Top 5 takeaways for MDs: Incorporating the Olympic spirit into our medical practice

I love the Olympics!I love both the summer and winter games, and for me, it's a long two years waiting for the next. I find them powerful and incredibly motivating. I believe my personal life is enhanced by these athletes and their heroic journeys to get into the Olympics and compete. I write this blog as I sit and watch some of the highlights of the last few days. It has been an incredibly uplifting time for Canadians given that we have accomplished more than in any non-boycotted Olympic Games. There are an abundance of spectacular highlight reels. I was immensely proud of all of our athletes whether they medalled or not. Apart from our soccer drone misadventure (ughh…) we stood proud and showed what Canadians are made of!I know there are a lot of naysayers who speak of IOC corruption at the highest levels of these games. These same naysayers would likely point to parallel issues with FIFA, WHO or CDC. It is easy to cynically state that the Olympics don't change all the current challenges that the real world is facing. These Cinderella-esque two weeks won't save any of the lives being lost in the wars raging in Russia/Ukraine or in the Gaza. We can certainly focus on these negative elements or try to rise above it as the Olympic motto states “Citius, Altius, Fortius—Communiter” or “Faster, Higher, Stronger—Together.” Together. If all we have are bleak headlines of death and destruction how can we survive as a human race without some inspiring events and celebrations even for a few fleeting moments? We need the Olympics to prove that we can work together, set goals and achieve them and most importantly, that our similarities are much greater than our differences. Diversity is strength and there is strength in diversity! Quoting directly from the official Olympic website: “Olympism is a philosophy of life, exalting and combining in a balanced whole the qualities of body, will and mind. Blending sport with culture and education, Olympism seeks to create a way of life based on the joy found in effort, the educational value of good example and respect for universal fundamental ethical principles.The goal of the Olympic Movement is to contribute to building a peaceful and better world by educating youth through sport practiced without discrimination of any kind and in the Olympic spirit, which requires mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play.Olympism is a philosophy of life, exalting and combining in a balanced whole the qualities of body, will and mind. Blending sport with culture and education, Olympism seeks to create a way of life based on the joy found in effort, the educational value of good example and respect for universal fundamental ethical principles.The goal of the Olympic Movement is to contribute to building a peaceful and better world by educating youth through sport practiced without discrimination of any kind and in the Olympic spirit, which requires mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play.”WOW! This indeed is a lofty goal in our troubled times. Perhaps realistically unachievable. But what is the alternative? If you are a fan, you've witnessed the highlights of these games along with me. I would like to try to connect the Olympic spirit, if you will, to our work as medical doctors. I have played a lot of competitive sports but I will never compete in the Olympics. There are a fortunate few MDs who have competed in the Olympics and they could speak to this even more passionately than I. Here are my thoughts:Being there…The goal is to get there and compete with everything you’ve got. While everyone wants to “win,” the vast majority of Olympians do NOT leave with a medal. Would they do it again? In a heartbeat. They are universally grateful to have been allowed to represent their country and compete. We should feel as honored, getting an MD degree and being allowed to practice medicine. Not many of us will ever get a medal for the work we do, but we should always remain grateful for the opportunity to have made it in our field of expertise. Three values supersede the three medals. Again quoting the Olympic website: “The three values of olympism are excellence, respect and friendship. They constitute the foundation on which the Olympic movement builds its activities to promote sport, culture and education with a view to building a better world.” Change a few words and we create the following statement: Our daily focus on the values of excellence, respect and therapeutic relationships support a solid medical foundation which promotes social wellbeing, culture and education with a view to building healthier minds and bodies and subsequently a better world. I must strive for these values with every patient interaction. Set your rivalries aside. There is more that unites us than divides. So many problems arise when the medical system or we as individual practitioners are seen as adversarial to our patients. Can we keep an empathetic inquiry front of mind “how would I feel if this were happening to me?” There are no winners if we lose sight of this. It takes a village. And I don’t mean the Olympic village (although that sounds like one hell of a party!). How many interviews of athletes showcase the commitment of families, coaches, trainers, rehab professionals, etc. to get an athlete to an elite status? Even in individual sporting events there is a huge team supporting each athlete. And the better the team works together, the better the outcome. Whether we work in a clinic or hospital setting we are so reliant on the effectiveness and the support of our team. We can promote team play with a supportive environment and effective communication/goal setting /delegation or we can easily destroy it by not honoring these principles. Lifelong training. We commonly use the term “lifelong learning” but perhaps this should be even broader yet. We need to stay in shape, mentally and physically to perform at our highest level, year after year. We can’t just peak every four years. We live our Olympic Games every single day. Being an Olympic athlete involves a lot of long gruelling hours, sweat, unwavering dedication and sheer hard work. Sound familiar? I am fired up and inspired. I had an awesome run today (at my 64-year-old-well-off-Olympic-and-that’s-OK-pace) and a great day in clinic, hopefully treating everyone with excellent care, respect and fostering a healthy professional relationship. I didn’t get a gold medal, but at the end of the day I can stand for a moment and quietly hum “Oh Canada” with a smile on my face. Keeping that Olympic spirit alive!Dr. Ted Jablonski is a performing artist and writer who has retired his family practice to focus on sexual medicine and transgender health in Southern Alberta with two feet still on the front-line trenches of acute primary care.

Top 5 takeaways for MDs: Incorporating the Olympic spirit into our medical practice

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