Empty Your Backpack with Dr. Stephanie Halvorson

Stephanie Halvorson MD is the Chief, Division of Hospital Medicine and an Associate Professor of Medicine at Oregon Health & Science University. She completed her medical school at the University of Minnesota and her residency and chief residency in Internal Medicine at Oregon Health & Science University. In 2005, she joined the Division of Hospital Medicine in the Department of Medicine at OHSU and in addition to her clinical responsibilities, has served as an Associate Program Director for the Internal Medicine Residency, Director of Medicine Teaching Service and Medical Director for Clinical Integration at OHSU. She is a recipient of a number of teaching awards including Faculty Award for Excellence in palliative care, the Early Career Physician Award from ACP, and David Bristow Award from the Medical School for representing ideals of a true physician, and is a member of Society of Hospital Medicine and fellow of the American College of Physicians. Dr. Stephanie Halvorson is efficient. If she has a list of errands, she will plan the route so she drives the least amount of miles and gets home in time. And yet, even she finds herself overextended at times. That’s why every year, she follows the advice of a mentor and “empties her backpack”. She takes everything that she’s doing out, and is very intentional about what she puts back in. Some projects go back, others might get handed off to someone else. This is an exercise in time management that removes the unnecessary to leave room for the essential. Pearls of Wisdom: 1. Be yourself. Recognize who you are instead of changing yourself to fit. That will lead you to your superpower. 2. Empty your backpack. Every year, figure out your priorities: what do you keep, what needs to go? This is time management by subtracting the unnecessary. 3. Look for a mentor that will be brutally honest with you, even if you don’t want to hear it, and a mentee that will give you the comfort to be honest with them.