Violins Oscillate, Tambourines Elevate (VOTE)

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By  |  October 28, 2020 | 

There’s something coming up soon I want you to remember. Hopefully it’s on your checklist, in your bullet journal, or already crossed off the to-do list. What do I need you to remember? Something that is apparently forgotten or avoided by 3 in 5 physicians.

To vote.

Are you voting? Did you vote? It’s time to free up your schedule, block out to your teams’ calendar, clear time for your residents and students to go to the polls early. Follow through and vote. It’s less than one week to go, so you’d better hurry up and finalize your plan.

I dropped off my ballot a few weeks ago. Not all states allow mail-in voting, so for those who will be at the polls next week: have a plan; arrive early.

I wouldn’t ordinarily make this plea, as I always assumed physicians vote. Apparently, we’ve had one of the lowest rates of voting compared to other professions. A 2004 survey showed almost 25% of physicians didn’t vote in each of the prior 4 elections.

A more recent survey in JAMA IM from this week is more depressing. From 2006 to 2018, physician voter participation in the 3 largest states was lower than the general population, 37% vs 51%. 25% of physicians not voting seemed explainable, this latest survey suggests over 60% had not voting in elections since 2006.

Four of the original 55 signers of the Declaration of Independence were physicians, and now, only 4 in 10 physicians vote?

In 2020, more than ever, in the midst of this generation’s greatest healthcare crisis, we must vote.

If you haven’t voted yet, I have a list of good strategies to use for remembering what to do November 3rd.

If you forgot, it’s on a Tuesday. Therefore, it’s easy to wake up, grab the coffee and mask, head to the hospital, and forget why that rubber band is on your wrist or why the phone alarm continues to beep.

How about some subliminal messaging?

Here are some phrases I want you to read over and over and see if they trigger you to head to the ballots.

NoVember 3rd is almOsT HerE

LoVe One anoThEr

LeaVe OtTErs alone

HaVe One ToE?

LiVe Or TEach?

Veins Or ArTEries?

Reasonable offerings. But not clear how well those hidden messages work. You can also choose mind maps, mental frameworks, mind palaces, marketing, and of course, memorable medical mnemonics.

Every Good Boy Does Fine still dances in my head when remembering the lines of the notes for Treble Clef: EGBDF. Mnemonic making during medical school was generally a contest to create the most outrageous acronym. SIG E CAPS for 20 years floats in when facing the list for symptoms of depression. And CHADS2VASC, CURB65, or HEART score appear daily. They persist because they work.

Let’s test out the following:

Victory Over Total Elimination.

Veins Or Tendons? Example:

Visit Our Timely Escapade

Violins Oscillate, Tambourines Elevate

Vacations Outside Tennessee Exist

Villas Or Tents? Escape.

Vote On This Election Day.

Yes, that’s the one.

VOTE.

I think you can remember that.

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About the Author: Jordan Messler

Jordan Messler, MD is the Executive Director, Quality Initiatives at Glytec and works as a hospitalist at Morton Plant Hospitalist group in Clearwater, Florida. He is also serves as the Physician Blog Editor of The Hospital Leader blog. He previously chaired SHM’s Quality and Patient Safety Committee. In addition, he’s been active in several SHM mentoring programs, including Project BOOST and Glycemic Control. He went to medical school at University of South Florida, in Tampa and completed his residency at Emory University. He recognizes the challenges of working in a hospital that lines the intracostal waterways of a spring break mecca and requests that if you want to be selected as a mentored site, you will have a similar location with palm trees and coastline nearby. He tries to find time to sit on the beach with his family to escape the hospital’s miasma. While there, he looks forward to reading about the history of hospitals/medicine, and how it relates to quality. But inevitably, he will have his daughter dumping sand on him and then has to explain to his wife why their daughter is buried up to her neck.

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