Originally published on ConSalud.es
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‘Choose a job you like and you will never have to work a day in your life’ Confucius. 5th century BC
In the midst of this crisis generated by Covid-19, many people have been surprised by the service surprised by the service capacity of health professionals: doctors, nurses, auxiliaries, pharmacists, dentists and veterinarians. veterinarians; their dedication, their zeal, their overcoming of difficulties or their dedication, their zeal, their overcoming of difficulties or the precariousness of means, even the good mood, humour and affection they show. We have seen health workers doubling shifts, extended working hours, retired extended shifts, retirees reinstated, recent MIRs taking on responsibilities and responsibilities and more. Those of us who work every day with professionals in the Health and Life Sciences sector have not been so surprised, because we know that many of them are deeply vocational.
A vocation to the health professions usually manifests itself at an early age and, like others, has an intimate sense of purpose and service to others. Parallels can easily be drawn with religious vocations, justice, ecology and others.
For doctors, nurses, assistants, pharmacists, dentists or veterinarians, following their vocation can contribute to a fulfilling and satisfying life. This purpose of helping others directs them towards their studies, encourages them in their internships and specialties, and finally, allows them to endure working conditions that often abuse their vocation to pay them less than their professional qualifications.
Depression, stress, burn-out are some of the consequences of staying at their staying in their jobs, often in very difficult conditions. difficult conditions. In recent times, mainly due to the precariousness of work: substitutions substitutions, on-call duty and allowances have replaced what should have been a should have been a permanent post in too many cases. Also the imposition of quantitative objectives, ratios and comparisons that often ignore the reality of the ignore the reality of care, as they ignore the intangibles.
Whoever has a purpose in life, has half the way done! Thus, they can develop their full potential; from the social impact of their service to others. When we help others, we help ourselves, we find meaning in our dedication and effort, and our satisfaction feeds back.
Furthermore, in the healthcare sector, we see the fascinating value of passing the planet on to future generations in better condition than we found it.
Healthcare is the ultimate, the vanguard, the last mile of Health Research, and many professionals enjoy participating in clinical trials, new therapies, new indications, etc., which makes them feel they have contributed to a social advance that improves, alleviates, or prevents illness or human suffering. Almost nothing…
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