This article originally appeared in the Summer 2021 issue of the Ontario Medical Review magazine.
Successful governance transformation must be rooted in trust and teamwork.
A year ago, I asked you to take a leap of faith with me, to lean into the challenges before us, and to come together in the face of many adversities. You didn’t just lean in—you took a deep breath and jumped in, trusting your colleagues to catch you. My entire term was served virtually in a world pandemic, trying to connect with members.
It was a year spent fighting for you against the systemic root causes of burnout, adversarial governments, and disunity; fighting for our mental health, equity, diversity and inclusion, and our ability to deliver excellent care. It was a year spent reminding you that the OMA is your organization and that you have the power to mould it if you just step up and take it.
Leading and being a spokesperson during COVID required me to focus on my core values. ‘Tikkun Olam’ is a Jewish precept, which, at its essence, it means caring for the world and making the world a better place. It has been a touchstone for me this year, as I tried to elevate, unite, and care for Ontario physicians, so you could focus on patients.
You are the reason for everything the OMA does.
You are the OMA.
The problems before us are so massive, complex and complicated, that we must come together to solve them. But that kind of unity requires trust; a trust borne of mutual respect, an openness to being wrong, a willingness to learn and grow, from each other, our leaders and our organization. The equity, diversity and inclusion work examining intrinsic biases and holding ourselves accountable is part of that. Addressing relativity and the gender pay gap is part of that. We start by asserting the value of every physician and every physician’s work.
This trust will be essential as we continue the largest governance transformation imaginable, founded on teamwork and collaboration, member engagement and empowerment. It will require all our best professional and personal skills, listening openly to what others tell us about their lived experiences, and putting politics, preconceptions, vested beliefs, and enlightened self-interests aside. It will require us to deliberately look for those left behind, as an act of empathy and an act of defiance against cultural norms and toward social, gender and racial equity. It will require us to be human first and always. Physicians do this every day with our patients. We can do it with each other, too.
In a year defined by being apart, afraid, sad and often angry, we made significant progress by coming together and working through challenges. We have many miles left to walk, many problems and conflicts left to resolve. It takes time, and consistent effort, and significant emotional energy, but when we create a culture of safety, we can cross divides, break down barriers and start to heal our own.
You have a new president to lead you through the next stage of our evolution. Remember, we are always strongest when we come together. Be kind to each other, and together, be the change we need most.