Unhealthy Doctors
Do doctors ever get sick? Of course, they do; they’re human beings, and all human beings, at some point in their life, fall ill. However, I’m sure that we can all agree that our illnesses are evidence of poor health, which is often the result of poor health-related choices. Poor health choices may either be due to ignorance of true and reliable information or, being in poor health; poor health may cause even poorer health-related decision making.
The Irony of Ill Doctors
So, where do we go to alleviate our illness? If you’re anything like me, you’d go to the hospital or any other healthcare-related facility to seek aid from the medical experts. This is the perfectly logical thing to do; if you have an illness, seek out the medical experts to heal you. However, should this be the rational and logical thing to do when the medical experts available for you to seek assistance from are suffering from the same ailments as you?
A Personal Inquiry
I was having a conversation about health with my girlfriend when the question arose, “How healthy are doctors?” We could speculate about whether they are the healthiest in society or if their health is poor, but we chose to see if there was any literature, from a reliable source, on the issue.
The Search for Data
Let me tell you, it was difficult to find anything online. It seemed like we had to enter the correct set of words just to even come close to anything informative because the majority of online queries that associated “doctors/physicians” with the word “health” or “disease” were either in reference to doctors treating disease or an ad for physicians’ practices.
Insights and Limitations
We finally struck some gold when we went to the National Institutes of Health website at NIH.gov and came across an article titled “Mortality Rates and Causes Among U.S. Physicians.” This article was interesting because we went straight to the “conclusion” section to ascertain what was concluded in the article and it states, “These findings should help to erase the myth of the unhealthy doctor. At least for men, mortality outcomes suggest that physicians make healthy personal choices.” [1]
Mortality and Health Comparisons
What made the conclusion interesting to me was that in the “Results” section of the article, they spent a great deal of time notifying us of the difference in mortality between white and black male physicians. Curiously, the conductors of the study did not include other racial classifications of males in the study, nor were any females included. Unfortunately, I do not have access to the full study to determine if the authors of the study specified why females and other classifications of male physicians weren’t included in this study.
Health and Mortality Causes
In the same section, it states, “The top ten causes of death for white male physicians were essentially the same as those of the general population.” This raised a question, if the top ten causes of death for “white male physicians” were “the same as those of the general population,” does this make them healthy? Does this make them healthier than the general population?
General Population vs. Physicians
According to the CDC, the top ten causes of death in the U.S. during the same period were roughly heart disease, cancer, cerebrovascular disease, COPD, Pneumonia and Influenza, Diabetes Mellitus, etc. Everything after the top six begins to vary according to the year. [2] Now, the initial article claims that physicians have similar causes of death to the general population, so how exactly does this dispel the myth of the unhealthy doctor when it is safe to say that the general population is unhealthy, considering that the top causes of death are all indicators of poor health, as well as, poor health choices. So wouldn’t that mean that physicians are also making poor health choices?
Are We Unhealthy?
To be fair, this data was taken from the late 80s and early 90s, but are we wrong with our assessment of the U.S. general population being unhealthy even today, since the United States doesn’t even crack the top ten healthiest countries list according to Global Citizen from 2015. [3] Albeit a subjective list, a similar list was also put out by Bloomberg in 2019 in which the United States didn’t even make the top 20. [4]
A Broader Look
So, dare I assume that if “white male” physicians have similar causes of death to the rest of the general population, that we already know to be unhealthy, and those causes of death are triggered by poor health, would it not stand to reason those physicians, doctors, and even other healthcare workers like nurses are struggling with poor health also?
Racial Disparities and Health Outcomes in Physicians
What’s interesting is that if the first article is placing “white male physicians” as the standard in terms of their life expectancy compared to “black male physicians” and perhaps other races of physicians, and even they are still just as unhealthy as the “general population,” then it may mean that other races of physicians may be even unhealthier.
A Swiss Study on Physician Health
A study was done in Switzerland, a country that came in as number 5 on both previous lists, and according to this article, which was done by questionnaire, approximately 40% of the primary care physicians queried admitted to participating in insufficient physical activity, which is regarded as a health risk factor. Now in a country ranked as the fifth most healthy country in the world, if 40% of a population of physicians admit to not participating in sufficient physical activity, what is a safe estimation of the percentage of U.S. physicians who do or do not? [5]
Standards and Practices
This investigation further piqued my curiosity regarding the health of healthcare workers everywhere. It is such a major accomplishment working in health care, whether as a physician or nurse, but it is such a shame that these individuals are still plagued by the same health issues that the general population suffers with. People that function as healthcare professionals set the standard for health in any population they are a part of. Albeit subjective, there are studies that have been done to convey the effect of healthcare professionals who disclose their own healthy lifestyle practices on their patients. According to this article, healthcare workers who disclose their own healthy lifestyle practices have a positive effect on motivating patients to adopt similar practices. [6]
Their Role and Challenges
As touched on earlier, becoming a healthcare worker is no simple feat. The years of dedication the healthcare practitioners display towards attaining the status as a physician is a labor that not very many are able to offer, and they should be celebrated and revered. However, if they, the best of us, are suffering from the same preventable ailments that plague the nation, what hope is there of solving the problem for the rest of us? How do we alleviate the nationwide pandemic of poor health-related decision making?
