When Dr. Dan Miller joined BayCare Clinic in late 2020, it was a homecoming of sorts. That’s because as a medical student, Miller trained under some of the BayCare Clinic providers he would later call his colleagues.
Miller was trained by doctors with BayCare Clinic Emergency Physicians at Aurora BayCare Medical Center in Green Bay. His training was facilitated by the Wisconsin Academy for Rural Medicine program at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.
The WARM program is a nationally recognized initiative that helps prepare students who intend to practice in rural Wisconsin. Aurora BayCare is one of three health care systems in Wisconsin that provides hands-on training to students from Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin.
Aurora BayCare was the ideal place to receive training, Miller says.
“I think the real benefit is that it’s still a teaching hospital but it’s not like a big hospital in Madison or Milwaukee where there’s a ton of residents and fellows and medical students are kind of at the bottom of the totem pole,” he says. “Here, it’s the student working one on one with the physician and I thought that was better for learning, it’s better for recruiting, just a better experience overall.”
While earning his medical degree, Miller also earned his master’s degree in public health at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.
He completed his emergency medicine residency at West Virginia University, eventually returning to Wisconsin where he landed a job as an emergency medicine physician, practicing alongside some of his former physician instructors with BayCare Clinic. He sees patients in Green Bay, Kaukauna, Oshkosh and Two Rivers.
The daily unknowns keep Miller excited about his career in emergency medicine.
“Not having a set clinic schedule or knowing what you’re going to see makes every patient or case a little more interesting,” he says.
Despite the unpredictability of his work days, Miller is fulfilled by his choice of medical specialty.
“I wanted to help people, but I wanted to help people throughout their life – young people, older people, men, women and children,” he says.
However, seeing a patient for a specific health emergency for a short period of time can be a challenge, Miller says.
“I always try to talk to the patient and explain what our plan is, what we will try to do for them, and kind of talk to them about the results and our plan moving forward,” he says. “I try to educate them the best I can and make sure that they have a good understanding of what we did and what we are trying to do to help them.”
Outside of work, Miller spends time with his wife taking care of their two children, including a newborn girl.
The couple can also be found spending time outdoors cleaning up the woods surrounding their property, garden planning and hunting.
“We take our dog, a Wirehaired Pointing Griffon, out hunting as frequently as possible,” Miller says. “Often we will go pheasant hunting or drive up north looking for grouse; we try to make a trip out to South Dakota every year.”