe
it, although the term “indentured servitude” comes to mind. The term “residency” comes from the fact that
in earlier times, physicians in training “resided” in the hospital or in
hospital-provided housing. Medical
residencies traditionally require lengthy hours of their trainees. Only recently has there been any regulation
of the long hours that residents were expected to keep. The Accreditation Council for Graduate
Medical Education (ACGME) has limited the number of work-hours of physicians in
residency training to an average of 80 hours weekly. These actions were largely a result of a
large body of evidence that sleep deprivation leads to increased rates of
medical errors. In fact, one study on
the effects of sleep deprivation showed that driving performance after 21 hours
awake was equivalent to a blood alcohol content of .08 percent, which is the
blood alcohol limit for drunk driving in Canada, the U.S., and the U.K. 1 How would you feel about the doctor taking
care of you being legally drunk?
These types of demanding hours are not unique to the medical
profession. Each field of study comes
with its own unique set of challenges, whether it is researching and writing a
thesis, working as a graduate assistant preparing lectures and grading papers,
or just working a part-time job to pay the bills. Whatever the case may be, individuals working
toward an advanced degree are vulnerable to developing a marked imbalance in
their lives. Although the pursuit of
such a degree may very well be God’s will for their lives, they may find
themselves succumbing to too much of a good thing.
Personally, I struggled with this during my training. My desire was to become the best physician I
could be. While on the surface this may
seem like an admirable goal, I found that pursuing this goal came at the
expense of the most important relationships in my life. Specifically, my relationships with Christ
and with my wife both suffered from neglect during these years. I lost sight of the fact that my purpose is
ultimately to bring honor and glory to Jesus Christ, not to achieve personal
glory in the sight of the world. My
advice to any believer who finds himself slipping into this same trap would be
this: Do not forget why you are engaged in whatever field of study you have
chosen. Paul’s wise instruction in
Colossians 3:23-24 says “And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord
and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance;
for you serve the Lord Christ.”
Here are a few suggestions for any Christian student who
finds himself in a situation such as I did during my training. Some of these may seem so basic, yet may be
the first to go when time is in short supply.
1.) Spend time devotionally in God’s Word
“Your word is a lamp
to my feet and a light to my path.”—Psalm 119:105
It takes discipline to stay in God’s Word when so many other
things are clamoring for our attention, but that is when we need a light to our
path the most. During times of stress
and exhaustion, God’s Word is a source of encouragement to the weak and the
weary. Make the effort to read and study
the Bible regularly and with a purpose.
2.) Pray
“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give
thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” —I Thessalonians
5:16-18
What a privilege we have to be able to directly communicate
with our Heavenly Father! Yet how often
do we forego this privilege when time is short, or how easily is our prayer
life reduced to “Lord please help me make it through this test!”?
Remember, God desires fellowship with us, so don’t skip out on this part. Carve out part of your day to dedicate to
prayer. This may look different for
everyone, but for me waiting until the end of the day didn’t work well because
I was so exhausted that I usually fell asleep.
Don’t let a busy schedule push God to the periphery, keep Him central
and give him the best part of your day.
3.) Stay involved with your church
“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom,
teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs,
singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.” —Colossians 3:16
This was one of the most difficult, and yet one of the easiest
for me during residency. Logistically it
was difficult because I was required to be on duty at the hospital most
Sundays. Yet it was easy because anytime
I was around my brothers and sisters in Christ and heard God’s Word taught, I
came away encouraged. Whenever it is
possible, be present at church. Doing so
will be of more benefit to you than whatever else you could be doing during
that time.
4.) Serve others
“Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit,
but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself.” —Philippians
2:3
I cannot tell you how many times my wife and my family
served me during residency. Meals,
laundry, really anything that I was “too busy” to do myself. It is so easy to become self-centered when
you’re always on the receiving end of the relationship. Try turning the tables on your loved
ones. Serve them for a change. If you are married, learn what makes your
spouse feel loved, and then go out and wholeheartedly DO THAT! Don’t give your studies your best and then
give your loved ones only what is left over.
5.) Take care of your body
“Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy
Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?” —I
Corinthians 6:19
Possibly the most basic of all of my suggestions is to take
care of your body’s physical needs. Eat
a healthy diet and maintain a healthy body weight. Exercise regularly, at least 3-4
times/week. Try (and I emphasize TRY) to
get enough sleep. Get regular checkups
(eye exams, dental exams, etc.) Avoid
excessive amounts of caffeine or the illicit use of prescription stimulant
medications. If you have to use
medications to help you sleep or to keep you awake on a regular basis you need
to see your doctor.
This list in not meant to be all-inclusive, and I realize
that the concepts I have outlined are very simple. It is my hope that at least some of what I
have written has been interesting and/or useful. I am not a scholar, theologian, or
philosopher, but a Christian medical professional, and perhaps I have been
where you find yourself now, and you can relate to some of my struggles. I truly believe that our God values
excellence in all of our endeavors, but I encourage you to pursue excellence in
your relationship with Him and with others, rather than merely pursuing
excellence in your chosen field of study.
May God bless you, and may he receive all the glory that He is due!
References
1. Dawson, Drew and Kathryn Reid (1997).
"Fatigue, alcohol and performance impairment." Nature 388
(6639): 235
* David G. Nelson (M.D.
Obstetrics & Gynecology, UAMS), brother-in-law to Brian Rickett, is a practicing physician, President of the
Pope County Medical Society, and Chair of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology
at St. Mary’s Hospital in Russellville, Arkansas. He currently serves as a Deacon at First Baptist
Church (Russellville), and along with his wife, Dr. Kristen Rickett-Nelson, was a founding
member of The Bible Church of Beebe, in Beebe, Arkansas during their medical
residencies.
