Our stories

Trauma in medical training

The Trauma of Medical Training

“We lost him”. The surgical resident whispered it under his breath, stepping away from the trauma bay. The blood on his gloves and scrubs, a dull reddish brown under fluorescent lights, told the story of a 12-hour shift spent fighting battles he often lost.

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contemplative female physician letting go

Letting go for physicians

We all talk about the importance of letting go, but they are very few of us that can actually do it well. Perhaps being human makes it so hard.

Yet it is when we let go that things begin to move and what we’ve been hoping and wishing for comes in alignment.

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Peer support for physician burnout

Peer support for physician burnout

There has never been a more urgent need to combat, or ideally prevent, physician burnout, mental illness, and suicide. In this article, we explore a number of peer support programs and summarize the key elements required to develop safe and supportive spaces for the unique needs of physicians at risk of burning out.

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Stained glass window of a man hiking.

A Life of Purpose

When you allow yourself to truly see and sit with the fact that we are only here for a short period of time, it can feel scary… and also freeing.

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Balancing Parenthood and a Medical Career

Balancing Parenthood and a Medical Career

Motherhood is by far the hardest thing that I have ever done and continue doing every day. It is 1 million times harder than being a doctor and requires such a delicate dance of unconditional love, consistency, and compromise. At the same time, there is no doubt that being a physician is one of the hardest professions out there.

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Physician loneliness operating room

How to beat physician loneliness (Part 1)

We humans are wired for connection. Our ancestors evolved as social beings because, simply, working together as a band of humanoids increased their chances of survival and reproduction. Multiple studies have shown that collaboration engenders survival advantage. Yet physician loneliness is a real thing.

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In this article, we look at the connection between charting and physician burnout, and innovations to try and reduce charting-related fatigue.

Charting physician burnout

In this article, we look at the connection between charting and physician burnout. We also examine innovations to try and reduce charting-related fatigue and physician burnout.

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Physician burnout history

Physician burnout history

In this article, we explore the history of the “burnout syndrome” in general and as it relates to physicians specifically. Why is physician burnout history important?

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Those left behind

Reach out to your loved ones, and be honest. Trust me, they will help you. You are loved in more ways than you can imagine, because you are one unique lovable bright spot in this world. So stay with us and shine on us. This a Physicians Anonymous co-founder’s story of how she lost a spouse to suicide.

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Physician burnout definition

Physician burnout definition

What exactly is physician burnout? In this article, we explore the construct of the burnout syndrome definition as it relates to doctors: a physician burnout definition.

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Sir Dominic Corrigan was so busy 180 years ago that he had a “secret door” made in his consulting room to escape his eager patients.

Corrigan’s Secret Door and Other Stories

If you’ve not heard of Corrigan’s Secret Door, you’re in for a treat. Based on a legendary Irish physician, the Secret Door denotes a metaphorical escape route for busy physicians from their hectic clinics.

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Fear: of disclosure, losing my license, and losing face. This is my physician burnout story as a founder of Physicians Anonymous.

A Physician Burnout Story (Part 1)

My career and life crashed to a halt after 25 years in clinical medicine. I was at one point “suicidal with planning and intent”. Medical knowledge in the hands of a suicidal physician can be deadly. As an affluent, respected physician, confident in my position, well-liked and admired by society, yet suffering inside, why did I not seek help?

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physicians seek help

Why don’t physicians seek help?

Physicians are sick, and it’s getting worse. Yet too few doctors seek help or reach out when we are struggling. Record numbers of us are burning out, becoming mentally ill or addicted, retiring early, and leaving medicine.

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Effective physician resilience programs

Effective Physician Resilience Programs: what works?

In this article, Part 2, I concede that there are some excellent principles differentiating ineffective from effective physician resilience programs. We hope that colleagues and medical leaders designing such programs will find the guidance useful, and further grasp the nettle of addressing the root causes of physician burnout.

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