Originally published in the Summer 2023, Issue 41 of The Companion, this alumni profile features reflections from Chris Dethlefs, part of BSVM 2018-2019, the first year we had one community in two houses (Baltimore and Richmond). Chris served in the Med-Surg unit at Richmond Community Hospital, and reflected on his transition into medical school after BSVM and how his life has been shaped by his year of service and spiritual formation in community.

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Alumni Profile
By Chris Dethlefs, BSVM 2018-2019
A graduate of the University of Notre Dame

How did your experience with BSVM shape the years following your year of service?

Following my year in Richmond with BSVM, I returned to my home state of Nebraska to start medical school. This had been the plan all along, but the person who emerged from my service year was in many ways a stranger to the one who had committed to pursuing medicine a year prior. My mind and spirit, it felt, had expanded – and I don’t mean this in a strictly positive or sentimental way. I felt simultaneously more connected to all the beings around me, and more alone in my consciousness than ever before. It was a strange space, and one that made my transition into the linearity of medical school jarring to say the least. It was a lonely time. I also found that the disciplines of my service year – routine prayer and reflection, community building, simple living, environmental consciousness, and the pursuit of social justice, among others – had little space among the commitments of medical training.

I’ll admit that I found relief and shelter behind a shield of scientific knowledge and concrete tasks of medical training that provided some distance from the inner lives of many of my patients. I often found myself retreating from that space of uncertainty and vulnerability that I had inhabited during my service year. But there were moments of stillness where my months of listening and accompaniment were brought back to life, in which I leaned on the skills I had built during that time. At my institution, a group of medical students regularly go on “Sunday Rounds” – a time to visit patients in a non-clinical capacity to offer conversation and companionship. When I began joining this group, memories of my year with BSVM awakened. Just as I had at Richmond Community Hospital, I was able to build a longitudinal relationship with a patient trapped in the hospital by his medical and social circumstances. Seeing his face light up when I came to visit on the weekends reminded me of the healing power that friendship and presence bring to soften the pain of infirmity and abandonment. Similarly, as I became more competent in my clinical abilities, I was able to offer more of my presence to my patients, to see into their lives more clearly and thereby offer more holistic care.

Another realm of connection to my service year has been continued concern for Creation. I worked with a group of medical students to advocate for the integration of climate change health impacts into our medical curriculum, and to advance sustainability initiatives at our institution. During this Lenten season, I have taken up our BSVM practice of picking up trash in my neighborhood for a short time each day. It is a restorative practice both for the local environment and for me. It makes me slow down and pay attention to the ground at my feet. This simple practice is a sign of respect for my home, one that resists a culture of waste, separation, and consumption. I am grateful to BSVM for instilling a commitment to our common Home – our world needs it more than ever.

What advice do you have to offer former volunteers as they continue to process their BSVM experience?

I would encourage you to be candid about where you are at emotionally and spiritually as you move forward from your experience. I found that being vulnerable with my classmates early on when I was struggling– even those who I barely knew – opened space for authentic conversation and new friendships. There is simply no time for superficiality. Be patient with yourself, and with your new environment, as you process your experience. Sometimes all you can do is wait when things are strange and uncertain. If you hope to continue some of your BSVM disciplines, allow yourself to focus on just one or two practices. Your new environment likely will not be as conducive to these commitments as the structured volunteer program. Keep in touch with your BSVM community – it can be a source of strength and guidance during your transition.

What reading have you found to be informative, helpful and/or inspirational for volunteers in the BSVM formation or for those wishing to continue to explore the pillars of BSVM?

• “What to Remember When Waking” – an audio series by the poet David Whyte that explores the “disciplines of the everyday life,” vulnerability, and navigating times of change. Great to listen to when starting new things.
• Letters to a Young Poet – a short collection of correspondence between the poet Rainer Maria Rilke and one of his readers – gifted to me by my BSVM Site Leader. This has been a source of consolation and perspective during a time of turmoil.
• The Overstory – a breathtaking ode to trees and exploration of both human and non-human relationships.
• Braiding Sweetgrass – a wonderful melding of Indigenous wisdom with Western scientific disciplines that may shake your epistemology and make you pay closer attention to the world around you.
• “The Marginalian” – newsletter produced by Maria Popova.

What were some of the gifts you received during your time of service? 

By far the greatest gift I received during my time with BSVM was the friendship of my community members and my Site Leader. It is so special to have another family who shared the experiences of that year of service. I have stayed in touch with my Site Leader, Steve, who continues to be a source of wisdom, encouragement, and friendship. Similarly, I know I can always reach out to my community members for conversation (or commiseration) as we enter our work lives.

I have also valued the Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals book that our community used and that we were gifted at the end of the year. It is a grounding guide to reflection and prayer, especially during times of wandering in matters of faith and religion.