The SurgeonMasters Podcast

Jeff Smith welcomes Heidi Allespach, PhD, an Associate Professor of Clinical Family Medicine, Medicine & Surgery at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine to the SurgeonMasters mini-podcast. Heidi is a clinical psychologist who has worked with graduate medical learners for more than 20 years. She devotes her time to enhancing surgeon wellness through their multidimensional behavioral medicine approach, teaching and working with surgery residents and surgeon faculty, as needed.

Heidi believes cognitive restructuring is the secret to happiness for surgeons, physicians, medical students, and others in the medical field. It stems from cognitive behavioral therapy, and it’s a really simple tool that we all can use to take control of our feelings.

Thoughts impact feelings. Feelings impact physical sensations. Those physical sensations impact our eventual behavior. Cognitive restructuring is about changing our thoughts to change our feelings. 

What steps does Heidi suggest we take to practice cognitive restructuring?

• Step 1 - When you feel distressed, become aware of those feelings.

• Step 2 - Focus on rational thinking and avoid negative over-thinking.

• Step 3 - Change your thoughts to change your feelings in an intentional way.

Heidi Allespach, PhD, is an Associate Professor of Clinical Family Medicine, Medicine & Surgery at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. For over 20 years, Dr. Allespach has specialized in the training of family medicine, internal medicine & surgery residents & fellows, practicing physicians, medical students & counselors.

She has developed a targeted cognitive-behavioral stress management (STM) model for physicians to utilize in a time-limited (3-visit) medical setting. She has also tailored this model specifically for use in nonpharmacologic pain management (NPM) & integrates the patient's spiritual beliefs into these frameworks when appropriate.

Her main specialty areas within behavioral medicine are physician wellness, chronic pain, addiction, & teaching office-based cognitive behavioral stress management interventions. She has published numerous articles on physician wellness, difficult patients, chronic pain and addiction, among others, & has lectured extensively on those topics at many national conferences. Dr Allespach developed teaching models (including “The CALMER Approach” "Rule of Six 2s," and "The 7 Cs", “Wargaming with the Chiefs,” “Show and Tell Rounds”), specifically for physicians to use when working with challenging Dr-Pt encounters. She has also lectured both nationally and internationally on the topic of Motivational Interviewing.

Jeff welcomes to the podcast Associate Professor (Clinical) in the Department of Family and Preventive Medicine at the University of Utah School of Medicine, Dr. Kyle Jones.

Kyle is also the author of Fallible: a memoir of a young physician's struggle with mental illness. 

In his newly released book, Kyle describes his experience as a physician dealing with severe anxiety and depression. As physicians, we focus so much energy on our patients - often without tending to our own mental health. It’s essential that we reduce the stigma of mental health in the medical community and take steps to help ourselves and our colleagues cope with mental illness.

What does Kyle suggest we do for coping strategies?

• Suggestion 1 - Take care of yourself and your colleagues. Treat each other with kindness and respect. As physicians, we are all in this together.

• Suggestion 2 - Give autonomy back to physicians to treat their patients, rather than giving that autonomy to regulators or insurance companies.

• Suggestion 3 - Develop at least 3 coping mechanisms (emotional PPE) to help yourself cope with the stressors of being a physician. This could be going for a run, doing a puzzle, reading a book, or whatever helps you recharge.

Kyle Bradford Jones, MD, FAAFP is an Associate Professor (Clinical) in the Department of Family and Preventive Medicine at the University of Utah School of Medicine. He completed his training at the Medical College of Wisconsin, and then residency at the University of Utah. He is author of Fallible: a memoir of a young physician's struggle with mental illness, and is currently President of the Utah Academy of Family Physicians. He lives in Salt Lake City with his wife and four children.

Jeff welcomes to the podcast general surgeon and certified Gallup Strengths Coach, Dr. Laura Grimmer, MD. 

Now, more than ever, it is important to focus on what we do best. First, determine some of your strengths.

What do you do best? What do you do better than your colleagues? What comes easier to you?

What does Laura suggest we do to leverage our strengths?

• Suggestion 1 - Learn your strengths. What are the things that come naturally to you?

