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#Truth, spoken by my the brilliant @arghavan_salles. A harmful hero narrative has been applied to medicine. I, like many, deeply respect the work and skills of my colleaguses. But I want to quickly explain why it is NOT helpful to call health professionals heros (thread) 1/6 https://twitter.com/arghavan_salles/status/1342916944047923200
@Dahlialithwick does a marvellous job breaking down how heroism frameworks enable a focus on the good, brave actions of some and actually divert attention from the bad policy/choices/behavoirs that led to the crisis in the first place. 2/6. @drjessigold https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/04/coronavirus-humans-vs-heroes.html
Heroism allows us to focus to much on how saviours heal and we don't speak nearly enough about the environments that hurt people. So much preventable harm occuring now- opioid poisoning, domestic violence, structural oppression, in addition to preventable COVID infections. 3/6
Health care pros ARE HUMAN. They are well trained and service oriented, but years of heroic expectations lead physicians to be a very unwell group- highest suicide of any professional group, increasing burnout rates & decreasing levels of patient trust. We are not doing well. 4/6
So don't call health professionals heros, ask why heros are needed. Do your part to prevent infections. Understand that inequity is toxic & vote for people that promote equity. Support policies that are kind & compassionate-communities can do a lot to keep ppl safe & well. 5/6
Colleagues, I love you, be careful about internalizing the hero talk, you will set harmful standards for yourself & others. As @arghavan_salles says, only w/ purposeful work will we redirct the conversation & redesign the profession in a way that promotes equity & health. 6/6
