Many physicians and staff at St. Luke’s Health-The Woodlands and The Vintage Hospitals have backgrounds in military service, which they say shapes their approach to patient care.
Dr. Yong Choi, chief medical officer and general surgeon at St. Luke’s-The Woodlands, immigrated from Korea as a child and aspired to attend the United States Military Academy from a young age. “I felt that going to West Point was the American dream,” he said.
Dr. Choi was one of 20 cadets in his class allowed to enter medical school immediately after graduation from West Point. He earned his medical degree from the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences and served more than 25 years on active duty, including deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq.
“We have the best soldiers in the world,” Dr. Choi said, recalling an experience with a wounded soldier who insisted on returning to support his unit despite being ordered home. “His first thought was ‘my soldiers need me. I can’t leave them.’” Dr. Choi added, “I feel fortunate to have taken care of one of the best patient populations in the world.”
He explained how military values influence his work: “Duty. Honor. Country,” he said, describing duty as “doing what ought to be done when it ought to be done when no one is looking.” In practice, this means focusing on patients’ needs and involving them in decision-making processes: “I learned the importance of caring for the patient as an individual. Each patient has different needs and different ways they process information. Including them every step of the way makes them feel invested in their own care.”
General Surgeon James Dickerson joined West Point two years after Dr. Choi and also graduated from Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences with a medical degree. Their shared military background influenced Dr. Dickerson’s choice to join St. Luke’s-The Woodlands: “I wanted to work with someone who shared my experiences, my work ethic, and approach to things,” he said.
Dr. Dickerson emphasized that military standards are consistent: “You work until the job is done, you work without complaining, and you lead by example.” He applies this mindset when facing challenging cases: “You do what you have to do to provide the best possible care to the patient.” Having grown up in a military family, Dr. Dickerson retired as an Army colonel after more than 25 years with deployments in the Middle East and Africa.
Reflecting on Veteran’s Day, Dr. Dickerson said: “We need to keep our soldiers and their families in our minds and our prayers,” adding that servicemembers make sacrifices daily for others’ freedoms.
Dr. Jantzen Thorns enlisted in the Army at age 17 both for personal development and tuition assistance before pursuing medicine—a path no one else in his family had taken before college graduation became possible through his service experience.
During five years with the Army serving as combat medic, licensed vocational nurse, then dialysis nurse before attending medical school at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (and later earning a master’s degree), Dr.Thorns now works as a general surgeon at St.Luke’s Health-The Vintage & The Woodlands.
“During the five years I spent in the Army, I got to see exactly what professionalism looked like.I got to see what it looked like to lead people,g ood leadership,and bad leadership.And I got t osee what it meant t oactually carea nd demonstrate that,”he said.
Dr.Thorns leads surgical teams using lessons from basic training:“LDRSHIP:Loyalty,Duty ,Respect ,Selfless Service ,Honor ,Integrity,and Personal Courage .Through t he Army,I’ve been allowed t olive t he dream that Idreamed about asa kid.Most people can’t say that.I credit t he Army f or making me t he man I am today.”
