Hi. I’m Dr. Marie Curious from MedPEP, the Medical Professionals Empowerment Program. We’re releasing this one-minute reminder to let you know that MedPEP physician listeners are eligible to receive as many as 20 FREE AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ for listening to MedPEP. Just go to MedPEP.org/cme.
Read moreEpisode 20: MedPEP Season Finale – Les Schwab, MD
This is the 20th and final episode of the first season of MedPEP. Along with the first and eighth episodes, this is one of three episodes in which Marie and Les engage in a two-way conversation without a guest expert. Their two-way exchanges, relative to the more didactic three-way conversations, are particularly personal and heartfelt. In this final episode, they review Marie’s MedPEP journey, which commenced with a focus on the “self” and ended with a broader focus that encompassed teamwork, conflict management, and career development. Marie reveals that the abrupt departure of a valued colleague and mentor from her practice is what prompted her to participate in the MedPEP project. It was professional burnout that led her colleague to leave the clinic, and Marie decided to become proactive so as to avoid succumbing to the same stresses and strains that befell her friend and colleague. In this final episode, Marie and Les take stock of her struggles, her learning, and the mentorship and coaching she received from the MedPEP experts and, most importantly, from her MedPEP guide, Dr. Schwab. In the first MedPEP session she spoke rather poignantly about NOT wanting her children to become physicians. Now, in the last session, she explores with Les the possibility of having her children join her on home visits. She has gone from having a beleaguered and overwhelmed attitude to being more of a “can-do problem solver.” Both she and Les attribute this shift to what they learned on the MedPEP journey, and she expresses a great deal of gratitude to him for his skill, compassion, and support. Their positive connection exemplifies what often happens when a struggling physician is coached by a trained colleague, and the series ends on a hopeful and positive note, with them agreeing to stay in touch.
Read moreEpisode 18: Managing Unrealistic Expectations — Mark Green, MD
Every practicing physician has had the experience of feeling powerless in the face of patient expectations that come across as overblown or unrealistic. Addiction psychiatrist Mark Green, MD, shares with Drs. Curious and Schwab that an effective strategy for managing such expectations is for the health professional to join with the patient by acknowledging their shared experience of powerlessness. In this episode, Dr. Green reflects on the work he has done helping primary care physicians manage challenging patients with chronic pain and so-called “drug-seeking behavior.” He observes that sometimes physicians who are rushed for time and feel compelled to “do something” may inadvertently end up hurting their patients, rather than helping. Sadly, this problematic dynamic may be one of the root causes of the opioid epidemic. Although patients may expect physicians to alleviate their pain and meet other expectations, it is the professional’s job to help them differentiate between unrealistic hopes and achievable goals. By taking time to listen to patients and gain a deeper understanding of the causes of their distress, it is sometimes possible to accomplish more by doing less (fewer unnecessary tests, less medication). Empathically engaging with patients, understanding their helplessness, and sharing in patients’ powerlessness all may reduce their suffering, loneliness, and desperation. Although Dr. Green acknowledges that taking the time to forge these kinds of connections to patients may be draining to the professional, he describes it as potentially fulfilling and even invigorating. In fact, he believes that burnout ensues when physicians and other professionals find themselves in practice situations that deprive them of the opportunity to connect with and listen to their patients. Dr. Green recommends acknowledging one’s powerlessness as an act of self-compassion. His counterintuitive perspective provides Marie and Les with much food for thought.
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