The Draft Reflection

At the start of the pandemic, my primary role was in a private practice setting, though I still filled in as faculty at the residency (as I do now).

In our group of six physicians and one PA, we were constantly using every resource available to stay up to date on the ever-evolving science—what it meant for us, our patients, and the countless friends, family, and community members who turned to us with questions. I'm sure you remember.

The sheer volume of information to sort through, fact-check, and put into action was overwhelming. At one point, I hit a wall. I had no bandwidth left. But my colleagues did. Then, I got a second wind and dove back in.

At the time, I didn’t have the words for what was happening naturally among us, but now I see it: we were drafting—just like runners or cyclists do. The lead person takes on the headwinds while the rest of the pack tucks into the low-pressure zone behind them, conserving energy until it's their turn to push forward. We took turns leading, keeping each other moving.

Unfortunately, no matter your politics, we’re in that situation again. The flood of information, policies, and rumors is exhausting. It affects—or threatens—our point-of-care resources, our patients’ access to care, public health communication about current threats, funding of research that isn’t tied to big pharma, and funding for a broad range of community-focused initiatives to improve health.

What’s legal? What’s not? What’s true? What’s misinformation? What happens when it's ICE vs HIPAA? How do we keep lines of communication open about the potential measles outbreak in one of our areas? How does this impact my patients now—or in the future? How do I educate individuals on the widespread effects? What's my role?  There are many real and potential effects on my family, my community, my coaching collaborations, and even the statewide GME-focused council I'm working on. What’s just noise, pulling my focus away from what truly matters?

With the pandemic in the rear-view and lessons learned. I invite us all to emotionally regulate, process, and pace ourselves and DRAFT when needed.

Reflection:

Who do you trust to draft off of? Who is in your pack? How do you know you've gained enough reserve to take back over? How do you tap each other in or yourself out?

What are the priorities for you, your group, your department, your community?

What do you have the bandwidth to advocate for and to disseminate and educate on?

Not everyone has the luxury of this approach. But I encourage you to challenge yourself to build a pack no matter your situation. It's worth mentioning that in race situations, the pack is usually made up of natural competitors, but they still utilize the process. We aren't in this alone.

Paced and measured relative-rest and recovery with your pack is in order.