March Newsletter - A Month of Expectation
March Greetings
Hello, friends!
In the month ahead, one of the things I am most looking forward to is visiting my youngest daughter, Clare, as she studies abroad in Ireland, pursuing her degree in Sports Management from Endicott College. What are you looking forward to this month?
Photo by Clare. S. O’Keefe. You can read more about her internship with the Cork Institute of Technology in the Sport, Leisure, and Childhood Studies department by clicking here.
Emily Dickinson says, “March is the month of expectation, the things we do not know.” It is a month of transition—warm days evoke the summer to come, while chill breezes suggest that the short, cold days are winter are not far behind us.
I appreciate this month for the reminder it brings that periods of change are natural and good and healthy. It’s okay not to know. It’s okay to be in a time of transition or uncertainty.
Rather than fear these times, we can lean into what they teach us about ourselves and our humanity. We can honor our grief that something is ending, while eagerly awaiting the new and beautiful ways our lives are about to unfold.
Spotlight on Dr. Gita Pensa
Each month, I am honored to share the work of incredible women in emergency medicine. I am so happy to celebrate Dr. Gita Pensa. I was lucky enough to share the stage with Dr. Pensa at FIX 18 in a joint conversation about maintaining resilience in the face of litigation stress.
Dr. Pensa is an emergency physician, and an Associate Professor, Clinician Educator, in the Department of Emergency Medicine at the Warren Alpert School of Medicine of Brown University.
She is currently at work on a brilliant and necessary podcast about malpractice litigation and litigations stress, called "Doctors and Litigation: The L Word". The podcast should, in my opinion, be required listening for physicians. For Dr. Pensa, the mission is personal, having endured an extensive litigation process. “I feel very strongly that physicians need to be better prepared for the eventuality of litigation and its impact on their careers and their lives,” she says. “Litigation has destroyed careers, families, and driven physicians to suicide, and yet we teach virtually nothing about it to students/residents—it remains a fairly taboo topic.”
Dr. Pensa joined Brown's academic faculty in 2014, after thirteen years in community emergency medicine practice. In 2015 she launched Brown EM's educational blog, which now garners over 10,000 visits each month, as well as the Brown EM podcast series. She created and serves as host/editor of AEM Early Access, a collaborative podcasting project from the Academic Emergency Medicine journal and the Brown EM residency.
Dr. Pensa is also Associate Director (Education) of Brown's Emergency Digital Health Innovation program, and co-developed Brown's new Digital Health and Innovation fellowship program. She is active on Twitter with over 2600 followers, and speaks nationally on digital education innovation.
At the local level, she teaches about podcasting and educational technology, and serves as a longitudinal mentor to over thirty Brown medical students. She also is an EM:RAP contributor, serving as faculty for the board review course, 'Crunch Time.' She speaks nationally on the topic of malpractice litigation as well. She was named the 2018 EMRA National Mentor of the Year, and most recently won the RI ACEP 2019 Special Service Recognition award for "Courageous Public Advocacy of RI Emergency Medicine Colleagues."
Around the Web
7 Podcasts for a Healthier Mind and Body
“Whatever version of wellness you’re seeking, here are seven podcasts to get you in better physical and emotional shape.”
The Nuclear Family Was a Mistake
“We’re likely living through the most rapid change in family structure in human history. The causes are economic, cultural, and institutional all at once.”
2020: The Year Mom Didn’t Live To See
“I hope you have learned from me that no matter how hard and how difficult something feels that staying ‘in the moment’ and giving thanks for what you have will help guide and sustain you. Patience takes time and practice.”
Where to Find Me
DevelopingEM is heading to Cartagena, Colombia for its seventh emergency medicine and critical care conference. I’m so excited to head to Columbia in mid-March for this exciting event.
Be in touch!
Need a speaker for an upcoming event? Interested in collaborating on a project? Just want to say hello? I’d love to hear from you!
Drop me a line at hello@tracysansonmd.com !
Sincerely,
Tracy