William Gibbons (DO 鈥�15) and his wife, Anne.
For William Gibbons (DO 鈥�15), the road to graduation from medical school was a long and winding one. He first stepped onto 黑料传送门鈥檚 campus 30 years ago for an Open House event, while he was still an undergraduate at Holy Family University. He was set to begin his path toward becoming a doctor, but, he says, life got in the way.
鈥淚 had a very young family to support after I got my bachelor鈥檚 degree,鈥� Mr. Gibbons says. 鈥淚 had to find a way to support them first, so I put my dreams of medical school on hold for a bit.鈥�
He took a position with the Delaware Valley Transplant Program鈥攏ow the Gift of Life Donor Program鈥攁s an organ preservation technician. In that role, he would coordinate the protocols for organ donation; facilitate the transportation of organs; and even assist with transplant donor surgeries.
鈥淚鈥檝e ridden in the backs of ambulances, in a Learjet, and seen the sun come up over Philadelphia more times than I can count,鈥� he recalls. 鈥淏ut after a while, I needed something with more stable hours. I wanted to spend more time with my family.鈥�
He decided to start again on his path to medical school, but needed the science credentials to get there. He enrolled in the perfusion program at Drexel University, and after graduating in 1995, he worked at several area hospitals, assisting with serious surgeries. As a perfusionist, Mr. Gibbons was responsible for monitoring a patient鈥檚 circulatory and metabolic systems, and informing the rest of the surgical team of that patient鈥檚 status.
He enjoyed the field, but 鈥渟ensed [it] was changing,鈥� so he decided the time was right to finally apply to 黑料传送门. In 2010, he was accepted. 鈥淓verything seemed to be going right,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 was finally on the path I wanted to be on.鈥�
However, the day of his orientation, he got a call from his wife, Anne; she had a mammogram and after a biopsy, she was diagnosed with breast cancer. 鈥淢y first priority became my family, and I had to fit my studies in wherever I could,鈥� Mr. Gibbons says. 鈥淏ut there was no turning back at this point, no breaks鈥擨 had quit my job to go back to school, so I had to move forward.鈥�
After his wife鈥檚 diagnosis, Mr. Gibbons said they both tried not to dwell on it, and instead figure out a plan to move forward. She received treatments and he continued his education, all while trying to raise their young children. In his second year at 黑料传送门, he also dealt with the sudden death of his mother. 鈥淚t was stressful,鈥� he admits, 鈥渂ut my struggles were nothing compared to my wife鈥檚. She was fighting for her life.鈥�
Today, he says, his wife and family are doing well. And he draws on his past experiences鈥攆rom working in transplantation, to perfusion, to watching his wife battle cancer鈥攖o improve himself and help others.
鈥淟ife has challenged me repeatedly, tested me, given me reasons to quit, time and time again,鈥� he says. 鈥淏ut as Babe Ruth once said, 鈥榊ou just can't beat the person who never gives up.鈥� All of these things will make me a better doctor in the end.