Category: the business of health care

Why we need a National Doctors’ Day

Along with the honor of being a physician,  comes the problem of burnout. Leaders in the medical community recognize the high and increasing rate of burnout in physicians. In burnout, physicians feel exhausted,  lack enthusiasm about work, lose motivation, and feel cynical about the value of the medical profession.

Updated March 27, 2023

Did you know there is a national day to honor physicians? In 1990, the U.S. Congress established a National Doctors’ Day,first celebrated on March 30, 1991.

Along with the honor of being a physician,  comes the problem of burnout. Leaders in the medical community recognize the high and increasing rate of burnout in physicians.

National Doctors’ Burnout

In burnout, physicians feel exhausted,  lack enthusiasm about work, lose motivation, and feel cynical about the value of the medical profession.

Statistics suggest that a majority of physicians experience feelings of burnout and compassion fatigue at least sometime during their career. At any given time, that could be your doctor.

Physician burnout can arise from the technological and bureaucratic hassles in medical practice that hinder doctors from spending adequate and quality time with patients and interfere with our ability to care for patients in the way we believe is best.

a medical person holding a stethoscope

Studies suggest that burnout causes physicians to spend less time providing direct care to patients, and that care may be less efficient and effective. 

Doctors are less likely to experience burnout when they have rewarding relationships with their patients.

Most of us went into medicine because we wanted to help people, and that still brings us the most satisfaction. A successful doctor-patient relationship depends on both persons showing mutual respect.

(And by the way, physicians aren’t the only professionals who can burn out. If you recognize any of the symptoms in yourself, talk to your doctor or a mental health professional.)

March 30 is Doctors' Day

The first Doctors’ Day observance was March 30, 1933, in Winder, Georgia. The idea came from a doctor’s wife, Eudora Brown Almond,  and the date was the presumed anniversary of the first use of general anesthetic in surgery.

The Barrow County (Georgia) Medical Society Auxiliary proclaimed the day “Doctors’ Day,” which was celebrated by mailing cards to physicians and their wives and by placing flowers on the graves of deceased doctors.

You may not have a chance to honor your doctor in person, but I suggest you commit to doing your part to establish a trusting, respectful relationship with your doctors. It will be good for both of you.

To enhance communication with your doctors-

Be open and honest about your medical history,lifestyle, and concerns. 

Sometimes patients leave out important information due to forgetting, thinking it’s not important, embarrassment, or fear. But that may be the very piece of data I need to pinpoint what’s wrong.

So tell the doctor

  • If you can’t do something you’re asked  to do,
  • if you can’t afford the medication,
  • if your insurance doesn’t cover something,
  • if you are afraid to go for the test
  • if you are seeing other doctors for anything,
  • how much you smoke,drink, or other habits

Learn more tips on talking with your doctor here-

How to talk to your doctor to improve your medical care a male doctor holding a tablet

Give details about your problem, explain what you feel

I find that patients often have difficulty describing how they feel. They may say they hurt, cough, itch or get short of breath, but give few details. Maybe because we use  text messaging with its brevity, abbreviations and emoticons. We have forgotten how to use descriptive words.

I don’t think we doctors expect our patients to always recite a rehearsed narrative  about “why I came to the doctor today.” But it does help if you come prepared to answer questions as specifically as possible. You might try thinking about your problem using the PQRST mnemonic. It will help your doctor identify possible causes for your symptoms, and may also help you understand your problem and even suggest ways you can help yourself.

Find out what PQRST means at this post-

How to tell your doctor what’s wrong with you.

Female doctor looking at an xray

Recognize your doctors are people first

As physicians, our patients’ “social histories” help us understand factors in your life that impact your health -where you live, your job, your family, your hobbies . Besides that, we enjoy getting to know you, especially the things that make you and your life unique and interesting. That feeling can go both ways.

a woman in white coat with mask over mouth

Exchanging a few social words can make the encounter more satisfying for you and your doctor. Some of us will be more open about sharing our personal lives, and some subjects may be off limits. But I don’t think any of us will object to polite,  caring interest in our lives outside of medicine.  

You may cry when you read about a unique doctor-patient relationship in this post-

A simple way to help your doctor beat burnout

Finally, in honor of Doctors’ Day, meet some physicians with unique experiences to share, just a few of the many doctors who work tirelessly to provide us all with the HEART of health.

Doctors in international healthcare

Dr. Kent Brantly awoke feeling ill- muscle aches, fever, sore throat, headache and nausea. As his condition progressively worsened to include difficulty breathing, he learned the cause of his illness- the Ebola virus. Having spent the past few weeks caring for patients caught up in the Ebola epidemic that swept Liberia in the spring of 2014, Dr. Brantly had contracted the disease himself, and would likely die, as almost all victims do.

