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Physician Health: Physicians are well trained to care for their patients. They are poorly trained to care of themselves. Depression, anxiety, chronic pain, boundary violations, addiction, disruptive behavior and burnout are devastating conditions that can cause a physician to lose a career and can result in the loss of a physician's life, even with appropriate treatment. My professional mission is to alleviate the suffering healthcare professionals have that is caused by these illnesses. The latest turn my professional journey has taken is that of Medical Director of the Tennessee Medical Foundation - Physician Health Program (TMF-PHP). It is a turn that I welcomed and planned for many years. In the later part of the 1990's Dr. David Dodd, who was then the Medical Director of the TMF-PHP saved my life as I was at the end of my rope. The only thing Dr. Dodd asked in return was for me to carry the message to the physician still suffering. I have done just that in my professional work. But up until February 2017 it was always on a part time basis. Over the last decade events have occurred that have better prepared my ability to help physicians and other licensed professionals in need. In 2012, I began part-time work at a residential treatment facility in Middle Tennessee. I slowly increased my time from 1 day per week to full time and accepted the position of Medical Director. The facility grew to be a pre-eminent 120 bed residential treatment center where we evaluated and treated many licensed professionals including physicians, attorneys, nurses and commercial pilots. I was appointed to the Board of Medical Examiners (BME) by Governor Bredesen in 2010 and reappointed by Governor Haslam in 2015. A working knowledge of the BME and the Department of Health is critical for the Medical Director of any PHP. The BME position led to numerous rule-making committees and to the Chair of the Controlled Substance Monitoring Database (CSMD) committee in 2014. I resigned from the BME and CSMD in 2017 to accept the position of Medical Director of the TMF-PHP. The amalgam of experiences including private practice, appointments to the BME and CSMD and medical director of a residential treatment program have provided me an excellent basis to draw from in my current position as I educate, assess, refer, support and advocate for physicians across Tennessee. |
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