1. Be a lifelong learner. My example for this is just a wonderful physician named Fred Bomback. He’s a generation ahead of me as a clinician and still has that excitement for clinical care. He’s not only among the best clinicians I’ve ever known, but he has a voracious appetite for reading and continuing to learn. He has role modeled for us that lifelong learning is exciting. I think it’s a great way to prevent burnout because you’re still interested in what you do.
2. Take the extra minute to be with a patient or family in their time of need. For me, it’s those interactions I cherish and think most about. I’m sad to some degree that we’re pushed to go faster. It takes away from our ability to take that extra minute. I’m hoping our field will find a way to increase our workforce and make our systems better so we can have that extra minute and build on the meaningful interactions we want to have. I’ve watched some of my colleagues who are really great at sitting with parents and you can see the fulfillment that they get and the gratitude the parents have because they’re being heard. So take the extra minute.
3. Bake some brownies for your colleagues. I know it’s silly. It gets back to what I think is really important and has been so rewarding for me: building family and feeling that sense of being part of a family as part of my work life. One of our wonderful leaders at Columbia, John Babineau, he brought Duffins to the ED. First of all, I’d never heard of a Duffin and it wasn’t particularly my favorite, but it was really about creating a warm environment for your colleagues and that warm environment will serve you well long term. Again, it’ll make you feel good about what you do and it’ll prevent burnout.
Dr. Peter Dayan, MD, is a board-certified pediatric emergency medicine physician and a Professor of Pediatrics (in Emergency Medicine) at the Columbia University Irving Medical Center. Dr. Dayan’s primary academic interest is in conducting and mentorship of research relevant to care of acutely ill or injured children. His main contributions have come through 20 years of participation and leadership in multicenter research, including as principal or senior investigator of studies conducted in the Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network (PECARN). He can be reached at psd6@cumc.columbia.edu.
