There are a few pitfalls I have noticed that keep many young physicians from designing the fully satisfying and functional lives they desire after their professional training is over. Part of it is residual from the dysfunctional mindset we develop during our years of medical school and graduate medical education. In order to be more successful in taking care of ourselves as well as we care for others, we physicians have to acknowledge the reality of these abnormalities.
It is my firm belief that awareness is the essential first step toward taking the appropriate actions to support one’s own well-being and satisfaction. This piece is my second in a series to help newly minted attending physicians recognize how you may be unwittingly contributing to your own dissatisfaction. Hopefully, accepting these painful truths will allow you to acknowledge your power to create fulfilling lives.
Misplaced allegiance. There is policy I developed after years of watching physicians be disgruntled about the level of appreciation they receive from patients and colleagues. Loyalty is only owed to the people you love and that love you back, including yourself.
As physicians we tend to have an altruistic view of life. We like to think we are part of a larger team of people with the same vision for how to make the world a better, healthier place. Unfortunately, that isn’t always how real life plays out.
What we fail to learn in medical training and are slow to acknowledge in real world medicine is that healthcare is a business as well as a calling. Ideally, everyone in the business of healthcare is dedicated to wellness. In reality, there are some folks who are much more concerned with the bottom line than with your or your patients’ well-being.
The problem occurs because we physicians are so caught up in the art of healing that we allow individuals with no sense of being part of the team to make the business decisions for us. These administrators function more like sports general managers figuring out how to maximize the return on their investment in every employee.
When push comes to shove, they have about the same level of allegiance to you that the New England Patriots have to every player except Tom Brady. Even when they appreciate how well you do your job, they are willing to let you go.
Besides our employers, the other group to whom physicians give our allegiance are the patients. One of the best parts of being a doctor is that most patients do appreciate us and the service we provide. However, they will also replace us as quickly as we fall off their insurance plan. Again, it’s not personal. It’s a financial decision.
All this bottom line driven decision-making would be fine if we physicians fully acknowledged this paradigm before wholeheartedly committing to employers and patients. Unfortunately, we often make decisions about our lives based on loyalty to these groups who don’t return it at the same level.
Hear me now and quote me later. The people at your job deserve your honesty, reliability and proficiency. Very rarely will they be deserving of your loyalty. When physicians don’t recognize this fact from the start, they get disillusioned when it becomes apparent.
What I have seen transpire in some folks is a disintegration of the basic qualities of being a good employee as allegiance morphs into bitterness and resentment. The work begins to feel more like a job and less like a calling because you feel like a cog in a wheel rather than a valued healer. That type of transformation is not good for anyone.
You owe it to everyone in your life to make decisions that allow for allegiance to yourself and your well-being. Staying indefinitely in a situation that robs your spirit of peace in the name of loyalty makes no good sense.
While it is admirable to be a reliable team member, you have to be sure everyone is playing the same game. The next time you find yourself questioning whether to take one for the team, I encourage you to consider what decision shows the greatest allegiance to your own well-being.
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Dr Jattu Senesie is a board-certified obstetrician-gynecologist, certified success coach, physician satisfaction specialist and speaker. She blogs about issues of self care and well-being in an effort to help her fellow altruistic high achievers find satisfaction in their success as early in their careers as possible.
