Dakota White, DO, a recent graduate from the Internal Medicine residency program at Baptist Memorial Hospital—Northern Mississippi, is committed to developing the next generation of physicians. A graduate of William Carey University College of Osteopathic Medicine (WCUCOM), Dr. White serves in multiple roles including as faculty at Baptist University College of Osteopathic Medicine (BUCOM) in Memphis, Tennessee, and the medical student core site director in Oxford, Mississippi.
As a sixth-generation Mississippian, Dr. White is grateful for the opportunities his state has given him and is proud to give back to serving others in the mid-South. Dr. White credits his mentors during residency with encouraging him to become involved in organized medicine and attend meetings at the state capital. Although he initially felt out of place, he continued to show up, and that persistence led to recognition including the Advocacy Resident in Training Award and the Mississippi State Medical Association’s Doctor of Distinction Award.
As a hospitalist, he has seen countless examples of the osteopathic tenet that the body possesses self-regulating mechanisms. By stabilizing emergent issues, he has witnessed patients improve without simply adding more medications to an already extensive regimen.
One of Dr. White’s favorite quotes to share with learners comes from “The Last Lecture” by Randy Pausch: “The brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something. Because the brick walls are there to stop the people who don’t want it badly enough. They’re there to stop the other people.”
For him, the message is clear: obstacles are not meant to end the journey, but to reveal the purpose. “Persevere and don’t be afraid to fail,” encourages Dr. White. “There is light at the end of the tunnel.”