Where Skill Meets Service

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A North Carolina surgeon shares why he chose to serve in the U.S. Navy Reserve while continuing to care for patients at home.

For Cmdr. Hadley Wilson, MD, MS, becoming a physician and serving in the military were never separate ambitions. He knew from childhood that he wanted both.

“I knew since I was a child that I wanted to be in the military,” Wilson says. “I also knew I wanted to be a doctor.”

While completing his cardiothoracic surgery fellowship at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Wilson participated in the Navy Reserve’s Training in Medical Specialty program, allowing his military career to develop alongside some of the most rigorous years of his surgical training.

Today, Wilson balances a demanding career as an attending cardiothoracic surgeon at Novant Health with service in the U.S. Navy Reserve—an experience he says continues to challenge, fulfill and sharpen him as both a physician and a leader.

“I chose the Navy Reserve so that I could maintain my clinical skills in a busy civilian practice and still be called upon to serve in a critical wartime specialty. For me, it was the best of both worlds,” he says. That choice has given him experiences extending far beyond his civilian surgical practice.

He has served in multiple leadership roles, participated in field exercises in austere environments, provided healthcare to underserved populations and trained Navy corpsmen and fellow physicians. He also became an Advanced Trauma Life Support instructor, training military physicians from across the services in trauma care.

“I look forward to my time with the Navy more than just about anything else I do for work. I knew that I always wanted to join, but I didn’t know how fulfilling and exciting it would be for me.” —Cmdr. Hadley Wilson, MD, MS

The experience has shaped his civilian work as well.

“I work in a busy civilian practice and have to stay sharp,” Wilson says. “I think the Navy has helped me manage my time better. It has also broadened my skill set and kept some of my general surgery training fresh by working with other Navy physicians.”

What he did not anticipate was how personally rewarding service would become.

“I knew that I always wanted to join, but I didn’t know how fulfilling and exciting it would be for me,” he says. “It’s an excellent challenge and keeps me sharp both physically and mentally.” Balancing that commitment with a demanding surgical career takes planning and support. Wilson credits both his institution and his partners with making it possible to succeed in both roles.

“My partners have been very supportive, as has my institution, and I wouldn’t be able to succeed in both civilian and military careers without their support,” Wilson says. “I find that with sufficient notice I can pretty much make anything work.”

The same is true at home. Wilson and his wife are raising four daughters, and he acknowledges that military service can ask a great deal of the families behind those who serve.

“As much as I hate to be away from them, I know what I’m doing is important, and so do they,” he says. “They’d obviously rather have me home all the time, but they’re proud to have a Navy dad and husband.”

For Wilson, the “best of both worlds” has become something even more: the ability to pursue two callings without having to choose between them.

The U.S. Navy Reserve became the intersection where both callings met.

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Navy Recruiting Reserve Command
LCDR Kathleen Dale, MSM, BSN, CCRN-TNCC
Navy Reserve Healthcare Officer Recruiter (Carolinas)
Nurse Corps Officer – Critical Care
[email protected]
919-971-8268