Emotional health for emergency medicine physicians at center of recent Grand Rounds presentation

Emergency medicine physicians are one of the first lines of defense for patients in immediate need of care. Providing treatment in high-intensity situations where positive patient outcomes are not guaranteed can be taxing on physicians’ emotional wellbeing.

Factors impacting physicians’ emotional health and coping strategies were the focus of a recent Department of Emergency Medicine Grand Rounds presentation given by Darcy Autry, M.D., Medical Education and Administration fellow.

Autry explains that high-profile and widely-covered footage of NFL football player Damar Hamlin suffering cardiac arrest on the field during a January game and the reaction on Twitter from emergency medicine physicians about the expectations of medical professionals after witnessing traumatic events sparked curiosity in learning more about physicians’ mental wellness and how that translates to patient care.

“It got me thinking more about what my colleagues witness and experience on a daily basis and how we have to move on to the next case without taking time to process these traumatic events,” said Autry.

To better understand these emotions, Autry began researching the feelings physicians are experiencing when encountering traumatic cases.

“I was surprised to find there is a large focus on the frustration physicians are experiencing when coping with difficult patient situations, especially in the emergency department,” Autry said. “These frustrations can be caused by factors on varying levels including the healthcare system as a whole, the hospital or specific patient cases.”

Through this research, Autry found that these frustrations can have both negative and positive impacts on patient care depending on the emotions of the physician. To combat negative emotions, Autry researched more into effective coping mechanisms for physicians.

“Rather than physicians trying to compartmentalize all the situations they experience, following a method such as cognitive reappraisal where thoughts about a scenario are reframed can be more effective for coping,” said Autry. “Understanding why a negative patient encounter may have happened due to systemic healthcare inequities or reframing a situation by recognizing positives can be helpful when experiencing these feelings.”

Autry explains that in order to effectively process these emotions, the first step is recognizing what they are and why they’re happening.

“Once you identify and understand the emotion you’re feeling, it becomes much easier to effectively process that,” Autry said.

Autry hopes that the presentation provided physicians with tools and resources that can be used to cope with the situations experienced on a daily basis.

The School of Medicine is also committed to the wellness of students, residents and physicians. For more information on resources, visit the campus mental health site.

To learn more about the Department of Emergency Medicine visit medicine.hsc.wvu.edu/em/.