Honoring Those Who Served — A Veterans Day Message from the President

Dear WesternU Community,

Today our nation pauses to honor the men and women who have worn the uniform of the United States.

Veterans Day belongs to every one of them: those who served in war and in peace, at home and far away, and the families who stood behind them and carried their own share of the sacrifice. To the veterans among our students, faculty, and staff, and to every military family in our WesternU community: thank you. We are proud to learn and work beside you.

For 23 years, I had the privilege of serving as Chief of Service at the VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System in West Los Angeles. Those years taught me more about medicine, and about people, than any textbook could. Our veterans were among my greatest teachers. They taught me that healing begins with listening, that trust is earned one honest conversation at a time, and that every patient carries a story far larger than a diagnosis. Caring for those who served our country was not simply my work. It was an honor I carry with me every day.

Our veterans also understand something we try to teach at WesternU. No mission succeeds alone. Service members learn to depend on one another and to put the team before themselves. They learn their most important lessons by doing, side by side, often under great pressure. That is experiential learning in its truest form. They also learn steadiness under pressure, compassion, and the ability to read and lift the people around them. Those are the qualities we call the emotional quotient. They are the same qualities that make a great health professional: a good teammate, a good neighbor, and a healer whom patients trust.

As future physicians, nurses, pharmacists, dentists, veterinarians, and health professionals, many of you will one day care for veterans. I hope you will remember that you are caring for people who once stepped forward on our behalf. Meet them with the respect, patience, and gratitude they have earned.

Today, please take a moment to thank a veteran in your life, in your class, or on our campus. A simple, sincere “thank you for your service” means more than you may know.

With deep gratitude to all who have served, and with pride in our WesternU family,
Robin Farias-Eisner, MD, PhD, MBA
President
Western University of Health Sciences