Alumni in Medicine: Nathaniel Evans III, M.D. ’94

• Thoracic Surgeon
• Professor and Director, Division of Thoracic Surgery,
Thomas Jefferson University
• M.D. Stanford University
• B.S. in Molecular Biology, Princeton University

“At MFS, I learned how to think critically but with empathy, and how to work and interact well with others, appreciating the importance of every individual in a community.”

Describe your responsibilities and day-to-day work.
I am a thoracic surgeon who specializes in non-cardiac disease processes. The majority of my job is performing surgery to remove cancers of the lung, esophagus, and other parts of the chest. I also lead the group of surgeons who are responsible for that type of surgery across our health system. The main hospital I work at is Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, the main teaching hospital of the Sidney Kimmel Medical College. Thus, I also teach medical students and residents (doctors in training) about thoracic and general surgery.

What is the most rewarding part of your work?
My interactions with patients, being able to explain complex medical problems to them in a way they will understand to help them feel more at ease making decisions about their care. One of the most rewarding things is when a patient says “I feel a lot more  at ease than when I came in today” after having a discussion about their medical condition and treatment plan. It is also extremely rewarding to help train the next generation of physicians and surgeons.

How did your passion for medicine/health care begin and were there any specific experiences that had an impact on you?
I was fortunate to be exposed to medicine at an early age. My dad is a physician and I was always impressed how much he loved his job and how dedicated he was. In some ways I think I’m just lucky that the things I really enjoyed and excelled at – science, learning new things, focusing on a problem and coming up with potential solutions, patience, attention to detail, listening skills – were all the things that helped me succeed in medicine and surgery.

How has your Moorestown Friends education served you in your career and life?
It’s hard to put it into words. I spent more time at MFS than any other learning institution (14 years). So, clearly it had a huge impact on the person I am today. It sounds trite, but two things I learned were how to think critically but with empathy, and how to  work and interact well with others, appreciating the importance of every individual in a community. So much of what I do involves complex and matrixed team structures and the social skills to thrive in that environment I can trace back to MFS.

Do you have any additional MFS stories or memories you would like to share that were influential in your life?
One memory is spending my Senior Project in (future MFS Science Dept. Chair) Dr. Barbara Kreider’s lab. At that point, she was teaching at Rutgers and an MFS parent. She introduced me to the field of biomedical research and helped open my eyes to all the different career paths there are in medicine, healthcare, and biomedical sciences.

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