RWL #181 - Grief, Rommel, ECT, Etc.
Greetings from the University of New Hampshire - Forward Operating Base Last Homely House (FOB LHH)! It’s hard to believe how fast summer is rolling along. In no time it will be fall. Right now I understand we are planning to be back in the classrooms, and I am excited about that, but I am really not looking forward to having all my students in masks, and I don’t relish trying to teach with a mask and/or face shield on. I’m really over this COVID-19 nonsense and ready for life to return to normal. Unfortunately desire and reality do not always coincide. On a happier note, my youngest daughter received her official admission to UNH this weekend. She worked very hard to get there, and I am very proud of her.
Stay well and stay safe.
(pic above is a sketch of Castle Hill Lighthouse in Rhode Island)
Read
What: Scientific American, How Doctors and Nurses Manage Coronavirus Grief
https://www.scientificamerican.com/interactive/grief-on-the-front-line-and-beyond/
Why: If you are a regular reader of RWL you know I’m a fan of oral history. SA has assembled a nice collection of voices of providers talking about coping with the disparate effects of the disease on their practice and their lives.
My sister and brother-in-law are both physicians and this quote from the article was similar to what they were telling me early in the outbreak:
“Everyone in health care wants to do the right thing. It's humbling to see how everyone is at the top of their game, improvising equipment, seeking out knowledge... When my shift ends, what do I do with this crap I've been carrying around all day, the things that happened, the things that could happen tomorrow? You can't even name it. Then you go home, and you can't have your typical social release because you fear contaminating your loved ones. Worrying that I'm going to spread this is the worst feeling of all.”
*
What: Military Review, Preventable Casualties: Rommel’s Flaw, Slim’s Edge
Why: This article was shared by Major General (ret) David Rubenstein, the former Chief of the Army Medical Service Corps for part of my career in the Army Medical Service Corps. For those of us who served in field units as field medical assistants, the unglamorous title of an entry-level Medical Service Corps officer, we learned a lot about basic hygiene and the unsexy duties of overseeing things like digging slit trenches for field latrines.
The article talks about the difference that simple sanitation steps could have made a difference during WWII:
“The impact of virtually nonexistent field sanitation and associated preventable diseases on the Afrika Korps in 1942 demonstrates the likely outcome when a commander and his staff either ignore or are ignorant of the fundamentals of military medicine. Rommel’s inattention to the health of his command led to massive attrition of irreplaceable seasoned veteran troops and contributed significantly to his ultimate defeat.”
The lesson for military medicine is hygiene is a command issue:
“The central truth about military medicine, a truth appreciated by Gen. Slim but not Field Marshal Rommel, is that the commander is responsible for the health of his men. In the broadest sense, the medical officer is primarily an adviser. What he advises can be implemented only when the commander sets policy and either enforces it through command channels or delegates the necessary authority while providing unambiguous command emphasis.”
This one might be of particular interest to my military peeps, but I think it provides an interesting window into the efforts of the military medical system. The Army Medical Department Regimental crest featured the words, “To Conserve Fighting Strength” for most of my time in service. That was what military medicine does, sometimes by being the poop patrol.
*
Watch
What: TED, Sherwin Nuland, How electroshock therapy changed me
Why: Dr. Sherwin Nuland tells his personal story of depression and treatment by electroconvulsive therapy. He provides a humorous history of ECT (be prepared for a few curse words) and then talks about his own experience with severe depression. Despite the dark topic, it’s an uplifting story.
*
Listen
What: CFR Why it Matters Podcast, The World Is Watching Us
https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/world-watching-us
Why: I recently discovered Why It Matters, from the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) and publisher of the excellent journal Foreign Affairs. This podcast takes a look at the turmoil following the murder of George Floyd in the US from two African-American foreign correspondents. The correspondents talk about how the world looks at the US, for better or for worse. We have to remember that the US for decades has stood, imperfectly, for the advancement of the liberal democratic order and against the forces that would impose authoritarian rule, first from the Soviets, the Nazis, and now the rising threat of the Chinese Communist Party. We have a moral responsibility to be better than we are because the eyes of the world are still on us to lead.
*
What: Freakonomics, What Will College Look Like in the Fall (and Beyond)?
https://omny.fm/shows/freakonomics-radio/what-will-college-look-like-in-the-fall-and-beyond
Why: Another piece that continues the strain of exploration about the future of higher education. In this episode we hear from the presidents of Boston University, Arizona University, and American University as the contend with the pressures unleashed by COVID-19 and the tidal shift that is preparing to happen in American education.
Thanks for reading and see you next week! If you come across any interesting stories, won't you send them my way? I'd love to hear what you think of these suggestions, and I'd love to get suggestions from you. Feel free to drop me a line at mark.bonica@unh.edu , or you can tweet to me at @mbonica .
Also, if you find these links interesting, won’t you tell a friend? They can subscribe here: https://tinyletter.com/markbonica
See you next Friday!
Mark
Mark J. Bonica, Ph.D., MBA, MS
Assistant Professor
Department of Health Management and Policy
University of New Hampshire
(603) 862-0598
mark.bonica@unh.edu
Health Leader Forge Podcast: http://healthleaderforge.org
'It is the small things, everyday deeds of ordinary folk, that keep the darkness at bay. Simple acts of kindness and love.' - Gandalf (The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey)