UNE COM's "Fishin' Physicians" form bond that withstands the tide

Three friends, a whole lot of fishing gear, and miles and miles of open water.

It’s the quintessential New England scene, lived by University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine (UNE COM) Class of 2023 students Charlie Bloom, Hannah Akre, and Kelsey Klingel — or, as they are known online, the Fishin’ Physicians.

The group of friends began fly fishing in the cool waters off southern Maine in late spring, as striped bass began to make their northerly migration. They don’t eat the fish, they said, but release them to spawn.

The physicians-to-be began documenting their experiences on their Instagram account, @fishinphysicians. They have since amassed 2,350 followers and have garnered thousands of likes on trade social media accounts like Simms Fishing, On the Water Magazine, Cheeky Fishing, Origin Outfitters, the Saltwater Guides Association, and the American Medical Women’s Association, to name just a few.

The crew said their Instagram account is a way to share their hobby with friends and the public, but it is also a way to spread their values as doctors in training.

“We talk a lot about how we can use this platform as a way to kind of promote global population health, because we know that there's such a correlation between the health of our environment and how that affects human health,” said Klingel, a Minnesota native.

Time on the water is social, said Akre, but it also allows for personal reflection.

“There is a social component to fishing, between us texting and making these plans, arriving at different locations, and catching up when we get into the water,” she said. “But there is also something very individual, mental, and meditative about it. We find our own spots and cast our lines. And, when you hear someone shout, you know they’ve hooked a fish.”

It is that meditative space that helps relieve the stress of medical school and helps prepare the students for the rigors of medicine, said Akre, of landlocked St. Louis.

"Finding your outlet, which is unique to every individual in medicine, is so important because medicine can have really intense moments. Whether you're a practicing physician or a medical student, the mental stamina that is demanded of you is significant,” she said. “Being able to release, to let go, and recharge is really important to our success right now, as students, but ultimately to our success as clinicians.”

Also relieving, the students said, has been the warm response they have received from other members of the local fishing community. 

“We've been so supported and embraced by who would otherwise be strangers but are now dear friends that we've met through Instagram or out on the water,” Akre said. “It’s touching when we get to the river or the ocean and a local fisher shouts, ‘Hey, ladies, how did the exam go?’ It melts your heart, and, as someone who is not from Maine, it feels really incredible to be welcomed into this community.”

Bloom, of New Paltz, New York, said the evolving sport of fly fishing reflects the evolving nature of what it means to be a doctor. The field of medicine is always changing, she said, just like the tides, methods of fishing, and the fish themselves.

“To be good doctor and angler alike, you have to commit yourself to lifelong learning and continuously feed an insatiable curiosity,” she said. “There will always be aspects of medicine that change, and not everything we’re learning now will be true in the future. As physicians, we have to open to iterating our knowledge base. Remaining curiosity will allow us to incorporate new information in useful ways, whether that is on the water or in the exam room.

“It’s fun to be engaged in this environment that is evolving – the learning never stops,” Bloom continued. “We’re always learning something new and refining what we already have learned, ultimately feeding that curiosity for medicine.”

Photos and video by Camden Spear. View website.