Dr. Ofer Merin, Shaare Zedek Hospital
Israel
I’m a morning person. I wake up at 5 a.m. and start my day with a 10K run. It’s good physical exercise, but for me, it’s more mental — I run to clear my brain. I’m at the hospital by 7 a.m., and my time is divided between my responsibilities as the hospital’s deputy director, director of the trauma unit and my work as a cardiac surgeon.
My work involves long hours, but that’s the life I chose. People tend to take a step back and work less as they get older, but in my case, it’s probably the opposite. My wife works with tourism and many of her clients are in North America, so she’s quite busy as well, often until late in the evening. I think having a spouse who’s also a hard worker is a good prescription for a long marriage because there’s no time to fight.
Today Trump is in Jerusalem, so I didn’t run. On special days or in times of tension, I need to be available very quickly. About a year ago, Jerusalem had an eight- to 10-month period when every other day there were stabbings, and Shaare Zedek’s trauma unit treated more than half the country’s terror victims. During this time I didn’t leave the city; I was always 15 minutes away from the hospital.