Commentary
By Sandra Marchese Johnson MD , FAAD
Happy New Year !!
Congratulations ! If we are reading this
editorial , then you survived and hopefully thrived in 2020 . It is now 2021 , a brand-new year . It is a time to reflect on the past year and plan for a new year . ( I am writing this editorial in October 2020 .) So much has changed since I have written my last editorial . In case you were wanting a recap of 2020 , here are some ( not all ) of the events : Australian bushfires , the Kansas City Chiefs won the Super Bowl , Harry and Meghan quit the Royal Family , the Boy Scouts filed for bankruptcy , Kobe Bryant and eight others died in a helicopter crash , Covid 19 hit ( I would like to take a moment to celebrate the life of Dr . Robert “ Ray ” Hull , the father of a good friend and fellow dermatologist Dr . Cheryl Hull and the first physician in Arkansas I know who died from Covid ), President Donald Trump was impeached and then acquitted by the Senate , “ Parasite ” swept the Oscars , the Hong Kong protests , Ebola resurfaced in the Congo , Harvey Weinstein was convicted ( starting the # metoo movement ), the stock market suffered its biggest one-day loss ever on March 9 , there were some police-involved killings , the # blacklivesmatter movement , the # policelivesmatter movement , the # alllivesmatter movement , Colorado abolished the death penalty , the Kim Jong Un death rumors , the big # twitter hack , murder hornets arrive , the explosion in Beirut , the west coast wildfires , Ruth Bader Ginsburg dies ( RIP RBG , thank you for all you have done ), flash floods , numerous hurricanes , numerous wildfires , earthquakes , the whale in the Amazon , the
This year , I am going to try to become more active in our local community , state , and specialty ( Dermatology ) society .
Oakland Raiders relocated to Las Vegas , the Olympics and many other events have been postponed or cancelled , and the Pope ( today as I write this ) announces support for civil unions of same-sex couples .
Since I am writing this in October 2020 , I do not know who will be President of the U . S . in 2021 . I do know that Dr . Chad Rogers is the president of the Arkansas Medical Society , and he is doing a phenomenal job . I am forever indebted to Chad . Dr Rogers is a skintastic human who , along with my sister-in-law Dr . Jennifer Johnson , and the entire team at UAMS saved both my life and the life of our son who will be turning 20 years old on January 4 , 2021 . Dr . Rogers is a kind and generous human who epitomizes what is good about the practice of medicine . I am thankful that he is representing and serving as president of our AMS . I would vote for Dr . Rogers again to serve as president .
This year , I am going to try to become more active in our local community , state , and specialty ( Dermatology ) society . I may never reach the heights of Dr . Rogers as AMS president or my brother in law , Dr . Lee Johnson as Arkansas representative and officer for Envision , but I can try daily in every little way to make the world a little better . I plan to start by being kinder to every person I meet . I love Mother Teresa ’ s quote to “ do small things with great love .”
As physicians , we are granted a special privilege with people . When people become our patients , there is a special and protected bond . They trust us to “ first do no harm .” They come to us either to maintain good health or to strive for better health . They come to us in sickness and in health . It is our duty and privilege to partner with them , help them , and respect them . I am going to try better this year to do the best I can to provide even more effective , efficient , empathic , and empowering care to my patients .
2020 has been very difficult for our world and for many people as individuals . Health care has changed forever . As physicians , we need to empower each other . I am going to try to “ do small things with great love ” to help support fellow physicians . It surprises me how many physicians have stopped practicing medicine or have chosen to stop practicing the discipline of medicine they studied . This has been a trend in recent years ; but 2020 really tipped the scales for many physicians . This really has hurt my heart . As physicians , we should be the leaders in medicine . As physicians , we should lead the team and partner with non-physicians to work together to provide the highest level of care . As physicians , we should be integrally involved with the delivery of health care . After all , if there is an issue or complication , we as the physicians are medicolegally responsible for the care that is delivered .
One of my favorite songs that I learned as a child has a line that reads , “ Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me .” During 2020 , I found myself praying for peace — peace of mind , peace of soul , peace in our world .
As a child , I also remember my dad saying , “ Pray as if it all depends on God but act as if it all depends on you .” Well , it is time to not only pray for peace but to act for peace . My wish for all of us and for our world is for peace — peace of mind , peace of soul , and peace in our world . If you have any suggestions for how I can accomplish this for me personally or for our world , please contact me . Thank you so much if you read this editorial — please hold me accountable to work for peace . In closing , I will paraphrase the Dalai Lama and say , “ We cannot have world peace until we have inner peace .” May we all have inner peace . Namaste .
148 • The Journal of the Arkansas Medical Society www . ArkMed . org