Things I’m Thankful for at Appalachian Spring Dermatology
Scientific studies show that those who practice gratitude are healthier, sleep better, have more friends, have better self-esteem and have better mental, emotional, spiritual and physical health. That’s all things I could use!
Here’s the beginning of my list… I am thankful for God, my family, my health, a warm and cozy home, the beauty of nature, plenty of food, my church, my kid’s school and teachers, my work, including my staff and patients. I could go on and on.
Thinking of work…This is my gratitude list for my patients, just in time for Thanksgiving.
Work and family – I am so thankful that my patients give me grace when balancing work and home life. As many of you know, I am a mom of two girls, Lily and Ella, who are now 11 and 12 years old (can you believe it!?). Balancing work life and home life means I now work 4 short days a week and try to keep my weekends and evenings free for family time. Modern technology has made this much easier as I check the patient portal messages and refill Rx requests most days. Thanks for being understanding as I try to juggle and balance being your doctor and a mom!
Being kind to my NEW staff – I have a great NEW staff! If you have noticed, we have a ton of new faces at the office and still some tenured staff. Many of our long term employees moved on this past year for a variety of reasons. While this seemed devastating to me at first, our new staff is eager to serve you even better. Each of them is special to me in a different way. They all have different personalities, skills, and talents! Thank you for respecting them and being kind to them. They don’t make the rules, I do. Everything in the office is designed to provide you with excellent and efficient health care! Thanks for giving them grace when you don’t like our policies, or you don’t like checking in on the kiosk. They work as an extension of me! We try to treat you like family! Thank you for treating us kindly and respectfully in return!
Grace on being late – Why are doctors always running late? Well, that is a good question and one I try to remedy every day I practice. The truth is, stuff happens. Usually, that “stuff” is skin cancer or a bad rash. We never overbook patients at Appalachian Spring Dermatology, so that’s good. We do, however, try to accomplish as much as possible in your appointment. We rarely ask you to come back a different day for a procedure unless it is very complex. Many of my patients are elderly and require a family member or caretaker to bring them. Plus, copays can be overwhelming for those on a tight budget. For these reasons, if patients need a biopsy or a skin cancer treated, we do it at your appointment. The fun part for me is that I never know what my day holds or who will need a procedure. The bad part for patients is that sometimes it puts me behind. Thank you for grace for myself and my staff when we are running late!
Reading my email and watching my youtube channel – As times and marketing changed, it became clear to me that I needed a better way to keep up with my patients and keep them up to date! The days of paper newsletters (we did those 2005-2009) and paper handouts in the office are vanishing. We try to use our weekly email to educate, update, and inspire you in all things dermatology. I spend a ton of time each week writing the blog post, which is the educational part of the email. I appreciate your taking the time to open and read these. Sometimes they won’t apply to you right then, but they are always available to you, your family, and friends when you need them. The videos on the youtube channel are designed to augment the email and website to show you things that words can’t fully describe. Thanks for subscribing and for sharing these emails or segments with others. It makes all my writing worthwhile.
Sharing your life with me! When I was a resident, I went to a lecture where an elderly doctor was talking about how much he loved his work. He said he liked to think of every day like it was a party and that he was going from room to room socializing with his friends. Hogwash, I thought back then! But oh, so true and wise was this statesman in dermatology. I admit I am a little nerdy and still get excited when I get to see something strange or rare. But the real fun of my day is sharing in your life and you sharing in mine! Truth be told, it doesn’t take many of my brain cells to check your skin at this stage of my career. The conversation and sharing keep me going and excited, so thanks! You, my patients, make my day special, interesting, and like a party each day!
May this thanksgiving you take time to reflect on the things you are thankful for in every facet of life. And remember, I am thankful for you!
