Sharing Stories of Compassion and Humanity in Medicine: Department of Medicine hosts second annual Story Slam
“Every evening I was at the hospital, my grandma greeted me by my aunt's name,” Dr. Wong recalled.
Knowing it was easier to go with the flow, Wong soon stopped correcting her grandmother as she continued to mistake her for her aunt. Her grandmother shared the room with two other elderly women, and Wong found herself telling other small fibs, like “maybe he’s coming later” to a woman who called out for her son. She would help prop up another to eat the food and goodies her visitors snuck in.
As she cared for her grandmother as a granddaughter and not physician, Wong asked herself, “How many times in medicine have we been bystanders or even facilitators of white lies? If a person cannot process and make sense of a particular truth, is it okay to lie?”
When her grandmother eventually passed away, Wong realized that through these the white lies, she was able to bring comfort to her grandmother.
She remembered, “One of her last memories was that ‘her daughter’ cared deeply about others, and this caring was one of the qualities she was most proud of imparting and leaving behind.”
Dr. Wong’s story was one of 13 shared at the second annual Story Slam hosted by the Department of Medicine in May. The Story Slam brought together faculty and residents who, in about five minutes each, shared a personal story related to medicine.
They shared stories of loss, compassion and how their own unique encounters with patients, or with their own families’ patient experiences, transformed their outlook on their practice. Stories ranged from a medical resident being on the team providing a patient with a medical-assisted death, to the moments that shone a light on the lives of the people they were treating.
For many of the speakers, telling their story was a unique opportunity to reflect on their shared experiences in medicine.
Among the storytellers was Dr. Umberin Najeeb, who recounted her mother’s death, and how it had a profound impact on an interaction with a patient only a few weeks later.
“A pair of crystal wine glasses sat perched at the end of the table,” Ahmed said as she told the story. “Today was not a 20th wedding anniversary or 50th birthday. However, it was a day that was not any less momentous…Today, after weeks, he could drink water.”
Dr. Dhruv Nayyar shared a similar story of a patient who wanted to celebrate her 85th birthday by sharing a chocolate mousse cake with the doctor taking care of her that day.
“Medicine can be lonely at times. It can be stressful,” he recalled. “This small gesture allowed me to see that our patients care for us just as we care for them. In the name of efficiency as we navigate overwhelming clinical workloads, we forget to breathe, pause, and really take the time to be present with our patients.”
Dr. Maria Jogova shared the story of being at the bedside of a patient as he died through medical assistance, and the impact it had on her. For her, sharing her story was an opportunity to share an experience that shaped her view of patient care, and to process the emotional aspects and humanity of patient encounters.
“Physicians are often privy to some powerful moments with people and to stories that we don’t necessarily have a chance to tell, and yet which deeply affect us as human beings,” she says.
“Consciously discussing these experiences and verbalizing how we feel about certain clinical encounters helps us to grow personally as physicians and as people, but also allows us to form better relationships with our colleagues and patients.”
“There are a lot of shared and lived experiences that all physicians have during their training or practice,” adds Dr. Kevin Venus, one of the organizers of this year’s event. He explains that for many of the storytellers, sharing their experiences and stories offers some catharsis for both the storyteller and the audience.
“Through this, you might find something in common with the audience that they identify with. A Story Slam lets you engage in reflection with the story or with the speaker.”
Slam was organized by Drs. Allan Detsky, Wilson Kwong, Nilay Shah and Kevin Venus. Each of the stories will be published in the Annals of the Internal Medicine.
