Doctors are extremely busy people. So are many professionals. We
go about our day attending to our patients, reduce our ever increasing pile of
administration, run our practices and juggle our personal lives. When our
patients need us in an emergency they have no idea there may be quite a few
with similar needs on the same day. And nor should they. We are quite skilled
at triaging, attending to the problems at hand and delivering as much as needed
for our patients. But there does come a time when we would like to raise the
white flag and say, STOP! Just for a minute, so we have a chance to breathe and
an opportunity to recharge.
I have taken myself away for a weekend of
solitude and reflection, a moment to take stock and assess where I currently am
in my career and where I am heading. Giving my all, as doctors do, can lead to
needs to escape and energise. And so here I am in a coastal location,
remembering who I am and what is important to me.
This is no new revelation. Doctor’s mental
health and wellbeing relies on the notion that we all need a break, we all need
to listen to our bodies and minds, and pro-actively manage our needs for our
own health and the health of the patients we are responsible for. So, why do we
find it hard to get away?
Part of it is the realisation that at the
end of the day, many of us are small business owners, managing staff, and
scrutinising cash flow. We are not only responsible for our patients but also
for our staff and our obligations under tax law. We work to pay our college
fees, medical indemnity and other professional liabilities we incur as doctors.
We juggle our time amongst our clinical duties and our business requirements.
We can, quite easily, forget that we are like other doctors, feel isolated and
overwhelmed, and before we know it, consumed by worry and insecurity.
Medical training does not equip us with
business skills, yet many of us are small business owners. At times I truly
believe that learning all the branches of the facial nerve was inconsequential
when compared to learning how to pay the BAS on time or service overdrafts. But
this is real life post fellowship. The answer? Becoming and staying connected
to your peers, and asking and receiving help.
The RANZCP strongly advises we form peer
review groups post training in order to discuss clinical cases and obtain
feedback and support. Obviously very important but way too narrow for most of
us in private practice. In my time since fellowship I have forged and cherished
some very strong relationships with peers that have nothing to do with
discussing complex cases of schizophrenia, or the latest views on using
antidepressants in bipolar depression. As a small business owner and sole
director, my most valuable mentors are those who have done it before me, who
are honest enough to admit their mistakes and can tell it like it really
is. They have helped me understand how to run a practice in ways my
training did not prepare me for.
And now, through social media I feel
connected to other health professionals including doctors who have similar
creative pursuits to mine. I have discovered a group of doctors who have a
passion for writing, as do I. Now that registrar days are over I have pursued other
areas of learning that matter to me. This has transpired into a feeling of
connectedness, contribution to a community, asking for help and truly
learning.
As I embark upon my weekend of solitude and throw myself into
finishing my first novel, I thank those who I have met and who have supported
me to learn how to take a break, how to follow my passions, and how to actually
make it happen. You know who you are. See you when I get back to reality.
