When talking to students considering medicine as a career, I talk about all of the advantages or taking care of patients. I also say to everyone –
“Remember, it is still a JOB.“
Physicians are stuck in the middle these days. The expectations are high, and rightfully so. Our patients’ lives and livelihoods are on the line.
So, where is the suck? We have many bosses: our patients, our physician leaders, and our administrative leaders, not to mention the insurers. The insurers want to do everything but pay medical bills. The first goal of every insurance company is to maximize their profit – the complete opposite of the first goal of every physician.
Primum non Nocere!
It’s easy to want to give up. “I don’t get paid enough to deal with this,” may be a tempting out. In many ways, that is fair. Fighting everyone around us against the stream to provide appropriate care is not what we ever agreed to. Physicians are taught to say “yes,” and “how can we help.” If you want to be a successful physician, you HAVE to be available, able, AND affable. No one likes a cranky doctor, but it’s so hard to put on a fake smile when you leave the patient room and run into roadblocks and brick walls.
First and foremost. Take care of yourself. Ensure you have a solid plan to take care of your mind, body, and family. Use your paid vacation days – EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM – throughout the course of a year. We don’t get paid to work 365 days a year. Read something that isn’t a textbook or a journal. Take some time out of every day for a workout or some meditation. Spend some time every day with your family and friends or your pets.
What can we do at work to prevent drowning in the suck?
Get right in the middle of it! Get involved in the decision-making. Join committees. Volunteer for strategic leadership opportunities. Notice, I said strategic. You can’t say yes to everyone and do everything. Be as picky as you can. Look for places where you can make a difference or where you have experience that will benefit you and your patients. At the beginning, start small. As you gain more experiences and the leadership get to know you better, you will be asked to do other things. Edit as you go. As you get overextended, pass along responsibilities to others that may be looking to get acquainted with your institution. It is expected that your interests and availability will change over time.
Go to the places where decisions are made so that you can be a part of the solution, not the problem. Engage with all of the bosses. When you spot a problem, point it out AND SUGGEST A SOLUTION. If the decision-makers see that you are thinking beyond the problem, they will ask you to participate.
At the end of the day, remind yourself why you show up at work every day. It isn’t to save the insurance company’s profit margin. You show up at work to take excellent care of patients, to change the lives of people in need.