Gratitude is so very important to your career as a physician.
Our gratitude for the skill and abilities to make a difference for a patients.
And our patient's gratitude for us when we've made a difference in their lives.
That inbound thank you from a patient is always met with a wave of reciprocal gratitude coming from our heart back in their direction.
A simple thank you from a staff member or colleague, and especially from a patient or family member, can go a very long way in easing the burden of the daily grind. Oftentimes this comes in a verbal thank you. And often times were too busy to soak it in, which is why recreated the what-to-do-when-a-patient-says-thank-you training.
Every once in awhile somebody goes out of the ordinary, writes you a note or sends you an email. You can save that precious text for when you need it most. Pull it out, sit down after the shift is done and take your time reading it over and over, smiling, sometimes crying, always so grateful.
For those times when a patient or family member puts their thank you down in words, I recommend you keep or print out those messages of gratitude and support in a special box. Let's call it a Gratitude Box [G.Box].
Keep it close at hand.
