Along with other volunteers, Dr. Shmerling received an award during Second Step’s recent annual fund-raiser for his long-standing contributions to the organization. Dr. Shmerling can’t envision a more fulfilling or rewarding volunteer opportunity and has no plans of quitting. He says his wife often pokes fun at him for his self-admitted weekly obsession that has also drawn him closer to his patients.
“Sometimes patients will say, ‘I’m under a lot of stress right now,’ and won’t elaborate,” he says. “In the past, I would just let that ride or say something general like, ‘That’s too bad.’ Now, I’m more in tune with them, more sensitive, more prone to question them and have a better appreciation for the social stresses they experience.”
Carol Patton is a freelance writer based in Las Vegas, Nev.