Distraction, Disengagement, and the Purpose of Medicine

We live in a distracted society that impairs the doctor’s performance as much as anyone else’s. A twin peril to distraction is physician burnout, which leads to (and results from) disengagement from community involvement, organizational leadership, and the intimacy of our therapeutic relationships. A remedy may lie in our ability to refocus on the fundamental purposes of medicine. Doctors are trained and mentored to execute their instrumental and ethical duties but have lost touch with the human aspects of care. This chapter suggests one way to reconnect.