Let's take a break: Burnout & Chronic stress
Introduction Let me get straight to the point- we doctors love to work. I do and it is almost like I get a high by working. Each patient, every successful intervention, makes us feel good about ourselves. It is quiet natural to feel good at your own success and in today’s world, driven by performance and high expectations from our work, being successful can be major booster in our self-esteem. Soon, our work takes precedence over other areas of our lives and everything else is put on the back burner. This is majorly reinforced by the medical education system in our country where a number of years in a doctor’s early career will be spent in studies, examinations, hospital duties, academics and so on. Remember, the post graduate training days? Being a resident means to be on duty 24*7, even though official duty hours are not supposed to extend beyond 8-12 hours. However, a lot of us doctors are not able to find a balance even though our rigorous residency period get...