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Running Head: PATIENCE

The Power of Patience

Cassidy Toyn
Sister Mary Larson
English 101

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Patience is the most vital value to achieve in the medical professional workplace. It may
be hard to define, but once defined it can be learned and applied. Patience has especially affected
the millennial generation, and how they maneuver through their professional lives. Whether
generation y has the patience to be able to work professionally in the medical field or not can
only be answered after a deep analysis of patience itself.
In the Merriam-Webster dictionary patience has two definitions: the first reads that to
have patience is to be able to remain calm and not become annoyed when waiting for a long
time or when dealing with problems or difficult people (Merriam-Webster Dictionary, n.d.). The
second definition that is given is also used often, however it says something very similar; it says
that patience is when something is done in a careful way over a long period of time without
hurrying (Merriam-Webster Dictionary, n.d.). At first it seems that this definition would fall
under dealing with problems like in the first definition but as it is looked at thoroughly, it
is, in fact, different. It is stating that patience is being able to complete a task that takes time, not
that it is a problem, necessarily, but that it is simply something that cannot be done quickly. The
Oxford Dictionary adds without becoming anxious which adds a lot to the definition
(Oxford University Press, n.d.). The word anxious adds more to the definition because
sometimes, as humans, it is our desire and reaction to begin to worry and fear when something
isnt going the way that we expected it to, however; it never comes across as really being
impatient.
Patience is more than just waiting because it also depends on our attitude. When we are
patient, we have to be happy during the time we are waiting. In an interview with a young
mother of two girls, who are ages three and one, she stated that her definition of patience was
that she thought patience was trying to understand before responding (E. Toyn, personal

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communication, March 9, 2016). This helps us realize that patience is also about how we respond
to others. Sometimes we have to wait for situations to occur, but other times we just have to be
understanding of other peoples faults. This applies to the work place because dealing with
imperfect people is inevitable in the workplace, especially with coworkers. Patience is needed
with them, but also being able to correct them when the time is right. There will have to be a fine
line between patience, tolerance, and malpractice. If there is too much patience with coworkers
then they could hurt a patient, and malpractice will inevitably occur. However, if we are too
impatient, then it wont allow them the opportunity to learn a new skill, and grow from that new
experience. There needs to be a balance, but is there ever really a reason to be impatient?
In a series of interviews with a variety of ages, and professions, including a majority of
those in the medical field, the question was asked if there were reasons to be impatient. The
responses were varied. Some stated that there is never a bad time to use patience (C. Toyn,
young acquaintance, personal communication, March 16, 2016). Others mentioned that when
there needs to be a decision quick (T. Maughan, medical associate, personal communication,
March 17, 2016), or if someone is going to harm themselves (P. Toyn, business professional,
personal communication, March 14, 2016) then it is important to not use patience and simply
help the person. This is applicable in the medical field when there are emergency situations.
However, it would seem that since patience is the ability to handle situations well when thigs
dont go your way (D. Milla, medical associate, personal communication, March 17, 2016) then
in reality, patience should still be used in every situation. There are stressful times, especially in
the medical profession, however patience is still needed in order to keep calm during these
stressful situations.

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So if patience is so important, and vital then how is patience gained? Through that same
study of interviews there were many ideas of how best to gain patience. In a spiritual aspect,
almost half of the interviewees said that patience had to be prayed for, and acquired straight from
God. One stated that only God can give it to you (P. Toyn, business professional, personal
communication, March 14, 2016). This theory of patience is a deep spiritual understanding of the
value, however, others might see this answer as a way to not actually work on patience. Other
interviewees declared that patience was gained by having self-discipline and being organized
(E. Toyn, young homemaker, personal communication, March 9, 2016), by going through trials
and longsuffering (C. Stepaniak, medical associate, personal communication, March 16, 2016),
and by putting others needs before your own (C. Toyn, young acquaintance, personal
communication, March 15, 2016). One answer that was particularly eye opening was that the
best way to acquire patience is to allow silence to proceed as you choose [what] to say and do
(J. Pike, medical associate, personal communication, March 16, 2016). The consensus is that
patience takes hard work in order to achieve it. With the spiritual side, it takes work to diligently
pray and look for the opportunities that God is giving you in order to see where He is trying to
teach you patience. In the other examples it takes work to stop yourself and think about others
when there are other feelings boiling to the top. It takes work when you must endure a trial, and
endure it with a sincere smile on your face. It takes an exceedingly large amount of work to gain
patience, is it something that the millennial generation is willing to put the work in for?
In the article Engagement and Retention of the Millennial Generation in the Workplace
through Internal Branding the author Gaye Ozcelik states that millennials are impatient to be
informed that they have made a worthwhile contribution to the organization they work for
(Ozcelik, 2015). This proves that millennials are finding it difficult to be able to work efficiently

