ACP Well-being Champions: Cultivating Connections in Uncertain Times
“Recovery [from trauma] can take place only within the context of relationships; it cannot occur in isolation. Renewed connections with other people recreate the psychological faculties damaged or deformed by the traumatic experience.”
—Judith Herman, MD, from Trauma and Recovery: The Aftermath of Violence—from Domestic Abuse to Political Terror
In a world where the foundations of knowledge, truth, and certainty seem to be interrogated on a daily basis, it can be hard to focus on one's well-being and connection to others. When actions are taken that interfere with the practice of evidence-based medicine and destabilize trusted sources, it can feel traumatic and jarring, and it can be easy to want to isolate yourself from others. As ACP Well-being Champions, we are asking you not to put the weight of the world on your individual shoulders but rather to strengthen your connections to a community of peers. Through these connections, we hope you can find ways to acknowledge and validate each other while having the opportunity to collaborate and share the load of this important work. To further this point, the group Moral Injury of Healthcare calls for physicians to take action by practicing diplomatic defiance a skill set for speaking up, pushing back, and protecting what matters most.
The American College of Physicians works for you providing internal medicine physicians with education, clinical support, practice resources, and advocacy for policy changes that will make a difference in your daily work, your professional development, and your patients' health. For instance, in today's complex health care and academic environments, medical educators are increasingly called upon to do more than just teach—they are expected to lead, inspire, and cultivate meaningful professional growth in others. View our free webinar designed to equip medical educators with foundational coaching skills that can enhance both individual and team performance. In addition, ACP has also put together this resource to help navigate recent changes to federal student loans and the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program.
Check out the links below for resources you can use for yourself and others:
- Explore the Professional Fulfillment Zone, where you will find the latest updates from ACP's Professional Development and Fulfillment Team on Physician Peer Coaching and Well-being Champions
- Read about the Quality Agenda for Internal Medicine; also updated studies on Physician Burnout and the impact of Chronic Loneliness
- Learn the importance of Uncertainty, Sustainability and Process Improvement in the workplace.
- Review Patients Before Paperwork and advocacy updates that affect physician well-being and professional fulfillment.
- Explore WBC coaching resources, including coaching sign-ups, the WBC contact list, a library of well-being interventions, and the WBC journey map. Find out how chapters can partner with WBCs (WBC Exclusive; must be signed in to ACP online).
- Utilize just-in-time well-being skills for yourself and to teach others and explore tools to create a well-being program tailored to any organization's needs and budget.
- Visit the I.M. Emotional Support Hub and Video Series to learn more about individual and organizational strategies and resources to protect clinicians' emotional health and well-being.
We look forward to hearing from you! Reach out to us via e-mail anytime with your thoughts and suggestions for newsletter topics and features.
Sincerely,
Your ACP Well-being Team
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