FORT PIERCE FOLKS
The FAMILY DOCTOR
STORY AND PHOTO BY GREG GARDNER
While many doctors are turning to specialty
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medicine to recover the soaring costs of attending
medical school, Dr. Dwight Dawkins always
knew he would be a family physician.
“I love being around people and taking care of them,” says
the soft-spoken Dawkins, who was born in Jamaica. “Ever
since I was a child I wanted to be a family physician like the
doctor on ‘Little House on the Prairie.’ I couldn’t wait to get
my little doctor bag when I graduated.”
“Both my parents were teachers, and they encouraged us
to aim high,” he says. Indeed his parents succeeded. His two
younger brothers are also doctors. Asked if he set an example
for his siblings, Dawkins says with his bright smile, “I would
like to think so.”
Dawkins’ undergraduate grades won him a full academic
scholarship at the University of Miami Medical School.
GREG GARDNER
And he is most proud of the fact that after nine years he just
finished paying off $100,000 in student loans with 8 percent
interest, most of it for living expenses during college and his
residency. “I had the satisfaction to know that my education
was worth it,” he says. “At this point I’m moving forward.”
“The hardest thing is trying to satisfy all the patients and
living up to their expectations. Many physicians act as if they
are God. The truth is there is so much we still don’t know. A
true compassionate physician is affected when their patients
are not progressing as expected. Unlike a mechanic, you are
dealing with somebody’s life.’’
Dawkins has more than 1,000 patients in his Fort Pierce
practice, and his life is a classic juggling act as he balances a
12-hour workday with spending time with his three children,
including picking them up from school and helping
them with homework. Recently, he awoke at 5 a.m. and was
seeing patients in the hospital at 6 a.m. before heading to
treat more patients at one of two offices. At 4 p.m. he was
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Dr. Dwight Dawkins treats more than 1,000 patients in his Fort Pierce practice.