Beyond Surviving Residency Benjamin Long

Kickoff your journey to beyond surviving residency with an  introduction to your host, the aims of this podcast, and what to expect from this series. 

A brief glimpse into the problem this series is trying to address.
The Weekly Reflection: Reflect on one of the questions below.
Busy -  How will I spend my time in residency?  Hollow - Who am I becoming in residency?  Demoralized - What does it mean to be a good physician?  
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The introduction to Sir William Osler's "A Way of Life".
Become a Wayfarer to get exclusive access  to a bonus segment! Ben helps you dive deeper to clarify everything that may have gotten lost in translation over the 108 years since Osler originally gave this address.  

The first step in finding more rest in residency is to reclaim the margins of our days and our weeks.  This week's episode introduces this concept and challenges listeners to start analyzing how they use their time.
Read this episode as a blog.
Want exclusive access to bonus content? Become a Wayfarer to get access to bonus content like the the Fatigue Mitigation Mini-Course.

Who are we becoming in residency? Residents struggling with big questions of meaning and purpose amidst their daily life need a conceptual framework to discuss this with others in the profession. Unfortunately, medical education typically is not equipped to inform or direct residents in this area of the residency experience. In this episode, Ben introduces his description of "physician spiritual wellness" and brings up some arguments to encourage skeptics to continue exploring it.
To read this podcast as a blog click here!
References:
- Spiritual Wellness varies by culture & tradition article.
- Residency is our “journey of faith, personal growth, and moral challenges," is a quote from Solving Resident Burnout by Daniel Orlovich
- Residency is when we "come of professional age - acquiring the knowledge and skills of [our] specialties or subspecialties, forming professional identities, and developing habits, behaviors, attitudes, and values that last a professional lifetime," is a quote from Let Me Heal by Kenneth Ludmerer
- The national wellness institute definition of spiritual wellness.
The Weekly Reflection: Write out the description of physician spiritual wellness and reflect on your journey & response.
- Physician Spiritual Wellness is the journey for meaning and purpose amidst our day-to-day life as persons within medicine. It is the interaction of the inner life with the “rough and rugged stretches” of our path, and its destination is the good physician.
You can connect with me & explore this idea further by becoming a Wayfarer.

Dr. Kristin Collier joins Ben on the podcast to discuss the role of spirituality & religion in physician & trainee wellness. We talk about spiritual distress and suffering, Dr. Collier's theology of medicine, the gift of the Imago Dei for medicine, and the need for meaning-making in medicine.
Show Notes:
Dr. Kristin Collier's Articles:
- The Role of Spirituality and Religion in Physician and Trainee Wellness
- Is it Time to More Fully Address Teaching Religion and Spirituality in Medicine?
35:00 "It's Not Just Time Off": A Framework for understanding Factors Promoting Recovery from Burnout Among Internal Medicine Residents 
38:15 The Finest Traditions of My Calling by Abraham Nussbaum
45:47 What it means to be Human: The Case for the Body in Public Bioethics by Prof. O. Carter Snead