Health is something you’re not particularly aware of until it’s taken away.
I’m privileged enough to be capable of hiking (slowly), breathing with ease (unless I’m hiking), and getting through the day without any real physical and mental challenges.
Michele Vanzaghi enjoyed the same gift until the 5th February 2020, when he was diagnosed with testicular cancer.
Source: Sarah da Silva
“I always say to people, I don't think the world really owes you anything” says Michele. “Whatever happens in your life is not something that you can control; the only thing you can control is how you respond.” This attitude is even more impressive in context. Michele received his diagnosis on the cusp of his two-year medical internship and South Africa’s first COVID-19 lockdown. While his peers progressed in their medical careers, Michele endured surgery to remove his cancerous testicle, followed by months of chemotherapy and recovery.
How does a person bounce back from something like this? To a large extent, triumph in the face of despair depends on perspective. Michele chose to make adversity his friend. “I always say that adversity is what moulds you, what makes you who you are. My decision was to use this to my advantage.”
There is a caveat here in that Michele’s fight with cancer is what he refers to as “manageable adversity”. He had the necessary social and financial capital to fight the diagnosis and win. Not everyone is so privileged – something Michele is fully aware of and grateful for.
Our generation’s focus is so limited. We're so distracted and we don't engage. When we communicate, we often just think about what we want to say next, and we don’t really listen.
Slowing down
He had treated cancer patients and witnessed their trauma and agony, but had never been on the other side of the physician–patient divide. “Surviving testicular cancer has given me a much deeper understanding of having a patient relationship,” explains Michele. “You realize how different it is when the doctor pays just a little bit more attention to what you are saying and how you feel.”
In other words, Michele learnt to be a better doctor after experiencing cancer firsthand. By slowing down and spending just five minutes extra with each patient, practicing active and empathetic listening, Michele has left his mark. “Every single patient’s mom left me a little note saying thank you”, he remembers, reflecting on his last oncology rotation.
Source: Greens Scrubs SA
Redefining purposeful professionalism
Sure, this extra effort tends to extend the working day, but it’s worth it. For Michele, making sincere connections gives him professional purpose – something he feels many young professionals could benefit from. “Our generation’s focus is so limited. We're so distracted and we don't engage. When we communicate, we often just think about what we want to say next, and we don’t really listen. This carries over into our careers,” he explains. Ultimately, when we hurtle from task to task without making any real connections, we save time, but make less of an impact. Now, I’m wondering, who are the real role models in business? Those who climb the ladder the fastest, or those who make the greatest impact on people? For Michele, it’s the latter camp.
There's always bad things in life, but if you shift your mindset, you can find something positive.
“People are chasing this idea that success is when you reach the top of your career or the highest level of whatever form of work you're doing,” says Michele. This is especially true in his field, where a hierarchy scaffolds physicians from the humble medical student, to the general practitioner, to the most senior specialist. “You have this idea of the specialisations and levels you want to climb, and you’ve got to fight until you reach the top,” says Michele. "But when you speak to people who are consultants and who have achieved their specialisation dreams; they're like, what now?”
Source: Michele Vanzaghi
Vulnerability and positivity
Embracing vulnerability and choosing a positive perspective are major aspects of Michele’s professional alter ego. Although there are triggers at work, especially in the oncology ward, Michele does not check his vulnerability or personal self at the hospital door. When he brings his vulnerability to work, he gets a better response from patients. “Medicine is a journey where you need to have compassion and you need to be a human,” says Michele. “I think a lot of people lose that, and that makes them bad doctors.”
When he was going through chemotherapy, there were really hard days. Michele chose to actively shift his attention to something good when it seemed like everything was against him. “There's always bad things in life, but if you shift your mindset, you can find something positive.” Michele chose to focus on the fact that he could dedicate newfound time to his family and to nurturing his culinary gifts – time he hadn’t been able to spare for years.
Adventures in the kitchen
The kitchen continues to be a haven and source of peace for Michele post recovery. “I think my way of dealing with stress is to cook,” he says. “It’s this weird therapeutic process of buying the ingredients, and then making something, and then cleaning as you go.”
Sharing his scrumptious creations with his family is just as poignant a source of joy. “The more I cook, the more I realize that it's not only about food,” says Michele. “It's about the idea of making food for people, because it's such an amazing way to get to know somebody or to communicate.”
Source: Michele Vanzaghi
Experimenting in the kitchen has opened Michele’s mind to possibilities beyond medicine. He’s intent on developing his cheffing skills in a way that allows him to curate how people experience gastronomic artistry. “I don't want to be a chef; I want to create and design and interact with people,” he explains. “That is probably the biggest dream I have outside of medicine.”– Holly Charlton
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