A poll uncovered significant problems within the armed forces branch. A new survey of US Navy servicemembers reveals significant culture and morale problems within the institution.
Our not-so-new normal: what covid-19 reveals about how physicians cope with extreme circumstances
December 10, 2020
“It’s funny, but our lives are pretty normal,” Brian, my overnight shift-mate, said as he donned his hair net, mask, gown and gloves before seeing a covid-19 patient.
Of course, physicians’ lives during the covid-19 pandemic have been nowhere near normal. But normalizing extreme circumstances is a skill we have honed since medical school to help us get through the everyday pressure of simply showing up to work, where many of our patients are in the midst of the worst day of their lives. Normalization might be an adaptation that helps us survive these short-term stressors, but will we pay an even greater price down the road?