There’s a lot of anger and hatred going around these days. I see it everywhere as our country falls into ever greater division. It’s political and cultural, racial and ethnic. It manifests itself in angry protests and violent assaults against members of other groups. It shows up in oppression and tyranny, and grows more bold in internment camps and small but horrible genocides.
But the pandemic has made it all exponentially worse and has allowed people to say things and hold beliefs we never would have before, all under the guise of public health and ‘common good.’ This sort of frustration even manifests among my fellow physicians, who sometimes rage in online forums I follow.
I suspect that no small part of it developed like this, among physicians and others. ‘We think Trump is a monster and we hate him. So anyone who liked him is a monster and we hate them. And we hate them even more because they are opposed to lockdowns, or masks or social distancing. We especially hate them because many of them refuse to be vaccinated for COVID and that makes our jobs even harder in a difficult time. So, we shouldn’t have to treat them if they aren’t vaccinated. Or at the very least, they should have to pay for all of their care out of pocket, or should go to the very end of the line for ventilators and ICU care.’
I’m not trying to make this about pro or anti-Trump sentiment. And I assure you, there’s plenty of hate from right to left so I’m not trying to defend that either. It’s just my theory.
Now here are some thoughts on denying care that saw the light of day.
https://coloradosun.com/2021/10/03/coronavirus-vaccine-health-care-opinion/
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/09/01/do-unvaccinated-deserve-scarce-icu-beds/
(The above links came from Ed Yong’s excellent Atlantic article on why denying care is a bad idea.)
Now, I’ve heard very little of this in person. And what I’ve seen from physicians has generally been in online forums I follow. As such, it may be even less representative of the actual population of physicians. After all, the Internet amplifies small voices when those voices are favored by those who run and monetize particular social media or news sites.
Pew Research gives us this interesting look at Twitter, for example:
As a physician however, I’m tasked with tolerance and professionalism for everyone. It’s part of my professional code. It’s part of my Christian faith. And it has to be in play in every patient interaction. Not only because it’s ethically correct, but because without that I would make terrible mistakes.
This is even more true in a time of exhaustion, diminished resources and high emotions. I’ve seen what physicians can do when they dismiss people without thoroughly evaluating their complaints and when viewing patients as bothersome, or seeing them through a particular lens that badly influences professionalism. (An example: a physician may have personal reasons to disdain alcohol and alcoholics and as such doesn’t properly treat a drunk patient who ends up missing a terrible head injury rather than just intoxication.)
I suppose what I’d like to ask, somewhat ironically, is this. And I ask this of physicians but also politicians. I ask it of online influencers and those engaged in culture wars on both sides of the aisle.
Since it seems somewhat acceptable to disdain the unvaccinated, who else can I disdain? I mean, people using methamphetamine are very time consuming and frustrating, and not a little dangerous to me and my co-workers. They take up staff and resources. They take a lot of time. Can I look down on them now? Can I suggest they ‘go to the back of the line?’
How about the people who come to the hospital over and over with cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome (dramatic vomiting and abdominal pain) from marijuana? We do labs and CT scans and refer them and tell them the problem but they say ‘it’s not the weed,’ when it often is. They can be frustrating and I can identify the sound of their vomiting pretty easily now. Can I kick them down the road now that we don’t have enough beds on any given day?
How about the obese? Obesity being a risk factor for poor outcomes in COVID, what shall I do? We’ve known it was a problem with this disease for quite a while. Shouldn’t they have tried harder to lose weight now? Can I dismiss them?
Can I look askance at spouse abusers? Can I hate those who commit violent assault and are themselves injured? Sewing up their lacerations, treating their gun-shot wounds, that really taxes the system! Ditto for drunk drivers. They cause death and devastation and use up ambulances and helicopters and beds in trauma centers. Can I hate them?
Obviously the answer is no. NO, NO, NO! I can’t. I may feel anger or frustration but I can never allow my feelings about these things to take root and impact the compassion and care I give to patients, even when they have done things that caused their own woes.
This is a lesson for all of society. It’s a stressful, difficult time. There are reasons to be frustrated, to be vocal, to advocate for change and better behavior. But there are not reasons to dismiss, disdain, disenfranchise or hate the people who frustrate us.
And it’s never more true than in the practice of medicine.
(This, dear reader, is what you get when I write after working two night shifts and waking up from a mere three hour nap before the next. If my thoughts are disjointed, that’s the reason.)
Thank you for sharing so honestly. I will continue to pray more earnestly for you and so many others who care for us, as Jesus did. (Having great compassion for them.) I appreciate you!
I wish this was the thought espoused by the rest of society, especially those very publicly visible. The hatred that exists today is literally palpable across our nation. Well done, his true and faithful servant.