Ask me about my pearls: burn care, ethics, and creative writing

Abstract

Channeling feelings into the written word rather than the scalpel was at the heart of the creative writing challenge that the first author (DR) accepted when she joined the Seven Doctors Project at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in 2008. Burnout has become recognized as a factor undermining physicians’ quality of life, and the practice of creative writing helps mitigate stress and sustain a successful practice. When physicians partner with and are mentored by a seasoned creative writer, creative writing can serve as an exercise in ethical reflection, which is particularly valuable at mid-career; this is the subject of the following dialogue between one physician writer and the facilitator of the Seven Doctors Project creative writing class.