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in the workplace due to their lack of patience. Especially in the medical field a medical assistant
will not receive constant praise and help when times are rough. The millennials struggle to work
under these conditions because they have grown so accustomed to that constant praise.
Millennials are technology literate and are very comfortable with the internet world, as they
have grown up in an environment of technology and thus, are familiar with mobile phones, laptop computers, real-time media and communications [which] lowers their level of patience
(Ozcelik, 2015). Ozcelik claims then that the problem within the millennials is the amount of
technology that has been the cause of this impatience. Millennials desire everything at the tip of
their fingers. If they do not figure out how to change that impatience their usefulness in a
company will decrease. Within the medical field it has been discussed that success, intellectual
skills, and confidence are needed, but patience [is] necessary to the practice of health care,
and become[s] inseparable from the self-identity of health care professionals (Sansom,
2014). In the article Medicine and the Pressure of the Marketplace: Ethical Issues Involved in
Medical Research and Practice, Dennis Sansom explains that patience is not just encouraged,
but is needed by those who work in the field. If millennials are impatient and do not have to
ability to change, then they will not be successful in the medical world. However, if the
millennial generation truly desires to work in the field of medicine then they must gain the
patience it takes.
True patience can, and should, be perceived by those around us. If we are impatient it can
be very obvious, and likewise, if we are patient, then it is a quality that stands out even if we
dont realize that it does. The millennial generation has the potential to succeed in the medical
world, but if, and only if, they are able to gain the value of patience. Without patience in the
medical field, the workplace would fall apart and therefore it needs a generation that is willing to

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give up technology that they think is a vital necessity, and begin putting their patience into their
patients.

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References
Dawson, D. (2005). Applying Stories of the Environment to Business: What Business People
Can Learn From the Virtues in Environmental Narratives. Journal of Business Ethics,
58(1-3), 37-49. Retrieved March 9, 2016, from
http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.ldsbc.edu/docview/198077048?accountid=27877
This Source helped me understand the importance of values in the workplace. I felt like it
was a good source to use to help with the overall use of patience in the professional life.
Dawson is a University Administrator, and therefore gives him credibility to his name.
Merriam-Webster Dictionary. (n.d.). Patient. Retrieved March 09, 2016, from
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/patient
The reason why I used the source was because I wanted to be able to clarify and define
the definition of patience. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary is a credible source because
it has been around for 150 years. In its About Us page it declared that it was the
number one leading dictionary in the United States. It isnt clear who the author is, or
authors are, however, it is assumed that the definition is a compilation of many people
who are constantly revisiting and revising the definition.
Oxford University Press. (n.d.). Patient. Retrieved March 9, 2016, from
http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/patient
I also used this source to help me define the definition of patience. I thought it was
necessary to use at least two different dictionary definitions in order to compare and
contrast them, and also compare these definitions to the definitions given to me in
interviews. The Oxford Dictionary is a reliable and credible source because it is printed
by the Oxford University Press. In the About section of the website they state that the
definitions they present are gathered by analyzing and monitoring data from the Oxford
Corpus.
Ozcelik, G. (2015). Engagement and Retention of the Millennial Generation in the Workplace

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through Internal Branding. International Journal of Business and Management, 10(3),

99-107. Retrieved March 9, 2016, from
http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.ldsbc.edu/docview/1665115863?accountid=27877
The author is an assistant professor at Okan University. Okan University is a business
college that is in Istanbul, Turkey. She is on the Faculty of Economics and Administrative
Sciences, and has also been the Vice Dean of Okan University since September of 2013.
Before that she was an academic advisor at another university in Turkey called
Bahcesehir University. She is writing this piece of work for employers to help them
understand how to better work with the millennial generation. The argument of this
journal is that there are different ways to handle branding a company, and one of the most
important is using the millennial generation to help out. The have different talents and
abilities that can help a company, but they also can have drawbacks. /the drawbacks is
where my topic comes into place, they are impatient, and so it talks about how to help the
millennials grow to be patient so that they can be better employees.
Sansom, D., PHD. (2014). Medicine and the Pressure of the Marketplace: Ethical Issues
Involved in Medical Research and Practice. Ethics and Medicine, 30(3), 143-155.
Retrieved March 9, 2016, from
http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.ldsbc.edu/docview/1610749419?accountid=27877
This resource is a peer reviewed journal, and written by Dennis Sansom, who has a PHD.
This talks about the importance of patience, and how much more important it is for the
medical worker to be patient with a patient than to get a lot of patients seen. I thought that
this was an interesting view, because it takes the stand that it is the quality over the
quantity of service. In researching more about the author, he is a professor at Samford
University. Samford is a private college in Alabama that is rated first in the state. I felt
like he was a credible author and would be accurate in his findings and the way that he
presents the information.