STUDENT NEWS
SMALL THINGS WITH GREAT LOVE Laucks believed that two issues were affecting Kula: she had been prescribed a number of different medications, and in recent weeks, she had been treated at an outpatient clinic - a hospital and a separate emergency room. “Her care seemed absent a true sense of continuity because she lacked a single provider closely monitoring her medications,” Laucks clarified. Laucks suggested that Kula’s care be handled by the staff at the LECOM Institute for Successful Aging and that her medications be adjusted to help minimize her mood swings and to afford to her improved sleep. In caring for Kula, Laucks embraced the calling of osteopathic medicine; his care truly evocative of the complete philosophy of osteopathic medicine - caring for the entire person: mind, body, and spirit. Above all, however, it was Laucks’ sensitivity and his understanding of osteopathic principles that unequivocally boosted Kula’s spirits and hastened her recovery. Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) students embrace a “whole-person” approach to patient care that encompasses mind, body, and spirit. “I tried to talk to the family and to reassure them as much as I could,” furthered Laucks. “Ruth needed hope and a reason to be optimistic, more than anything else,” concluded the sagacious student. Noted Zdunski, “With everything that my Mom had been through, she was almost to the point of not caring anymore. She still remembers Peter and she asks about him. He touched our hearts,” she revealed. He (Laucks) was the first person to see her when we took her to Millcreek Community Hospital,” Zdunski continued. “He helped situate her after she was admitted and he would constantly check on her. She’s like a completely new person now,” pronounced Zdunski. “What I do, you cannot do; but what you do, I cannot do. The needs are great, and none of us, including me, ever do great things. But, we can all do small things, with great love - and together we can do something wonderful.” Albanian born, Indian Missionary and Founder of the Order of the Missionaries of Charity, Mother Teresa of Calcutta explained a truism that LECOM medical student, Peter Laucks knows well. Laucks assisted in caring for Ruth Kula, an elderly patient who was being treated at Millcreek Community Hospital (MCH). The superlative degree of attention coupled with the profound measure of compassion that Laucks showed to Kula so impressed her daughter, Judy Zdunski, that Zdunski took time to pen a detailed letter expressing her gratitude to Silvia M. Ferretti, DO, Provost, Senior Vice President, and Dean of Academic Affairs for LECOM. Zdunski referred to Laucks as an “angel,” noting that his example speaks very well of LECOM students. Third-year medical student, Peter Laucks was on rotation at MCH, but the OMS3 scholar does not believe that he did anything astonishing, extraordinary, or out of the norm in working with the 82 year-old, Kula in the Acute Care for the Elderly (ACE) unit at the hospital. Nonetheless, Kula’s daughter, Judy Zdunski, was effusive in her praise of Laucks and of his compassionate care. Kula always had enjoyed a great degree of independence, explained her daughter, although her health and her overall wellness began to decline after a fall. Kula experienced mood swings, which in turn affected her ability to sleep. 22 LECOM CONNECTION | SPRING 2014 | LECOM.edu
“The time and compassion that Peter showed my elderly mother was priceless. It is such a relief to know that we have a wonderful teaching hospital to aid in the treatment of the elderly,” the grateful daughter expressed in her abiding appreciation to LECOM. Laucks, a native of Medford, NJ, earned his bachelor’s degree from Dickinson College. He is a student in the Lecture Discussion Pathway (LDP) at LECOM and he hopes to pursue a career in internal medicine. As this issue of the LECOM Connection focuses particularly upon leaders and leadership, it is most fitting to highlight the efforts and commitment exhibited by Laucks in assiduously providing first-rate care; and moreover to note that as a student, he displayed the commitment to exceptionalism that is so profoundly inculcated at LECOM. Laucks demonstrated his leadership skills as well as his interpersonal skills; both attributes that Laucks deems as part-and-parcel of becoming a good and caring physician. Laucks, like LECOM, understands as Nobel Prize recipient, Mother Teresa once stated: “Unless a life is lived for others, it is not worthwhile;” and, for Ruth Kula and her loving daughter, Judy - small things, done with great love, resulted in something wonderful.