Family Medicine Clinician Spotlight: Dr. Brian Wilder
Dr. Brian Wilder is a family medicine physician at the Duluth Family Medicine Residency program, where he plays an active role in resident and medical student education.
What brings you joy in practicing your specialty and why?
The variability, day to day. Some days I get to work in the hospital, some days in the office, working with residents, all with the goal of helping patients. Figuring something out and helping a patient achieve their goal really brings me joy. That could be in an acute care setting, like getting someone out of the hospital, or in the office working toward a lifestyle goal. Helping people get there is what brings me joy.
Why did you choose family medicine?
Family medicine is a wide-ranging specialty. The ability to see a newborn all the way to a 100-year-old and help people along their life journey appealed to me. I also liked the variability of working in multiple settings and the opportunity to do procedures like joint injections, skin procedures and vasectomies. And then there's the prevention side: getting ahead of things, helping people with health goals. All of that drew me in.
What advice would you give to yourself as a clinician just starting out?
Listen as much as you can. We're so often ready to just answer quickly and I think it would benefit us from listening to our colleagues, but also actively listening to patients and slowing down. That's probably the most important thing I'd tell myself.
What do you enjoy doing in your spare time?
I love spending time outside. Running, mountain biking, gravel biking, stand-up paddleboarding, hiking, fly fishing, cooking, golfing, watching sports. Living on the North Shore, there's always somewhere new to explore. People have been known to call me a hobbyist, and I'll own that.
What are your key messages when teaching clinical care?
How to partner with patients to provide the best care. That means balancing evidence-based medicine with the person in front of you and their goals. Bring your expertise and guide the conversation, but don't be paternalistic, and don't just hand someone a list of options and walk away. Use your knowledge to lead while always remembering that there's a person on the other side of things. Respecting autonomy and humanity leads to the best outcomes.
What are you particularly proud of as you consider your clinical career so far?
I'm really proud of all of the residents and medical students that I've worked with. I've been honored to work with some fantastic residents throughout my career, and I'm excited about the residents here in Duluth. In the short time I've been here, they've already impressed me. Similar to helping patients reach their health goals, watching residents figure out what they want to do with their lives and helping them work through those steps along their career goals is really meaningful.
What do you hope to achieve in the years to come?
So many things. I want to help grow the Duluth Family Medicine Residency, to understand what it needs to grow for the community and to get to be part of the team that shapes its future. It all comes back to resident and medical student education: being present, learning alongside learners, and seeing where this program is going to go.
