The Deception of Calling: Abuses in Contemporary Medicine

The concept of medicine being a “calling” is deeply embedded in the profession, invoking a sense of greater mission. This idealized notion is widespread in rituals, marketing, and the discourse surrounding healthcare workers. It is viewed as motivational, encouraging commitment and identity among medical providers. However, this perspective can obscure a harsh reality: defining medicine as a calling has increasingly been used as a tool for exploitation.

In the past, the medical field may have truly represented the spirit of a calling. But the healthcare environment has notably transformed towards corporate influences. Hospitals, private equity entities, and healthcare companies now lead the sector, focusing on profit rather than patient welfare. Despite this shift, the perspective of a “calling” continues to be prevalent. It enables organizations to enforce exhausting work hours, increased performance expectations, and unpaid duties, meeting with less pushback than would be anticipated in other fields.

This exploitation often manifests in nuanced ways, disguised in altruistic terms. Managers might convey appreciation and remind practitioners of the life-saving significance of their roles. These appeals resonate within a profession characterized by service, making overwork seem honorable rather than unfeasible.

The discourse of a calling disproportionately affects women and marginalized individuals in healthcare. Society’s reverence for self-sacrificing physicians frequently leads to the expectation that women must bear additional unpaid emotional and physical responsibilities. As a result, the workforce experiences fatigue and lack of recognition, which jeopardizes its viability.

The environment within medicine sustains this challenge. Narratives of residents logging excessive hours and attendings missing family occasions are shared as motivational stories, not as warnings about systemic abuse. While medicine is undeniably a deeply meaningful and significant profession, fulfilling work differs from a sacred calling. All work, irrespective of its kind, necessitates just compensation, boundaries, and dignity.

Acknowledging medicine as labor does not lessen its importance. Rather, it highlights the expertise, intellect, and empathy vital for patient care. It recognizes healthcare workers as individuals with personal lives and limits. By redefining medicine as labor, the emphasis shifts towards fostering a system that benefits both patients and providers. Any other stance continues to enable exploitation.

Santoshi Billakota, M.D., neurologist.