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Edward T. Creagan, M.D.
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Edward T. Creagan, M.D.
Edward T. Creagan, M.D.
"The magic of the electronic village is transforming health information. The mouse and keyboard have extended the stethoscope to the 500 million people now online." - Dr. Edward Creagan
The power of the medium inspires Dr. Edward Creagan as he searches for ways to share Mayo Clinic's vast resources with the general public.
Dr. Creagan, a Newark, N.J., native, is board certified in internal medicine, medical oncology, and hospice medicine and palliative care. He has been with Mayo Clinic since 1973 and in 1999 was president of the staff of Mayo Clinic. Dr. Creagan, a professor of medical oncology at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, was honored in 1995 with the John and Roma Rouse Professor of Humanism in Medicine Award and in 1992 with the Distinguished Mayo Clinician Award, Mayo's highest recognition. He has been recognized with the American Cancer Society Professorship of Clinical Oncology.
He describes his areas of special interest as "wellness as a bio-psycho-social-spiritual-financial model" and fitness, mind-body connection, aging and burnout.
Dr. Creagan has been an associate medical editor with Mayo Clinic's Web sites and has edited publications and CD-ROMs and reviewed articles.
"We the team of (the Web site) provide reliable, easy-to-understand health and wellness information so that each of us can have productive, meaningful lives," he says.
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Stress blog
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Aug. 12, 2009
Blog: When the teacher appears — a lesson in faith
By Edward T. Creagan, M.D.
We often quote traditional wisdom but we don't always appreciate its true meaning. For example, it was only recently that the meaning of "when the student is ready the teacher appears" was brought home to me. Let me explain.
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On one busy morning in the clinic, the first four patients I saw came from four different belief systems. Three were from faiths that are part of the Western Christian tradition, and the fourth was a member of the Muslim community. Each was dealing with advanced cancer and probably had only a short time left to live.
The patients spoke to me about their faith and how it gave them comfort and peace during these dark hours. Although none of these individuals actively participated in the rituals of their faiths, they nevertheless found tremendous comfort in the belief that their fate was being directed in a nurturing, supportive manner by a higher power.
I was humbled as I listened to what their faith meant to them. I understood that these four heroic individuals had something to teach me. If I had not been open to new perspectives, I would have missed a precious opportunity.
What was the lesson I needed to learn? To look beyond what we know as the science of medicine to embrace the mind-body connection and the enormous impact our emotions and attitudes have on our wellbeing.
Have other members of our blog community had similar experiences? We are all teachers as well as students. Let's learn from each other.
5 comments posted
September 2, 2009 9:51 a.m.
What I learned from the comments above is that people tend to read everything in a way that reinforces their own beliefs. Cindy ignored the one Muslim and said those patients should bring people to Jesus. Ci Ci overlooked Dr. Creagan's careful use of "higher power" and went straight to calling it "God." Myself, I focused on the "mind-body connection" and referred to my own experience of spirituality, which is not confined to the Judeo-Christian-Muslim belief in one transcendent all-powerful patriarchal god. This is another way that the teachers appear: they show you your own habits by doing the very same things, although in different forms.
- Dee
August 20, 2009 1:07 a.m.
It is more important to take note that it is the positive mindset of these individuals that helped them deal with their illness. Those patients used their faith as a means of connecting their mind to what was going on with their body. Because their attitude was a positive one, it improved their well-being in the face of terrible circumstances.
- lauren
August 19, 2009 10:33 p.m.
I'm curious Dr. Creagan, do you find that your patients who have no belief in a higher power, god, or however you wish to define that, have a more difficult time when they are facing the end of their lives as a result of illness?
- linda
August 19, 2009 9:42 a.m.
I find it interesting that the article also says that none of these patients actively participated in the rituals of their faith. So what have they done for God with their time here on earth? Have they ministered to anyone, brought any one to Jesus? To have faith and believe that there is a God is one thing but to live out that faith to the lost is another.
- Cindy
August 13, 2009 2:54 p.m.
All this article is saying is to trust God. Man can only estimate how long we will live this life and be on this Earth, but God KNOWS when your time will come. You should always be prepared and have your ticket ready.
- Ci Ci
5 comments posted