"Speaking of passion, I think having and demonstrating passion and compassion are the two most important attributes of both a successful faculty member, and a student pharmacist. My area of practice is pain management and palliative care. Dr. Bob Beardsley and I teach an elective titled “Care of the Terminally Ill” – probably the only course at the school that engages their hearts, not just their minds. Treating students with compassion, and teaching them to extend the same courtesy to their future patients is a critical feeling skill in my opinion. Compassion is defined as a genuine concern for the welfare of others, or sympathetic consciousness with a desire to alleviate someone’s distress. This does not mean simply feeling sorry for someone. I believe we can teach our students about compassion by modeling the assessment of pain in a nonverbal patient, or showing patience with a dementia patient. Or perhaps acknowledging and working to minimize the shocking disparities seen in pain management for racial and ethnic minority groups.
In addition to teaching our
students critical thinking and feeling skills, I think we should be proud to
show the passion we all feel for our areas of expertise, and for teaching
itself. Teachers who are passionate inspire students; they get excited about
what they are learning. It makes them want to study more. Passionate teachers
are perceived as being more authentic, and it’s contagious. When passion comes
from both the teacher and student, learning is shared and valued together,
resulting in lasting change. Robert Fried said “passion in teaching is not just
something we offer our students. It’s is also a gift we grant ourselves: a way
of honoring our life’s work and our profession.”
In a few words, "I'm with you!" Great post. I am surrounded by faculty and staff working to better the life of older adults. Needless to say, I couldn't agree with you more. I would add, though, Empathy or Empathize. I think empathy is a crucial tool for anyone who works with other people. We are coming into an age where we are appreciating, and expecting, a more holistic view in order to diagnose, treat and be with others.
ReplyDeleteAlso, one of the most successful companies in senior services right now is Silverado Senior Care. They have taken a new approach to Memory Care and its working! I was lucky enough to hear a talk by the President, Loren Shook, and his whole philosophy is "Love is Greater than Fear." The premise of his talk (and of how he runs his organization) is that we should not be afraid to speak with feeling and about feelings and, when dealing with people, allow the PERSON to be more important than the fear of a lawsuit. Clearly there is more to it, but its an amazing philosophy and can be used across industries. Like you said, passion, compassion, empathy, love. These are what will make us successful with other people.
Thanks for the post!
Lynn:
ReplyDeleteI agree with you about "passion and compassion" being the two most important attributes not only between a faculty member and a student, but also between a clinician and a patient. I also agree with Melissa with "empathy" being another very important attribute. I believe passion and compassion are so critical that a faculty member who does not have passion and compassion should not even be in academia. Throughout my school years I observed some faculty members who are more passionate and compassionate than others. Those who are more passionate and compassionate definitely had a higher impact on students' learning. Therefore, I wonder if for some the passion increases with time, for others the passion fades away or was never there to begin with. What are your thoughts? How can we inspire others to be more passionate? I believe by being a role model and dedicated to the profession, not only do we inspire students, but other faculty members as well.
Thank you for the great post! And, congrats again on your super cool award!
~Livia