Dr. Eric Robinson, a Prattville, Ala., native, recently joined the medical staff of L.V. Stabler Memorial hospital as an anesthesiologist.

The doctor moved here from Dalton, Ga., with his wife, Stacey Trawick, Robinson, a Greenville native.

Robinson graduated from Auburn University in Montgomery. Then attended medical school at the University of South Alabama in Mobile, and did an internship in general surgery there for a year. Deciding to specialize in anesthesiology, he transferred to the University of Alabama in Birmingham. He is boarded by the American Board of Anesthesiology.

He then moved to Montgomery and worked with an anesthesiology group. He next moved to Dalton, Ga., to work with another group. But working with a hospital in Greenville became appealing for Robinson because of his desire to be closer to family and to move to a smaller community.

Robinson said his philosophy about being an anesthesiologist is to make the patient feel at ease.

&uot;That can be a challenge,&uot; he said. &uot;The surgeon has several opportunities to talk with the patient and get to know him. But I usually only talk with them right before the procedure. I think one of my strengths as a doctor is that I feel it’s important to spend some time talking with the patient also, to put them at ease and reassure them.&uot;

Robinson is following a family tradition, being an anesthesiologist. His father practiced at Baptist Hospital – East in Montgomery before he retired.

In response to a question about how he handles patients’ fear of being &uot;put to sleep&uot; for surgery, Robinson said that anesthesiology has really progressed the past few years.

&uot;We have made so many advancements in anesthesia recently that it is almost mistake-proof,&uot; he said. &uot;It is really safe.&uot;

The doctor said he is enjoying the slower pace living in Greenville offers.

&uot;The main &uot;plus&uot; is the lack of traffic,&uot; Robinson said. &uot;I really disliked sitting in traffic in the towns like Montgomery and Birmingham, you wasted so much time.&uot;

He said that he and Stacey have spent a lot of time in Greenville in the past while visiting family here, so there wasn’t a big adjustment.

&uot;When I would have time off, we would spend time in Greenville doing various things,&uot; he said. &uot;I’ve always liked the town. The only problem was I like to play golf. But now that they’ve put in the Robert Trent Jones course, moving here was no problem.&uot;

Robinson and Stacey were married at Southside Baptist Church and plan to make it their church home.

&uot;Southside is a good-sized church with many things to offer young families,&uot; Robinson said. &uot;At the same time, it has a spiritual atmosphere such as that found in smaller churches.&uot;