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Home > Portable Practical Pediatrics > Doc Smo’s Annual Holiday Message 2020 (Pedcast)


	Podcast:		Portable Practical Pediatrics
	Episode:		Doc Smo’s Annual Holiday Message 2020 (Pedcast)
	Category:		Kids & family
	Duration:		00:10:26
	Publish Date:		2020-11-22 00:22:23
	Description:		Ten years of weekly podcasting, 569 published posts, and I am still going strong connecting to you, my listeners. And, it's time for one of my favorite posts of the year, my annual holiday message. Today's message is kind of personal and equally important. I hope you enjoy listening to it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Image complements of Pixabay Musical Intro Why Healthcare for Doc Smo? As a child, I had no idea that I could or would turn out to be a doctor. I liked math and science in school but mainly I wanted to be outside playing sports. When I got to college, I was forced to confront the question, "What am I going to do with this fancy education I am getting and what am I going to do with the rest of my life?" My strengths were in math, science, and... hard work. The latter being the most important. I was an overachiever who knew my most powerful weapon was a good work ethic and persistence. Hard work and persistence were my secret weapons that had taught me that if I wanted something enough, I could get it with sheer determination. A career in medicine came up on my radar as a career path, initially, because a full 50% of my undergraduate class were pre-med.Maybe I could do that? We all tend to want others around us want, right? So, I set out to find out if it was for me. As an undergraduate, I volunteered at a VA pharmacy, I worked summers in a neurosurgeon's research lab doing dog and cat experiments, I got a part time job in a neurology lab doing some of the earliest research on brain neuro-transmitters, and I helped staff a free community medical clinic for disadvantaged residents in Durham, NC. The more I explored the world of healthcare, the more intrigued I became. Yes, medicine was going to be my path I thought. I remember coming home during my 4th year of medical school and having a conversation with my father about my future. It's in your fourth year that you have to choose a residency specialty. Its fish or cut bait time for a major life decision. I had decided on pediatrics for two reasons... I enjoyed taking care of acute illness in patients, children, who had incredible powers to bounce back from adversity and I loved the energy that children gave off. I just liked being around them. When I told my father of my decision I'll never forget his response, "You have a license that allows you to do brain surgery and you are going to do what with it?" I explained my reasoning and he just listened. I knew what he was thinking though; he thought I was crazy to go into the lowest paying medical specialty that carried little status when I could have so much more. But to his credit, he never said another thing about my choice. He supported me in my decision. When the time came to start my residency, he even helped drive the 16 hours’ drive to my new life as a budding pediatrician. The Reality of the Job Pediatrics turned out to be everything I expected-lots of acute life-threatening illness where quick action rescued a lot of little souls. I was literally saving and changing lives on a daily basis. As my skills grew, the job became even more satisfying. When I entered the world of private practice and was making important decisions without supervision, I knew I had arrived. I was even beginning to get enough life experience to help children and families work through psychological stress and grow. Oh sure, there is a lot not to like about primary care pediatrics in those days, 80-hour work weeks, middle of the night trips to delivery rooms and EDs, and the nearly constant intrusion of phone calls. But underneath all that, there was the knowledge that I was doing something important to improve people's lives. I was helping my patients and they were proving to me that I had made the right career choice. Would I Do it all Over Again? People often ask me if I would do it all over again? Was this a good career choice looking in the rear-view mirror. For me,
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