President’s Message
Katie Davenport-Kabonic, DO, FAAFP
As the final month of the year brings closure to 2025, may these words find you well and in a spirit at ease- if only for a few moments- for gratitude and reflection on the past year. Perhaps there was a recurring theme that stimulated awareness, curiosity, insight, clarity, and growth? Perhaps there were many. And perhaps they weren’t all positive. That’s ok. That’s reality.
One of the many conversations we spend intentional time having with medical students, resident physicians, and even peer partners is how some of our best teachers are the experiences and realities that sober us and keep us humble. Embracing them is a necessary and brave step forward in life. Learning and growing are hard; if either ever seems easy, they are probably not happening. Hard doesn’t always mean they cannot be fun though, and it certainly doesn’t mean they are not meaningful or rewarding. Especially when they happen alongside people and partners who see you and face them with you.
One recurring theme that kept surfacing in conversations with medical students, resident physicians, and peer partners this past year has been the concept of work-life balance. The viewpoints shared on this topic have been variable among the different demographics, with convincing concerns and arguments from all, leaving me more certain there is no single best balance point for every physician. Scratch that, every person. One resident physician recently expressed a viewpoint on this concept that I am personally learning and growing through; the desire to be seen as a person first, before being seen as a physician. With so much identity, pride, and purpose intertwined in the role of an osteopathic physician, it can certainly make the subconscious work-life balance point more elusive.
To further the complexity of this concept is the ironic awareness that the desire to be seen as a person first, rather than a physician first, is one of the many reasons I continued my MAOPS membership through and following residency training. It remains one of the reasons I look forward to MAOPS events- even the evening and weekend meetings- where the opportunities to connect with the people of this organization are prioritized among the work we do as physicians for our osteopathic profession, our peers, and our patients. That is not something I can say happens at every organization. What we have created in MAOPS is very special, and it is something to reflect on and be grateful for. Being seen as a person, as simple as it may seem- especially through our ceaseless learning and growing in our lives- truly means a lot.
When the work-life balance theme presents again for what remains of this year and any time in the next, I now have another consideration to share as the balance point tips across demographic lines: the point is where the person feels joy, purpose, stimulating challenge, appreciation, and contentment. And maybe the point is also a place; a place within a group of people who see each other as persons first.
As you prepare for the end of year holidays and celebrations, may you be surrounded by people who see you first as a friend, family member, partner, parent, and/or simply another person who sees and stands alongside them, facing whatever comes next. And if you happen to be one of the physicians working shifts during these holidays- know you are seen and appreciated by your colleagues and fellow MAOPS members throughout the state.