David McInnes – Jacksonville, Florida
TELL US YOUR NAME AND WHERE YOU ARE FROM?
David McInnes, MD, FAAFP – Jacksonville, Florida
WHAT IS YOUR OCCUPATION?
Director, Ascension St. Vincent’s Family Medicine
Residency Program
WHERE DO YOU WORK?
Ascension St. Vincent’s Riverside Medical Center and Ascension St. Vincent’s Family Medicine Center
WHAT DOES YOUR JOB ENTAIL? TELL US ABOUT A TYPICAL DAY FOR YOU.
My time is divided about 20% clinical practice, 30% teaching (Family Medicine Resident physicians and medical students) and 50% administrative. I am the Director of a residency program with 30 Family Medicine Residents, 16 full time faculty physicians and a Graduate Medical Education support staff. I am also the Medical Director for St. Vincent’s Family Medicine Center with a staff of 75, over 40,000 patient visits, 400 obstetrical deliveries, and 2,000 inpatient admissions annually.
HOW HAS THE CORONAVIRUS AFFECTED YOUR JOB?
It has dramatically affected all aspects of our functioning as an educational program and as a practice. We have moved many non-clinical support staff to work remotely, we have shifted to telehealth and virtual visits as appropriate and have had to alter the planned educational experiences for the resident physicians. We have formed into rotating teams to care for patients in the hospital and to have teams in reserve to be rested and ready to assist as needed. My mantra to my stellar team of doctors is that this will be a marathon, not a sprint.
HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN IN THE HORSE BUSINESS AND/OR HOW ARE YOU RELATED TO THE TENNESSEE WALKING HORSE INDUSTRY?
I am related by marriage. My wife, Nanette, started showing at a very young age, and after a long hiatus, came back into showing a few years ago through her life-long friends George Zamora and Thom Meek.
DO YOU CURRENTLY HAVE HORSES IN TRAINING AND IF SO WHO ARE THEY AND WHO IS YOUR TRAINER?
Currently our horse “Zeus” is in training with Charlie Green. Nanette is the expert on all this, so she can tell you his official name, etc.
TELL US ABOUT A SPECIAL HORSE RELATED MEMORY WHETHER IN THE RING, ON THE TRAIL OR AT THE BARN?
For me, it is all about the people I have met through Nanette’s involvement with Tennessee Walking Horses. I have made some wonderful new friends, and I love hearing the stories, and I love seeing the passion people have for the horses and the events.
DO YOU HAVE ANY PERSONAL WORDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO PASS ALONG TO YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY IN THE HORSE INDUSTRY?
Absolutely! We will get through this by supporting and looking out for each other. Though we obviously should have been better prepared for an event like this, it seems that important steps are being taken and medical researchers are working around the clock to better curb the spread of the virus. I would encourage folks to be as creative as possible to find new ways of doing business and engaging with each other to make it through what is likely to be an extended event. Why not a “virtual horse show?”