• Home
  • Practice Focus
    • Facial Plastic/Reconstructive
    • Head and Neck
    • Laryngology
    • Otology/Neurotology
    • Pediatric
    • Rhinology
    • Sleep Medicine
    • How I Do It
    • TRIO Best Practices
  • Business of Medicine
    • Health Policy
    • Legal Matters
    • Practice Management
    • Tech Talk
    • AI
  • Literature Reviews
    • Facial Plastic/Reconstructive
    • Head and Neck
    • Laryngology
    • Otology/Neurotology
    • Pediatric
    • Rhinology
    • Sleep Medicine
  • Career
    • Medical Education
    • Professional Development
    • Resident Focus
  • ENT Perspectives
    • ENT Expressions
    • Everyday Ethics
    • From TRIO
    • The Great Debate
    • Letter From the Editor
    • Rx: Wellness
    • The Voice
    • Viewpoint
  • TRIO Resources
    • Triological Society
    • The Laryngoscope
    • Laryngoscope Investigative Otolaryngology
    • TRIO Combined Sections Meetings
    • COSM
    • Related Otolaryngology Events
  • Search

Otolaryngologist Leaders Share Reflections on Pandemic Challenges

by Julie L. Wei, MD • March 14, 2022

  • Tweet
  • Email
Print-Friendly Version

For most frontline physicians and healthcare workers, the Omicron surge at the beginning of 2022 was the hardest to manage. It seemed that the public cared less than ever before. Those who refused to get vaccinated or boosted, or to wear a mask, were even more indignant, and the escalating stress and exhaustion as the pandemic continued were reported by countless media. Today, mental health crises have become a secondary pandemic (Parker-Pope T, et al. Why 1,320 Therapists Are Worried About Mental Health in America Right Now. New York Times. Dec. 17, 2021).

You Might Also Like

  • Reflections from Surgeons Who Underwent Surgeries Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic
  • Dealing with Staffing Challenges During a Pandemic
  • Letter from the Editor: An Otolaryngologist’s Perspective on Getting COVID-19
  • AMA Offers Reopening Guide, Free Resident Materials During COVID-19 Pandemic
Explore This Issue
March 2022

The significant impact on patient volume and the corresponding decrease in revenue had dire consequences, including layoffs, salary reduction, the expectation to work more with fewer resources, and less of the individual flexibility I had once intentionally created for my team. My core values and advocacy for well-being and resilience were in stark contrast with health system realities and financial imperatives. (A shout out to my fellow pediatric otolaryngology chiefs, who joined weekly and monthly calls to share information and ideas, and provide peer support.)

Through it all, I’ve asked myself, “What has it been like for other otolaryngology leaders?” With safety and stability nowhere in sight and endless changes inflicted upon our daily workflow, how are our leaders doing? Above all, I’ve wondered, “Are leaders human?”

Our otolaryngology leaders often seem infallible, tenacious, unflappable, and gifted with foresight and omniscience. They seem to never tire. The weight of leadership often isn’t visible to others, but stress can and will take its toll, even among the strongest of leaders.

Leaders shield us from the tsunami of health systems’ pressure to generate income and rush to centralize resources and decision making. They’re warriors who battle for individual and group autonomy, advocating for patients and care providers. Amidst COVID-19 risks, they have ensured that patients received high quality, safe care that’s aligned with our values, not just measured by metrics and patient survey responses.

Why should we care deeply about those who lead us? Because the well-being of physician leaders is associated with their leadership effectiveness—and our own well-being. In a 2020 study on the “association of burnout, professional fulfillment, and self-care practices of physician leaders with their independently rated leadership effectiveness,” 9.8% of the variation in leaders’ aggregate leadership behavior scores was associated with their own degree of burnout (JAMA Netw Open. 2020;3:e207961). After adjustment for age and sex, each one-point increase in leader burnout score was associated with a 0.19-point decrease in leadership behavior score (P = .02), whereas each one-point increase in their professional fulfillment and self-valuation scores was associated with a respective 0.13-point (P = .03) and 0.15-point (P = .03) increase in their leadership behavior score.

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 | Single Page

Filed Under: Departments, Home Slider, Viewpoint Tagged With: COVID19, leadership skillsIssue: March 2022

You Might Also Like:

  • Reflections from Surgeons Who Underwent Surgeries Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic
  • Dealing with Staffing Challenges During a Pandemic
  • Letter from the Editor: An Otolaryngologist’s Perspective on Getting COVID-19
  • AMA Offers Reopening Guide, Free Resident Materials During COVID-19 Pandemic

The Triological SocietyENTtoday is a publication of The Triological Society.

Polls

Have you invented or patented something that betters the field of otolaryngology?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...
  • Polls Archive

Top Articles for Residents

  • Applications Open for Resident Members of ENTtoday Edit Board
  • How To Provide Helpful Feedback To Residents
  • Call for Resident Bowl Questions
  • New Standardized Otolaryngology Curriculum Launching July 1 Should Be Valuable Resource For Physicians Around The World
  • Do Training Programs Give Otolaryngology Residents the Necessary Tools to Do Productive Research?
  • Popular this Week
  • Most Popular
  • Most Recent
    • The Dramatic Rise in Tongue Tie and Lip Tie Treatment

    • The Best Site for Pediatric TT Placement: OR or Office?

    • The Road Less Traveled—at Least by Otolaryngologists

    • Rating Laryngopharyngeal Reflux Severity: How Do Two Common Instruments Compare?

    • Otolaryngologists Are Still Debating the Effectiveness of Tongue Tie Treatment

    • The Dramatic Rise in Tongue Tie and Lip Tie Treatment

    • Rating Laryngopharyngeal Reflux Severity: How Do Two Common Instruments Compare?

    • Is Middle Ear Pressure Affected by Continuous Positive Airway Pressure Use?

    • Otolaryngologists Are Still Debating the Effectiveness of Tongue Tie Treatment

    • Complications for When Physicians Change a Maiden Name

    • Leaky Pipes—Time to Focus on Our Foundations
    • You Are Among Friends: The Value Of Being In A Group
    • How To: Full Endoscopic Procedures of Total Parotidectomy
    • How To: Does Intralesional Steroid Injection Effectively Mitigate Vocal Fold Scarring in a Rabbit Model?
    • What Is the Optimal Anticoagulation in HGNS Surgery in Patients with High-Risk Cardiac Comorbidities?

Follow Us

  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Advertise
  • The Triological Society
  • The Laryngoscope
  • Laryngoscope Investigative Otolaryngology
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Cookies

Wiley

Copyright © 2025 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved, including rights for text and data mining and training of artificial technologies or similar technologies. ISSN 1559-4939