the encouragement of light: reflecting on leaps 2013

INNOVATIONS IN INTEGRATIVE HEALTHCARE EDUCATION

THE ENCOURAGEMENT OF LIGHT:REFLECTING ON LEAPS 2013

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HowDid the roseEver open its heartAnd give to this worldAll itsBeauty?It felt the encouragement of lightAgainst itsBeing,Otherwise,We all remainTooFrightened.

— Hafiz

Sometimes, an educational experiencebrings out the poet, the dreamer, theidealist in a student, tapping into theenergy we often see in their applicationsto medical school but that perhaps lagsas medical school goes on. Though inthe last issue, we described the LEAPsexperience of another student (seelast issue, Explore, Innovations inIntegrative Healthcare Education col-umn), the excitement generated by thiscourse could hardly be contained by onearticle. This month, we received adifferent kind of contribution fromMs. Kathryn Berndtson, a Universityof Wisconsin student, that is both clear

ntent on integrative healthcare and comple-

entary and alternative medicine is being taught

hundreds of educational programs across the

untry. Nursing, medical, osteopathic, chiroprac-

, acupuncture, naturopathic, and other pro-

ams are finding creative and innovative ways

include these approaches in new models of

ucation and practice. This column spotlights

ch innovations in integrative healthcare and

M education and presents readers with specific

ucational interventions they can adapt into new

ongoing educational efforts at their institution

programs. We invite readers to submit brief

scriptions of efforts in their institutions that

flect the creativity, diversity, and interdisciplin-

y nature of the field. Please submit to Dr.

rpina at vssierpi@utmb.edu or Dr. Kreitzer at

eit003@umn.edu. Submissions should be no

ore than 500–1500 words. Please include any

bsite or other resource that is relevant as well

contact information.

novations in Integrative Healthcare Educa

eyed and visionary that we wish toshare with our readers. VSS, MJK

Iwas running on empty by the endof my first year of medical school.In spite of generous mentorship,supportive classmates, and my best

efforts to stay centered, I found myselfneglecting sleep, emotional health, andloved ones. The ceaseless pressure, anxi-ety, and stress left me ragged. I finishedmy last exam with a sense of relief, butalso filled with self-doubt. Was this theright path? Could I find balance andmeaning in medicine?LEAPS answered those questions. Yes:

the path is not easy, but there is a routethat leads to wholeness rather thanemptiness in medicine.The Leadership and Education Pro-

gram for Students in Integrative Medi-cine (LEAPS into IM or LEAPS) is aweeklong immersion in Integrative Med-icine approaches and philosophy heldeach year at the Kripalu Center for Yogaand Health, funded by the AmericanMedical Student Association, the Con-sortium of Academic Health Centers forIntegrative Medicine, Kripalu, and theWeil Foundation. MD and DO studentsfrom across the country apply to theprogram, and 30 are selected to partic-ipate. Led by an inspiring faculty withdecades of experience in the practice andteaching of Integrative Medicine, LEAPSprovides intense, experiential learning inmind–body medicine, energy medicine,family systems, nutrition, osteopathy,and other aspects of holistic care—whether through a solstice shamanicjourney on the shore of Lake Mahkeenacor the message of redemption and heal-ing in a session on family systems.LEAPS emphasizes the value of a

collaborative learning model, in whichstudents bolster and learn from eachother, rather than a dominator model,

tion EXPLORE Janua

in which students compete and climbover each other. LEAPS faculty create aspace in which students feel safe to takerisks, provide constructive feedback,and lift each other up. I saw that withcourage and vulnerability, connectionbecomes possible, no matter how differ-ent we are. The program was noless rigorous than a week of academicsat medical school, but instead ofleaving me drained, LEAPS left metransformed.At LEAPS, education is about com-

munity, trust, exploration, and sharedvision. At school, education is aboutcompeting against our classmates,measuring up against a curve, and fearof failure. Under the guise of separa-tion that leads us to believe we canonly be important at the expense ofothers, medical schools trains doctorsto protect their egos. But imagine if,instead, we trained healers to protecttheir souls.Medical training has power and wis-

dom to bestow. Decades of dedicationand experimentation have resulted inmedications, screening, and treatmentthat merit our respect and gratitude. Asmedical students, we honor our futurepatients by committing ourselves to thehighest possible level of mastery in ourcoursework.To attain this goal, however, I believe

medical education is in need of radicaltransformation. And like most radicalchange, I believe it will happen oneperson at a time, until the weight ofbuilding consciousness tips the balance.Each day, whether we are students,faculty, or administrators, we can makechoices to honor connection and com-passion in medical education.We could provide opportunities dur-

ing orientation for students to sharetheir flaws, insecurities, and stories with

ry/February 2014, Vol. 10, No. 1 67

each other in safe settings. We couldhave faculty and administrators modelthe courage required to tell these sto-ries. We could provide opportunitiesfor guided meditation before exams.We could allow that failure is part oflearning, and create spaces or “failurelabs” where we encourage students toexplore, push themselves out of theircomfort zones, and fail without humil-iation. We could, like Charles Darwin—who mentioned “love” 95 times inThe Descent of Man, and “survival of thefittest” only twice—recognize that thereis a place for emotion and connectionin a scientific setting. We couldacknowledge that our energies affectone another, and that we can succeedtogether instead of at each other'sexpense. I think this shift would pro-duce better, healthier doctors and ben-efit the entire healthcare community.

68 EXPLORE January/February 2014,

No one is immune to suffering, butwhen we realize that we are not alone inthis experience, we relax. We have nothingto hide, because we understand that weare not separate. We can accept imperfec-tions in ourselves and in each other, andtake solace in what Albert Einstein calledour “quantum entanglement.”All medical students deserve “the

encouragement of light” that softensfear and self-doubt and permits authen-ticity and beauty. Until models likeLEAPS are available nationwide, wecan each act as points of light, in smallways, on a daily basis. With time, wewill see that we have illuminated a newsystem of medical education that hon-ors the highest aspirations of allhealers.

Kathryn Berndtson, MHS, received herMaster of Health Science from the Johns

Vol. 10, No. 1 Innovati

Hopkins School of Public Health and herAB from Harvard College. She is a registeredyoga teacher and second year medical studentat the University of Wisconsin School ofMedicine and Public Health, where sheleads the Integrative Medicine Interest Group.

Victor S. Sierpina, MD, is the W.D. andLaura Nell Nicholson Professor of IntegrativeMedicine, Professor Family Medicine, Directorof Medical Student Education, at the Universityof Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, Texas.He is an associate editor for EXPLORE.

Mary Jo Kreitzer, PhD, RN, is thefounder and director of the Center forSpirituality and Healing and a professor inthe School of Nursing at the University ofMinnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota.

ons in Integrative Healthcare Education