Proverbs 1:8-19
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Proverbs+1&version=ESV
Again we hear the call to heed the words of those before us bearing the gift of wisdom. A child will know that their parents have wisdom to offer by having lived under their care. Physicians should know where to seek medical wisdom by the tested fruits of the wise teachers in their field. The garlands and pendants represent honor recognized by others when such shared wisdom works itself out in ongoing practice.
From that basis, this Proverb’s father urges the child to flee from the shortcuts to prosperity offered by the tempters. Medicine stands squarely in the midst of the river of worldly temptation like all other professions. Supposed opportunities to amass fame and fortune beckon from ever direction. In the conventional world, insurance companies tease with promises of a quick mass of patients flooding your practice if you agree to their terms. Endless email or print advertisements promise the most pleasing work and life environment of balance if you just sign their contract for Anywhere, USA. In the functional world, one-trick ponies abound guaranteeing that their product or service will cure all your patients and fill your purse for years to come with little effort.
These tempters offer a shortcut to success, but in reality offer a different success than the wise should hope for. Verses 16 through 19 explain how those who chase after such temptations are following chasers of evil while setting a trap for their own lives. Their lives are stolen as they pursue unjust gain.
Those seeking wisdom and true success must discern in all realms of life including all fields of medicine. By yoking oneself to one insurance company, you become indentured and must obey their rules whether it serves your patients well or not. By biting the sweet promises of a guaranteed salary, you accept the demands of the medical treadmill to keep it going. By throwing money at one-trick ponies you feel obligated to use that one trick for all your patients. I repeat, you become bound to continue in these circumstances in the direction even when they are falling short of promised benefit to you or your patients.
What does wisdom require? Take care to not walk in the ways nor set your foot in the paths which hinder you from turning back. While many do not understand why we remain outside of insurance networks, we explain that this allows us freedom to choose what appears best for a patient without undue pressure from an insurance company. While we are bombarded by many salespeople from company and company, we pick and choose which product or service stands out in terms of patient benefit before any hope for profit. By aiming to walk in the way of the light, we aim to offer our patients wisdom unhindered by ulterior motives.
With that ground on which to stand, we urge our patients to be wary of false promises as well. The internet gushes over with promises for quick fixes, simple cures, and one size fits all remedies. Stand back and discern with us. We look at these potential therapies with you as apply both the wisdom we have gained from experience and the wisdom we have gained from others who blazed paths before our work began. Restoring health in our patients requires both knowing what we say yes to and what we say no to. Together we forge your path to wellness.
Sanctuary Functional Medicine, under the direction of Dr Eric Potter, IFMCP MD, provides functional medicine services to Nashville, Middle Tennessee and beyond. We frequently treat patients from Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, Ohio, Indiana, and more... offering the hope of healthier more abundant lives to those with chronic illness.
