Turning Momentum into Action

Catalyzing positive change so patient-physician relationships can flourish

December 2024

Dear Medicine Forward Community,

Our movement is energized and growing as we take steps every day, across the country, to catalyze positive change so patient-physician relationships can flourish!

In this season of gratitude, we are keenly aware of how generous people are with their time and talent to support the many efforts across the country to help patient-physician relationships flourish. This requires transformational action across all facets of our current healthcare system to truly enable system level changes. Your voice matters. Every conversation matters. We are grateful to the many Medicine Forward members who have stepped up to advocate transformation based on the human connection.

• We are grateful to the more than 500 people who have joined and contributed to Medicine Forward this year. Please join as a member and make a donation today to help Medicine Forward start the new year strong as a vital movement to support flourishing in healthcare.

• We are grateful for Medicine Forward partnerships that are helping to build wide and strong bridges across a network of transformational change agents – including Kern National Network for Flourishing in Medicine, Healthcare Reinvention Collaborative, and ICD Events.

• We are grateful for the leadership of the Arnold P. Gold Foundation as champions of humanism in healthcare.

• We are grateful for the connections happening across the Medicine Forward community – via our Mighty Network platform – which allows members to share resources and ideas with a like minded community.

• We are grateful to the many of you who post and repost on social media – this is a vital way for us to collectively raise our voices for the healthcare system we want to see.

• We are grateful for you and we need your support now more than ever as we look to 2025 and beyond. Medicine Forward is at an inflection point as interest in our mission continues to grow beyond our capacity to respond. We need your help to sustain the programming and networking that have become valued resources for change agents who want humanism to be at the heart of health care.

  

Recap of Medicine Forward Workshop at National Burnout Symposium in NYC

On Nov 20, 31 attendees participated in an Open Space Technology event to explore the central question: How do we restore and nurture the human connection so needed in healthcare today? Open Space Technology is a methodology of running large group meetings where participants create the agenda themselves. Attendees explored this question with lively contributions from many perspectives. Dr. Todd Otten shared, “it was an incredible gathering of positive change agents. The energy was palpable, and the conversations were rich and enthusiastic.”

Topics that the group explored, which will be expanded upon at the Dec 16 event (see below):

• Medical Staff and Wellness Curriculum

• Peer Community Support and Connectedness

• Patient Empathy and Clinician Well-being

• Engaging Leadership in Wellness Efforts

• Integrating Technology and Healthcare Relationships

• Navigating Competing Agendas

• Managing Relationships in Healthcare Contexts

Dec 16: Turning Momentum into Action

The complexities of today’s healthcare system often overshadow the profound human connections that are at the heart of medicine. Medicine Forward, Kern National Network, and the Healthcare Reinvention Collaborative invite you to join us in rediscovering the joy, humanity, and connection in healthcare. This participatory event is a follow up to the NYC Burnout Symposium. Together we will explore practical ways to restore human connection in healthcare, while creating actionable solutions that move the conversation forward. Learn more and register!

Become Part of the Movement

Becoming a member of Medicine Forward is simple and easy. For a symbolic membership fee of $5, you’ll have unlimited access to our Mighty Network of like-minded passionate change agents and to curated resources including coaching and well-being support. Click HERE to join.

To finish the year strong and support programming and resources, we are aiming to raise $25,000 by December 31. We are already 25% of the way there. Consider making a donation to Medicine Forward to increase our collective impact.

Thank you,

Gabe Charbonneau, MD, Co-founder, Medicine Forward
Todd Otten, MD, Impact Officer, Ripple of Change
Lisa Scardina, Strategy and Implementation Officer, PS&D Recruitment
Jeff Cohn, MD, Mental Fitness & Leadership Coaching Officer, Care to Change Coaching
Kim Downey, Community Ambassador, Stand Up for Doctors
Dawn Ellison, MD, Transformational Conversations & Meeting Excellence Designer, Influencing Healthcare
Eva Lana Minkoff, Director of Healthcare Relationship Initiatives, Bold Being
MaryAnn Wilber, MD, MPH, MHS, Public Health Strategist, The Doctor Is No Longer In
Denise Wiseman, PhD, MBA, CPXP, Interdisciplinary Relations Officer, Healthcare Reinvention Collaborative