Thread by @alexshoushtari

Throughout our medical training, many of us were taught it was "unprofessional" to voice our beliefs or broadcast political opinions. But we must acknowledge most of the (well-meaning) people counseling us to stay silent stood to gain by maintaining the status quo. #medtwitter

Those who maintain political activism harms the soul of medicine suggest it cripples the patient-doctor relationship. But I find this simplistic, even disingenuous. Surely most people can divorce political stance from compassionate care? Can't we trust them to make that decision?

When I am in a patient room, their well-being is paramount. When I leave that room, I need to apply that same level of dedication to bettering my community. We should be welcoming, not punishing, people who enter into political discourse.

And really, who better than physicians, nurses, etc to speak up? We are trained to think critically yet with compassion. We often have to separate the anger in the tone from the content of the message to solve a problem.

I haven't been active enough. I need to do better.

So, that being said:

#MedicareForAll
#BlackLivesMatter

And we need to fight for real changes in environmental policy to mitigate future humanitarian crises arising from climate change.

And if you'll have me, I would still love to help you with your #melanoma.