Defining Health: The Etymology and Its Implications
To solve a problem, we must first familiarize ourselves with what the problem is. Something that I’ve never observed or seen done by anyone else is to define what the word “health” actually means. The term “healthy,” according to the etymology of the word, means to be “whole.” [7] So to be healthy means to be “wholly,” or a more familiar derivation is the word “holy.” Therefore, a “healthy” man or woman is a “holy” man or woman. To be Holy is not limited to the religious but to those who seek and attain the status of healthy.
Addressing the Health of Healthcare Workers
If we’re going to solve the problem of poor health in society, we must first solve the problem of poor health amongst our healthcare workers. As healthcare professionals, they are supposed to be paragons of health; therefore, they are supposed to be our holy men and women. They are supposed to exude what being holy looks like, to be modeled by the general population.
Practical Steps for Health Improvement: Rituals and Practices
So what behaviors are to be practiced and ritualized so as to be healthier, or as we’ve noted, more holy? We’ve identified the causes of mortality in healthcare workers, so how do we reverse them? What does the reverse even look like? The top six causes of death shared by the general population as well as in physicians (white male) are heart disease, cancer, cerebrovascular disease, COPD, Pneumonia and Influenza, and Diabetes Mellitus. The question that we must ask ourselves is whether there are practices that limit the likelihood or reverse the manifestation of these causes, in essence, what are the preventative measures one should take?
A Call to Action: Supporting Healthcare Professionals
Here at iUniversol Institute, we believe that our health professionals should be taken care of because they are the beacon at the top of the hill. They are the ones in society that the rest of us should be aspiring to emulate in terms of our habits, mannerisms, and behaviors as it pertains to health. If we are to take into consideration all the variables that prevent these professionals from practicing healthy lifestyles and resolve them, then we in effect may also solve for the societal barriers to healthy living.
Recommendations for Health Practices: Beyond the Traditional
In addition to all the traditional recommendations that healthcare professionals request of their patients, such as physical exercise, increased fruit and vegetable intake, water consumption, cessation of smoking, etc., we should include, perhaps at their places of work, physical exercise programs to ensure the improved physical fitness is achieved and maintained, psychological counseling to determine whether the mental state of the professional is suitable to make recommendations to patients, a meditation practice that prepares the individual to better handle stress, sufficient time outdoors, nutritional education, etc.
These recommendations may seem like a lot to include in an already busy day in the life of a health professional, but all that is being required is for these health rituals to be included in the lifestyle of these professionals. iUniversol seeks to be part of the push to ensure that our healthcare professionals are the holiest people in the world because we believe that their behaviors and practices will have a trickle-down effect on the rest of society.
References
Mortality Rates and Causes Among U.S. Physicians
Citation: Frank E, Biola H, Burnett CA. Mortality rates and causes among U.S. physicians. Am J Prev Med. 2000 Nov;19(4):155-9. doi: 10.1016/s0749-3797(00)00210-4.
Summary: This study examines mortality rates and causes of death among U.S. physicians, finding differences in mortality based on race and gender.
National Vital Statistics Reports on Leading Causes of Death
Citation: Heron M. Deaths: Leading Causes for 2017. Natl Vital Stat Rep. 2019 Jun;68(6):1-77.
Summary: Provides comprehensive data on the leading causes of death in the U.S., showing that heart disease, cancer, and other chronic conditions are the top causes.
Health Rankings: Global Citizen and Bloomberg Reports
Citation: Global Citizen. (2015). The 10 Healthiest Countries in the World. Retrieved from https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/the-10-healthiest-countries-in-the-world/
Citation: Bloomberg. (2019). These Are the World’s Healthiest Nations. Retrieved from https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-02-24/these-are-the-world-s-healthiest-nations
Summary: These articles rank countries based on health metrics, highlighting that the U.S. does not rank among the top healthiest nations.
Physical Activity Among Swiss Physicians
Citation: Bovier PA, Arigoni F, Schneider M, Gallacchi MB. Relationship between work satisfaction, emotional exhaustion and mental health among Swiss primary care physicians. Eur J Public Health. 2009 Jun;19(3):224-9. doi: 10.1093/eurpub/ckp025.
Summary: This study surveys Swiss primary care physicians and finds that 40% report insufficient physical activity, a known health risk factor.
Impact of Healthcare Workers' Lifestyle on Patient Motivation
Citation: Lobelo F, Duperly J, Frank E. Physical activity habits of doctors and medical students influence their counselling practices. Br J Sports Med. 2009 Feb;43(2):89-92. doi: 10.1136/bjsm.2008.055426.
Summary: This study shows that healthcare workers who disclose their healthy lifestyle practices positively influence their patients' motivation to adopt similar practices.
Etymology and Definition of Health
Citation: Online Etymology Dictionary. (n.d.). Health. Retrieved from https://www.etymonline.com/word/health
Summary: Provides the etymology of the word "health," linking it to the concept of being "whole" or "holy."