Comments have again morphed into an essay. And, once again, they’re in response to a blog post by Dr. Suneel Dhand: When it comes to positive change, physicians are their own worst enemy. I thought it was excellent and spot-on. My first comment read in part:
When reading this post — before I read the comments — I found myself silently nodding … maybe because I agree with much of what Dr. Dhand has written this past year (here on KevinMD and his blog) … maybe because we’ve been exchanging emails since December … maybe because we’ve spoken and I’ve heard his passion for and commitment to finding solutions on several fronts.
Then I read the comments and had to go back and reread the essay. What did I miss? This sentence stood out. “Perhaps the Internet as a whole is more adept at giving a platform to the voices of the cynics and pessimists, neglecting the silent majority.”
In Tom Brokaw’s book A Lucky Life Interrupted: A Memoir of Hope, he wrote: “I am in awe of the bandwidth — the brain power — it takes to become a physician, the dedication, the imagination and energy, the compassion …” He offered this empirical, astute observation about the challenges in medicine today. “… what will not change is that the delivery of healthcare cannot slow or stop while this is sorted out. We’re attempting to change tires on a semi-trailer truck while going eighty miles an hour.”
I’m grateful for Suneel and all those who try to affect positive change through words and actions, i.e., those changing the tires — most often without “neon orange vests” — to protect them from the cynicism, pessimism, and anger they’re bound to encounter on the road.
A respondent wrote:
Speaking for the cynics, I think most of us have reacted to Dr. Dhand’s posts as we have because we find them superficial, naive, and very typical of the type of thinking that has gotten us into the mess. He may deny it, but he gives voice to the corporate powers that are destroying medicine as a profession.
I replied back:
With all due respect and sincerity, how do you see the huge challenges and problems in medicine today being met and solved? Using the EHR mess as an example, can you provide a couple concrete steps/solutions? Who will enact them?
Words matter. You label yourself a “cynic.” Are you really, or are you a skeptic? I appreciate the need for skeptics on problem-solving teams, but not cynics. (I am talking about lowercase “cynics.”) The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines “skeptic” as “a person who questions or doubts something (such as a claim or statement) : a person who often questions or doubts things.” It defines “cynic” as “a person who has negative opinions about other people and about the things people do; especially : a person who believes that people are selfish and are only interested in helping themselves.”
I freely admit I sometimes get discouraged by the discourse in the comments here … and the New York Times, the Atlantic, Washington Post, Facebook, i.e., pretty much everywhere. (Two exceptions: Humans of New York and Pulse – Voices from the heart of medicine: positive, uplifting, inspiring stuff.) When I do, I go to my safe haven. I go to Sir William Osler.
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