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Tri States Grain Conditioning
Dr. Tyler Faber recently joined Orange City Area Health System in their family medicine clinic and emergency room. He grew up on a farm near Sioux Center. Between his sophomore and junior year of high school, his sports and livestock schedule was intense. He was working a steer and a heifer for competitions that summer, plus taking care of other calves. He was also in three sports at Sioux Center High School. “So my Monday-WednesdayFriday routine was waking up at 5 a.m. to feed the calves, then lifting for football, doing a basketball workout, doing an athletic speed camp, and going to the farm to wash and feed the calves, and then going to bed about midnight.” Who has a more intense schedule than that? Well, doctors, for one. “I think working with livestock got me used to long hours. It’s not uncommon right now to work 24 hours in the E.R. and get no sleep. Yet, for the most part, I’m 100 percent awake. I don’t feel the fatigue that gets other people sometimes. I kind of attribute that to long days at the farm and the work ethic there.” Competitively showing livestock, especially at the state and national level, is well-known as an avenue for meeting people and building relationships. Those skills also proved to be a great precursor for a career in family medicine. “I debated multiple times during med school about what part of medicine to pursue. The decision came down to what sort of client base do I want to serve and where did I want to live. Family medicine allows me a wide range of things. I have clinic work; I do O.B. and delivery babies, and work in the E.R. for the fast-paced environment,” he said. “With many specialty areas of medicine, you see a patient maybe once a year. In those situations, you don’t get to know your patients or really build relationships. In family medicine, you get a chance to know the kid’s story, the parent’s story and the grandparent’s story. I like getting to know people and building relationships.” The show cattle world was a good training ground for these skills. He equated the relationship aspect of family medicine to the Iowa State Fair which “feels like a high school reunion. You get to see all your friends again.”
Age Media Qtr Page Color 1-8-20.pdf 1 1/8/2020 11:21:34 AM In 2008, Tyler showed both the champion steer and champion heifer at the Iowa State Fair. Pictured is the Faber family: David, Daniel, Tyler, Sara and Kay.
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