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President’s Letter

It’s the Little Things

By Elizabeth B. Moran, MD

A s I was considering topics for this introductory article message to someone we appreciate, along with an explanation of why
for our new year at MCMS and wondering how I was we felt such appreciation. As the messages went out and the responses
possibly going to meet the deadline while opening my returned, it was obvious this small act of reaching out, with the intent of
new practice, getting ready for the holidays and running positive human connection, was enjoyed universally. It was easy, it was
free and most important, it was meaningful.
my busy household, it occurred to me that past-president James Hall,
Later, I couldn’t help but reflect on the impact of a short text message,
MD, was responsible for my predicament. given the little effort required to click “send.” That led my thinking to
other ways Dr. Waxman and leaders in this field have suggested we
I am privileged to name Dr. Hall among my most cherished mentors might chip away at the seemingly overwhelming topic of “burnout”
in smaller, more palatable bites. We know physician mentorship,
and, half a decade ago, he recruited me to join the MCMS Board. At community fellowship, acts of service and the human connection they
provide, help. We must take advantage of this!
first, I was not sure what to expect. I did know, however, if Jim found it
For any daunting challenge that life sends our way — from complex
worthwhile then it must be. So I signed on. patient cases to the fear that may be inspired in a new MCMS president
by a blank word document and a monthly article deadline — what has
Over these past The first year of my always worked is to look for the perhaps tiny, yet undoubtedly solvable,
years, the privilege involvement, I attended the portion of that challenge. By sending a simple text message or typing the
requisite Board meetings, first keystroke, I have found the momentum in a first, small victory can
went to a few social events change my perspective and make the overall task less intimidating.

of working with a and met a few new faces. During my residency, when the additive impact of small efforts was
None of these individual sometimes especially difficult to see, Jim Hall was known to quote the
19th-century poem, “Little Things,” by Julia Abigail Fletcher Carney:
remarkably dedicated things took much time or
seemed especially earth- Little drops of water
Little grains of sand
and hardworking staff shattering. Slowly, though, Make the mighty ocean
I became more aware that And the pleasant land.
and an incredibly
diverse, involved, my experience practicing We cannot individually, or as a Medical Society, solve the problem
and dynamic Board medicine in Charlotte of burnout any more than we can eradicate cancer. What we can do,
included primarily what was however, is remember our similarities far outweigh our differences. Our
happening in my personal employment/practice environments, specialties and challenges might be
work environment. incredibly diverse; nonetheless, we are more alike than we are different.
We can find positive and uplifting ways to connect with one another.
of Directors from a Over these past years, the And this organization provides us with so many avenues to do just that.
privilege of working with a From something as simple as a social event to connecting members
with opportunities for volunteerism to a deeper involvement in the PAC
variety of backgrounds, remarkably dedicated and or state Medical Society, we are privileged to have the means to make
hardworking staff and an meaningful connections and we must use them.

has been personally incredibly diverse, involved, Respectfully yours,
and dynamic Board of
transformative.
Directors from a variety
of backgrounds, has been

personally transformative.

As the beneficiary of wise counsel from recent past presidents, Drs. Hall,

Ward, Ezzo (twice!) and Furney, I have begun, little by little, to better

understand our complex medical community and the importance of our

Board’s commitment to the advancement of our mission, “To unite, serve

and represent our members as advocates for our patients, for the health of

the community and for the profession of medicine.”

One recent specific area of focus for MCMS is the severe and

worsening epidemic of physician burnout and the impact it has on our

membership, as well as the patients we serve. The Charlotte-area medical

landscape has seen many changes in the past few years, making this

topic even more urgent.

If you were lucky enough to come to our social event at Olde

Mecklenburg Brewery on October 25 (It was free! You missed out if you

weren’t there), then you, no doubt, enjoyed the activity Dael Waxman,

MD, challenged us to complete. It was a simple act of sending a text

Mecklenburg Medicine • January 2019 | 5