Issue link: https://viewer.e-digitaledition.com/i/86594
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ + + ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ PHYSICIAN LIFE BALANCE +++ +++ Finding Fulfi llment in Outreach and Volunteering W WHILE A MEDICAL PROFESSION CAN BE A REWARDING CAREER PATH, AT SOME POINT, A PHYSICIAN CAN START FEELING COMPLACENT WITH DAY-IN AND DAY- OUT OFFICE WORK AND 15-MINUTE PATIENT VISITS. TO REGAIN A SENSE OF FULFILLMENT AND REVIVED GRATIFICATION, CONSIDER MEDICAL OUTREACH AND VOLUNTEERING. HETHER YOU'RE JUST begin- ning or are looking to retire from your current practice, the drive to heal and help others is strong for a physician. There are many options to contemplate when deciding where your skills can be best used in return for personal and professional satisfaction. Community education and outreach, health care clinic or sports team volunteering, and humanitarian missions — locally or nationally — can all provide an outlet for frustrated professionals. Re-Igniting the Fire Rupa Narra, M.D., board-certified pediatrician, found herself in this position in summer 2010. She was in the midst of her pediatric cardiology fellowship in Denver when she realized something was missing. She took a month off to help with earthquake relief in Haiti. It was during this inspirational trip that she decided to begin volunteering with Doctors Without Borders. "My trip to Haiti was the most fulfi lling medicine I had ever accomplished up to that point, and it opened my eyes to the needs for medical care around the world," Dr. Narra says. "The difference I can make in one day in a third-world country and the people, cultures and other professionals I'm exposed to from around the world were the real differences for me." 97.4% 94.9% OF SURVEYED RESIDENTS who had participated in humanitarian medical missions believe the experience was a high point of their residency. 24 | Mid Hudson MD NEWS ■ MDNEWS.COM Dr. Narra has since completed two six-month missions with Doctors Without Borders, one in Aweil, South Sudan, and the other in Bijapur, India. Aside from the enriching satisfaction she feels from serv- ing underserved areas, she's gained three important professional skills: confi dence, fl exibility and creativity toward medicine. "I often come across other medical pro- PLAN TO PARTICIPATE in missions again after residency and during their medical careers. — Department Of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Medicine and Dentistry, New Jersey fessionals who wish they could participate in humanitarian missions, but because of life, family, practice commitment, student loans or various other reasons, they feel they can't," Dr. Narra says. "While you may not be able to take six months off to travel and deliver medical care, you can find short missions, volunteer in your community and look into other outreach opportunities to gain the unparalleled fulfi llment that could change your life in ways you couldn't imagine." ■ VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES THE AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION provides a detailed list of physician volunteer opportunities and organizations to help get you started. + Medical Reserve Corps + National Association of Free Clinics + Volunteers in Medicine + National Association of Locum Tenens Organizations + JAMA Career Center volunteer medical opportunities + Volunteer opportunities overseas — independent projects worldwide For more information or to view the complete list, visit http://www.ama-assn.org/ ama/pub/about-ama/our-people/member-groups-sections/senior-physicians-group/ physician-volunteers.p age#.