CityView Magazine

By the numbers: Founded in 1974 Continuing education for 6,000 health care workers every year Trained more than 150 residents in 30 years Residents work up to 80-hour weeks for 3 years with 52 rotations The 1 and only podcast among AHEC centers to promote their residency program the shady backyard behind a SR-AHEC house, a split-level ranch. It’s a rare moment of downtime. A resident’s hours are notorious. In fact, new rules were recently put in place limiting them to 80-hour work weeks. Most of us work half that. In three years at SR-AHEC, residents will see at least 1,700 patients in addition to their rotations. Dr. Nicole Shields wrapped up a rotation earlier this fall at Southeastern Regional Medical Center in Lumberton, working in the hospital’s pediatric wing. On a recent day, several families of ill children did not speak any English. Shields learned a smattering of Spanish while growing up in Florida but not enough to explain technical medical problems to these new Hispanic immigrants. It’s just one of the challenges, one of many she’ll face over the next three years. She will learn to balance life as a doctor with family life. For Shields, that might be a double Above | Dr. Nicole Shields is a new medical resident. By the end of the three-year program, she will see at least 1,700 patients. But residents say it’s worth long shifts and 80-hour work weeks to become full-fledged family practice physicians. students who come here for a week or maybe a month to learn. Residents are here for three years. Whatever their medical stripe may be, Fayetteville is at the heart of teaching tomorrow’s nurses, doctors and pharmacists. Dr. Deborah Teasley laughs sympathetically when visitors just shake their heads, overwhelmed. On top of everything else, the center has earned a reputation as a leader in pediatric cardiology, diabetic care and child abuse investigations. It has the largest outpatient clinic in the region for people with HIV and AIDS. Teasley knows that it’s not easy to explain what she and SR-AHEC do. 54 | Oct • Nov 2008 For one, she wears several hats: doctor, faculty member at Duke University and CEO of Southern Regional AHEC. But the whole idea, Teasley says, is to get medical care to underserved areas. SR- AHEC has been a part of the community since 1974. While it’s a non-profit agency, it has also some unique partnerships, including Duke and a statewide system of other AHECs. It’s also a business in that it’s a doctor’s office, just like any other. The campus sprawls on Owen Drive. Downstairs, the clinic buzzes with activity. It’s a little quieter upstairs, home to offices and a large classroom. Outside, on a warm afternoon, several residents spread out a picnic lunch in whammy. She’s a resident and an Army wife. She married during medical school. When it came time for residency, Fayetteville seemed like the perfect choice, until her military husband left Fort Bragg for Fort Benning. They’re looking forward to December, when he returns to Fayetteville. She just hopes she has time to see him. Still, she says it’s worth the long hours to become a practicing family physician. “I love it,” Shields said. “This is a specialty that allows you to care for the whole patient.” For Shields, one of the draws to this residency program was Dr. Sandra Carr Johnson. Johnson supervises all 22 residents. She’s also the clinic chief who still sees her own stable of patients. It’s busy, but she and the rest of the staff at SR-AHEC gain fulfillment in knowing that if these young doctors learn good habits here, they will practice the best care for the rest of their careers. “To influence the positive growth of health care is a higher calling,” Johnson says. “I can influence the standards of care.”CV

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