• Suggestion 2 - Work on improving your strengths continually over time.

• Suggestion 3 - Focus on your strengths!

Dr. Laura Grimmer is a practicing general surgeon in St Louis and Gallup-certified Strengths coach. She helps physicians discover their natural talents, and how to leverage those Strengths for a more authentic and enjoyable career. She believes that every physician is uniquely and wonderfully talented, and that our greatest potential lies in "leaning in" to those talents. She does departmental and residency workshops, as well as one-on-one coaching.

Jeff welcomes to the podcast CFO & Practice Administrator of Access Omnicare and the FORM Hand, Wrist & Elbow Institute, Amirra Besh. Amirra is also a strong wellness advocate and practitioner who has competed in more than 8 Spartan Races. 

In this episode, Amirra and Jeff talk about the importance of incorporating wellness in our overall professional environment and community to lead by example. This can happen in many ways. For example, Amirra’s medical practice pays for employees to participate in a local breast cancer walk. Employees of the practice not only get out in the local community and give back, they also have the opportunity to exercise and bond with their colleagues. 

Another important way Amirra’s practice walks the talk is by encouraging their employees to take time off work to participate in their children’s school programs. The point of Walk the Talk is to integrate community wellness and personal wellness strategies in our lives.

What does Amirra suggest we do to Walk the Talk?

• Suggestion 1 - Think about ways you can practice wellness AND give back to your local community. 

• Suggestion 2 - Encourage and find ways for others around you to participate, like your colleagues and their families. 

• Suggestion 3 - Model it! Start prioritizing and incorporating wellness activities into your daily routine to lead by example.

Or just listen to episode 55 with Amirra Besh, Walk the Talk!

Amirra Besh is a wife, mom, and boss! She is a busy mother of five, healthcare administrator, CFO for FORM Hand, Wrist & Institute and Access Omnicare. Currently residing in the San Francisco Bay Area, Amirra is the President of a local chapter for National Charity League and a Spartan racer. She finds her energy and wellness in fitness, philanthropy, and connectedness. In addition to enjoying time being active outdoors, traveling, and growing a small business, Amirra loves volunteering with friends and family.

Jeff welcomes to the podcast award-winning documentary filmmaker and physician advocate, Robyn Symon. 

Robyn directed the film Do No Harm which investigates the hidden epidemic of physician suicide, burnout, and the link to patient safety. The film follows the stories of several physicians in medical school, residency, and clinical practice working in our toxic healthcare environment. The goal of the film is to bring awareness to the high rate of physician suicides and to destigmatize mental health. As we know, there are quite a few challenges for us to overcome.   

What does Robyn suggest we do to move forward?

Start a conversation! 

Solutions can only come from having conversations. When we don’t have difficult conversations, problems get worse. She hopes that we can destigmatize mental health for physicians. She hopes that patients will ultimately benefit from improvements that come from these conversations. She hopes that the film will be a method to start these conversations.

What are YOUR next steps?

• Open a dialogue to destigmatize mental health

• Open a conversation to support changes to licensing and credentialing applications that protect the health of patients and the physicians

• Open communication in front of or with administrators to stop the abuse of physicians by the system

Or just listen to episode 54 with Robyn Symon, Do No Harm!

Robyn is a two-time Emmy Award-winner, and an accomplished writer, producer/director, and editor. She began as a television news reporter in Texas, then joined PBS in Miami where she hosted and produced documentaries, public affairs programs and the TV series Florida! (6 seasons; Travel Channel). She wrote and produced the docu-series “Voices of Vision,” which focused on the work of non-profit organizations worldwide. She has produced hundreds of hours of TV series for major cable networks including Discovery, CNBC, HGTV and currently produces a series on the Reelz Channel. Prior film credits include: “Transformation: The Life & Legacy of Werner Erhard,” acquired for international distribution by Screen Media Films and “Behind the Blue Veil,” about the ancient Tuareg in North Africa, which was distributed by Journeyman Pictures. Her most recent documentary—“Uncle Gloria: One Helluva Ride!” — is currently on the film festival circuit.