{"id":2389,"date":"2020-09-08T09:13:15","date_gmt":"2020-09-08T16:13:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/phcprimarycare.org\/?p=2389"},"modified":"2020-09-08T09:13:15","modified_gmt":"2020-09-08T16:13:15","slug":"staying-connected-virtually","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/phcprimarycare.org\/?p=2389","title":{"rendered":"Staying Connected, Virtually"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n
By Robert L. Moore, MD, MPH, MBA, Chief Medical Officer<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cI define connection as the energy that exists between people when they feel seen, heard, and valued; when they can give and receive without judgment; and when they derive sustenance and strength from the relationship.\u201d
\n–Brene Brown<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The physical separation forced on us by COVID-19 has led us to better value the connections we have with each other. Video connections can help (compared to email and phone calls) but nothing beats the in-person sighting of a friend or family member, even while wearing a mask.<\/p>\n

Not shaking hands or hugging can take a toll, though. Human touch between friends is associated with release of oxytocin, the hormone that stirs maternal and paternal bonding to children. In a sign of the times, blankets containing weighted glass beads<\/a> that mimic the effect of a hug have seen increases in sales<\/a> during the pandemic.<\/p>\n

Seeing warm friendly smiles from co-workers and strangers is also a rare event.\u00a0 Seeing a smile triggers the brain\u2019s mirror neuron system, the physiologic foundation for empathy, a key component of successful clinical and professional interactions as well as a promoter of positive feelings.<\/p>\n

For health care professionals, the increased use of virtual patient visits, and virtual meetings with colleagues, can impact our professional satisfaction and identity. There are many ways to mitigate this:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Use video instead of telephone for interactions where possible<\/li>\n
  2. Ensure video setups allow consistently good quality video and audio<\/li>\n
  3. Adjust content to allow more back and forth communication<\/li>\n
  4. Use expressive eye contact when interacting while wearing a mask or on a video call<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

     <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    By Robert L. Moore, MD, MPH, MBA, Chief Medical Officer \u201cI define connection as the energy that exists between people when they feel seen, heard, and valued; when they can give and receive without judgment; and when they derive sustenance … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2389","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/phcprimarycare.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2389","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/phcprimarycare.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/phcprimarycare.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/phcprimarycare.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/phcprimarycare.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2389"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/phcprimarycare.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2389\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2393,"href":"https:\/\/phcprimarycare.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2389\/revisions\/2393"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/phcprimarycare.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2389"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/phcprimarycare.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2389"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/phcprimarycare.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2389"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}