At the Cedars-Sinai Hospital complex in Los Angeles, patients, visitors, doctors, nurses, and delivery people stream up and down the hallways on a busy summer afternoon. The bank of phones in the lobby is fully occupied. On one of them, Dr. Robin Berglund, in pale blue scrubs, tries unsuccessfully to reach a nurse who has paged him. Then, apologizing for his fatigue after thirty sleepless hours, he settles into a chair in a quiet corner to reflect for a few moments on his decision to enter medical school at the age of 45 after a fulfilling career in commercial banking and real-estate development. Berglund, now 50, is finishing his pediatrics internship and plans further training in psychiatry, which will require another three years.

"The first thing you confront is the question 'Can you do it?' At 45, you wonder if the intellectual abilities are still there," says the mild-mannered Berglund. Once ensconced in classes and studies, however, he says he discovered that his age was actually an advantage. The wisdom of his years gave him a sense of perspective -- which he often shared with his younger classmates to help them quell their anxieties and learn more effectively. "I'd encourage them to forget about the technical nomenclature and focus on the essence of processes and systems, using common terms and visual analogies," he says.

Berglund had wanted to become a doctor since he was ten years old but deferred the idea after college in order to support his wife and children, opting instead for HBS and an executive career. Ten years later, he again aborted plans to attend medical school when his wife's health suddenly deteriorated, leaving him with primary responsibility for raising his young son and daughter. "Their needs and security had to be my priorities," he says soberly.

Berglund continued to pursue his career in real- estate development and investment with gusto. "It was intellectually challenging and enabled me to provide my family with an interesting and privileged life," he says, noting that he and his children traveled all over the world together during those years.

More than a decade later, when his children reached college age, Berglund dusted off his lifelong dream once more. "My coaching and scoutmaster days were over, business was becoming routine, and I had the energy and desire for another great challenge. I asked my children how they felt about the change, and they were all for it," he says with a grin.

While Berglund's love of children prompted him to enter medical school with the idea of becoming a pediatrician, his focus has since changed to psychiatry. "I think the best way I can help children is to work to improve the emotional health of their< parents and families," he says.

Berglund believes his business background may also be a valuable asset in what he sees as the "tough times ahead" for health-care management. "Insurance companies used to write a check for just about anything a physician wanted to do, but today medicine is primarily controlled by the business end," he asserts. "We need to deal with the fact that a management perspective driven primarily by financial concerns may jeopardize patient care. This may become an area of professional interest for me."

The brief pause for reflection is over, and Robin Berglund is off, once again striding down the busy hallways of Cedars-Sinai, headed for the phone.

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