At least we have a common enemy
WRITTEN BY DR. MELISSA YUAN-INNES ON OCTOBER 7, 2015 FOR CANADIANHEALTHCARENETWORK.CA
Dr. Melissa Yuan-Innes (centre) posted this picture on social media. She was coming off a 10-hour day shift in the ER, while Dr. Ashok Nadkami was finishing a 15-hour night shift.
There are a few upsides to the Ontario government trying to claw every penny out of its physicians.
1. “We need a common enemy to unite us.” —Condoleezza Rice
I’ve joined a secret Facebook group for Ontario physicians to fight this. I’ve never joined a group of Ontario physicians before, except my mandatory membership to the Ontario Medical Association, which takes my money, sends me letters, and altogether seems in a galaxy far, far away.
The Facebook group feels much more democratic. Anyone on the College of Physician and Surgeons registrar can join for free, although the moderator pointed out that if your Facebook name is Christina Rainbow Sparkles, you have to message him with your real name, because the CPSO doesn’t recognize Dr. Rainbow Sparkles.
2. “You have enemies? Good. That means you’ve stood up for something, sometime in your life.”—Winston Churchill
I know that I agreed to the last pay cut. But I think that many of us feel this is our line in the sand. There are some things with which we “will not put,” to quote Churchill again, and we’re brainstorming the best ways to keep up the pressure on social media. For example, after writing this I’ll be on my way for my emergency shift, and I plan to bring a sign that says #CARENOTCUTS and post a photo to Facebook and Twitter. (Editor’s note: see picture). I have about 1,000 combined friends and followers, so a few eyes should fall on it. Ontario doctors being interviewed by the media report that journalists are taking interest in our fight partly because we’re using social media to our advantage. Doctors are posting letters that they’re handing to their patients and asking for feedback. We’re talking about the best strategy to get the public on our side.
3. “The great enemy of the truth is very often not the lie, deliberate, contrived and dishonest, but the myth, persistent, persuasive and unrealistic.”—John F. Kennedy
The truth is that most doctors are extraordinary people; the ones who risk their own lives to save others. One of my favourite parts of the group feed is that doctors are posting stories from the underbelly of medicine: “Doing the work of 2.5 physicians to save my rural emergency department” . . . “Up at 3 a.m. to operate because a patient got hit by a train. You’re welcome, Eric and Katherine” . . . “My husband bringing me supper.” Not all the stories are glamorous. In fact, many of them are quietly sad, but before this happened a doctor might or might not tell family or a few close friends what was going on.
For example, one of my family physician friends posted on a personal feed about going on stress leave for two months and maybe not coming back. We responded privately. One of my other friends is a pediatric surgeon. Her husband posted a picture of her, 36 weeks pregnant and about to operate in the middle of the night because no one else could take care of the child. We responded privately, and the surgeon herself hadn’t bragged about it.
But now there’s a group where you can just post it. No more stiff upper lips. It’s awesome, the crazy things we do. And it’s dreadful, the post-traumatic stress we wade through. We used to keep our lights under bushels, but now we don’t have to.
I’m proud of us. Yes, I feel like this may be our orchestra on board of a sinking Titanic, but boy, we make beautiful music, and we’re going down fighting.
Dr. Melissa Yuan-Innes is an emergency physician in Cornwall, Ottawa and Alexandria, Ont.
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