Continue this story at-

Surviving Ebola, “Called for Life”– Dr. Kent Brantly

 Doctors in disaster healthcare

When she applied for a position in New York City at the NYC Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME), Dr. Judy Melinek never imagined that decision would plunge her into the nightmare of September 11, 2001. She was at the ME office that day when the Twin Towers were attacked and fell, killing thousands of people.

She and the other staff collaborated with the team of investigators who worked night and day identifying remains of the victims, a task she vividly describes in the book. This was basically their only job, since the cause of death was for the most part irrelevant, and impossible to determine. Sometimes they had only a small body part, as little as a finger, to extract DNA to identity a victim. Such identification was critical to bring closure to the families who lost loved ones, people who left for work that day, and never came home.

Read more about Dr. Melinek at this review of her book-

Working Stiff: Two Years, 262 Bodies, and The Making of a Medical Examiner- a review of words worth sharing

Doctors in Primary Care

Melissa Freeman, M.D.- the 91-Year-Old Doctor Who’s the Granddaughter of Slaves

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exploring the HEART of health and those who care for it

Medical stethoscope and heart on a textured background

Dr Aletha

King, Obama, and Healthcare

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was a prominent leader in the Civil Rights Movement, delivering his famous “I Have a Dream” speech during the March on Washington. Barack Obama, the first African-American U.S. President, fulfilled his promise of universal healthcare coverage with the Affordable Care Act. Steps to improve health apply to everyone, with special emphasis on African-American health issues.

updated February 8, 2024

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

The Reverend Dr. King led the Civil Rights Movement in the United States from the mid-1950s until his death by assassination in 1968.

“Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane.” — Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. 

“In 1963, Dr. King helped lead the March for Jobs and Freedom, more commonly known as the “March on Washington,” which drew over a quarter-million people to the National Mall. It was here that he delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech, which cemented his status as a social change leader and helped inspire the nation to act on civil rights.” from The King Center

Barack Obama-44th U.S. President

In 2008, Democratic candidate Barack Obama ran for President of the United States and won, becoming the 44th President and the first African-American to win the office.

Former President Obama running with his dog
President Obama kept fit exercising with his dog- photo compliments Pixabay 

Obama’s Healthcare Achievement

As a candidate for president, Obama pledged to enact universal health care coverage for the country, a promise he fulfilled with the support of a Democratic Congress.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, often shortened to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), nicknamed ObamaCare, is a United States federal statute enacted by the 111th United States Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama on March 23, 2010.

 

Universal Healthcare Coverage -“Obamacare”

The term “Obamacare” was first used by opponents, then embraced by supporters, and eventually used by President Obama himself. Together with the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 amendment, it represents the U.S. healthcare system’s most significant overhaul and expansion of coverage since  Medicare and Medicaid in 1965.

 

 African-American Health

To commemorate and celebrate the contributions to our nation made by people of African descent, American historian Carter G. Woodson established Black History Week. First celebrated in 1926, the week was expanded into Black History Month in 1976 as part of the nation’s bicentennial.

Each year, the U.S. President proclaims February as National African American History Month. Heart disease, cancer, and stroke are the leading causes of death for African Americans.

The leading causes of death for African Americans have decreased from 1999-2015.
CDC Vitalsigns

High blood pressure causes  most heart attacks and strokes in the United States. About 2 out of every 5 African American adults have high blood pressure, and less than half of them have it under control. African American adults are much more likely to suffer from high blood pressure (hypertension), heart attacks, and stroke deaths than white adults.

Cancer is the second leading cause of death among black people in the United States. Black men get and die from cancer at higher rates than men of other races and ethnicities. White women have the highest rates of getting cancer, but black women have the highest rates of dying from cancer.

Steps to Improving Health

People of any ethnic background can prevent heart disease, cancer, stroke, and other serious or chronic diseases by living a healthy lifestyle. Here’s how

  • Eat a healthy diet with fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and fat-free or low-fat milk and milk products. Choose foods low in saturated fats, cholesterol, salt (sodium), and added sugars.
  • Exercise regularly. Adults aim for 2 hours and 30 minutes (or 150 minutes total) of exercise, spread out during the week, and broken up into smaller times during the day.
  • Be smokefree. call 1-800-QUIT-NOW (1-800-784-8669) or 1-855-DÉJELO-YA (1-855-335-3569 for Spanish speakers) for free resources, including free quit coaching, a free quit plan, free educational materials, and referrals to other resources where you live.
  • Limit alcohol use, which can lead to long-term health problems, including heart disease and cancer. If you drink, do so in moderation, which is one drink a day for women and two for men.
  • Know your family history . There may be factors that could increase your risk for heart disease and stroke.
  • Manage any medical condition you might have by collaborating with healthcare professionals for best practices to control and monitor your status.

 

  I learned the quote on health attributed to Dr. King was never in written form, but was in an unrecorded speech. Many people verify the gist of the statement, but with some changes; he may have said “inhuman” rather than “inhumane, for example. For a discussion of this controversy, see this article by Amanda Moore.

 

 

 

 

 

exploring and sharing the HEART of health

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