I have thought a lot about what I wanted to share with you this month as I have had a lot on my mind. 

I continue to think about the way we as a society and the IHP are addressing the issues of racial injustice and equity. I worry about all the health care providers who are beginning to face a second wave of COVID-19 and their ability to be resilient in the face of such a long crisis. I have also been thinking a lot about the potential impact of the pandemic on the primary care workforce and how it will affect the health of our country’s population. If nationally we reduce the number of graduates from our nurse practitioner and physician assistant studies programs because of reduced access to clinical placements, what happens to our underserved populations who largely rely on NPs and PAs for their primary care? Pre-COVID, we knew that we faced a huge primary care provider shortage. We can’t afford to make that shortage worse. All of these things keep me up at night.  

I could have written about any of these issues this month, but I have chosen to address another issue that is as complex as any of the issues identified above. Tomorrow is Election Day and we, at the IHP, have discussed how stressful this time is for members of our community. Our country is fragmented into groups with strongly held political beliefs and no matter the outcome of the election, there will be those of us in our community who will feel angry, stressed, and disenfranchised. These will be difficult days where people might feel unsure about how to express their concerns or anxieties. In preparation for what I know will be a challenging week ahead, I have looked to the IHP mission and core values as a guide for how I can address the challenges that will be before us. Thinking through the core values, a few of them resonated most significantly at a time like this.  

The core values talk about the IHP as a place where every member is treated with dignity and respect, where there is mutual trust and collegiality in our relationships with each other, and where there are productive partnerships among all members of our community. The values also espouse the importance of lifelong learning. As we think about our collective responsibility to each other and the IHP community, the way we live our values is to be open to diversity of thought, be kind and respectful to those who disagree with us, and be willing to join others in a partnership to make the world a better place.  I suspect that some of you might not agree with all of my views, but I know you will respect my right to hold these views and engage with me in deliberate and intentional discourse about what each of us thinks about an issue. This is the beauty and elegance of a truly inclusive academic environment.  

As we enter our ninth month of uncertainty, fear, and anxiety related to the COVID pandemic, the IHP’s core values can help us rise above the chaos and construct solutions to navigate a changing world. An inherent element of mutual respect and collegiality is our ability to be patient with each other and the world we are experiencing. So much of what we are experiencing today requires unlimited patience.  Patience as we wait for a vaccine. Patience when we desperately want to see friends and family but can’t because of the pandemic. And there is a high likelihood that we will need patience when it comes to the election. Our ability to be patient with each other, to truly listen to each other, work to understand each other, and show authentic compassion in our communications is what will help us to rise above the chaos.

Over the next week, I hope you can find your own true North, some place that helps you make sense of all the uncertainly that we are experiencing in the world. I hope you find the resources and support you need and want in the many people, services, and offices that we have at the IHP. Don’t be afraid to reach out for help because our values define us as a helping community. There are resources on the OSAS website and the JEDI website that can be helpful to you, and the EAP/SAP also can be a great resource; call 1-866-724-4327 if you prefer to talk to someone directly. Please don’t go through this difficult time alone.

I wish you peace. Stay safe.