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Are You The Canary In The Coal Mine? Recognizing Burnout & The Signs Of “Moral Injury”

By Laureen M. Coffelt, OTR/L, CHT

Having worked alongside incredible Surgeons in a Private Physician-Owned Orthopedic Practice for the past fifteen years, our practice has been late in the game, with transition to the challenges of EMRs.

This shift, along with many challenging structural changes within the same time frame, has led me to soul-search on the topic of burnout, not only for myself, but for those I loyally work alongside.

In fact, I asked Dr. Noah Raizman,  Committee Chair of the ASSH Evidence-Based Practice Committee, if there needed to be an Instructional EBP talk about this topic, at the Annual Meeting.

If there is evidence, then perhaps it makes it “real”, credible, and gives it power to be respected as a precarious aspect of being a Hand Surgeon today. It helps pave the pathway in a more advanced direction. It empowers Hand Surgeons to make positive change, in their own circumstances.

Dr. Raizman shared this valuable link:  https://www.statnews.com/2018/07/26/physicians-not-burning-out-they-are-suffering-moral-injury/https://www.statnews.com/2018/07/26/physicians-not-burning-out-they-are-suffering-moral-injury/

Seeing the signs of moral injury or burnout in your colleagues/ staff,  or more critically, seeing the signs within yourself before you are the canary that cannot catch it’s breath  – that is the clinical pearl I wish to share. Being granted permission to share your feelings, or moments of defeat, amongst caring Colleagues, staff, or a confidente ,can make a dramatic shift, for the better. I wish to thank one of the Surgeons in our practice for serving in this manner, for me.

Comments (2)
Kyle D. Bickel, M.D.
November 9, 2018 12:22 am

Lauren: Thank you for sharing this insightful and thoughtful analysis of the pressures, forces, and results of the ever-increasing burden of providing care in our broken system. I will share this with many of my colleagues and friends. And I will use the information as I navigate the difficulties I continue to experience in my own professional and personal life.

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CHARLES CARROLL IV MD
November 9, 2018 7:10 pm

I would agree with Laureen and Dr. Bickel. Burnout and moral fatigue are real issues. EMR, hospitals and insurance issues cloud the picture. Moments of thanks and satisfaction are mixed with less optimal thoughts and dissatisfaction. As a profession we owe it ourselves and our patients to recognize burnout and address it. Without empathy and a sense of moral compassion, we are lost. It is important that we consider autonomy, benificence, non malificence and social justice for ourselves as well as our patients. We owe it our colleagues and profession to identify burnout and address it with our colleagues before the break occurs. So I support looking at this more as time passes. and encourage anyone to sing out before it becomes too late.

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