Category Archives: Leadership

The Real Deal: Serving as a STFM Student Representative

Posted on July 18, 2013 by | Leave a comment
Melissa Robinson

Melissa Robinson
Student Representative

It is mid-morning, and we are on a road trip, driving to the hometown of our son’s fiancée. Well, today she is his fiancée. Tomorrow they will be married, and the car is laden with gifts, wedding favors, and of course the groom’s cake—his favorite, Italian cream cake. It is packed carefully on ice because of the European buttercream. The real deal.

And so, for the first time in many months, I am not studying for a shelf exam, or working on a rotation, or even cleaning up the cake mess in the kitchen. What I love about a road trip is how the time and movement and feeling of the open road invite reflection.

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A Message to Incoming Residents: Build Your Cathedral

Posted on June 25, 2013 by | Leave a comment

This blog post is taken from my comments to the incoming class of residents of the St Mary’s Family Medicine Residency in Grand Junction, CO. The setting was the Devil’s Kitchen trail in the Colorado National Monument during our annual orientation hike.

Randall Reitz , PhD, LMFT

Randall Reitz
PhD, LMFT

Long ago, there was a traveler who came upon three men working with stone. Curious as to their labors, the traveler approached the first worker and asked, “What are you doing with these stones?” Without halting, the worker responded, “I am a stonecutter and I am cutting stones.”

Not satisfied with this answer, the traveler approached the second and asked, “What are you doing with these stones?” The worker paused for a moment, wiped his brow, met the traveler’s eyes, and stated “I am a stonecutter and I am making money to support my family.”

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Mentoring Female Residents

Posted on May 7, 2013 by | 1 comment
Sarina Schrager, MD, MS

Sarina Schrager,
MD, MS

There are many unique aspects to being a female physician. Being a female faculty member brings with it another layer of complexity to the relationships with female residents. As a mentor and role model for female residents, we have a unique responsibility to help shape their future.  Like it or not, our residents look to faculty as not only teachers of medicine but teachers about life as a physician. And, a female physician at that.

The female residents in my program often seek me out to discuss issues not related to their education in family medicine but related instead to how they want their lives to look after residency or how they can balance residency with their current lives.

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