Physicians Are Rising For Justice In Medicine

Written by Dr. Marlene Wust-Smith

Months ago when we launched Physician Outlook I made the decision that the cover art will always be an original work created by physicians. Our first cover featured an eye-catching image (no pun intended) of a surgeon that was digitally mastered by Dr. Dana Corriel, the creator and founder of SoMeDocs. The cover of our second issue was inspired and created under my direction and features Obamaesque renditions of real physicians in personal protective equipment (PPE), inspired by the ridiculous fiasco of our nation’s hospitals not having enough PPE for their workforce.

The cover of the current issue is titled “Justice in Medicine” and was painted on canvas by Dr. Douna Montazer, a board-certified psychiatrist who dreams of making a difference in healthcare through her work. She is a self-taught artist who uses painting to represent the emotions being experienced by patients and physicians. In the meticulously detailed painting on the cover she cleverly depicts the Caduceus (the universal symbol of healing) as a woman (Lady Justice) in place of the usual central wand or staff. She is an angelic figure dressed in white, who is weighted down by a heavy anchor, but is in the process of being freed by heavenly doves.

Every time I look at this masterpiece I see another detail that provokes thought and inspires reflection. It is subject to interpretation and to the viewer’s eye whether this lady in white represents a patient or a doctor.

In my mind’s eye she represents a bound and gagged version of myself, a physician who loves her profession and her patients but whose voice and vision has been quieted and blinded by outside forces.

Conversely, the non-medical person identifies Lady Justice as a patient whose vision is blocked by the blue serpent that represents the corporatization of medicine, and whose voice is being silenced by a green greedy medical system that has become over-wrought by corporate “suits” with Pinocchio-like olfactory systems.

Dr. Montazer’s “Lady Justice” is a truly breath-taking piece that in real life stands 62 inches by 74 inches. One of the coping mechanisms that I am personally employing to deal with the anxiety provoked by our current Groundhog-Day existence is to create a “post-COVID19 quarantine bucket list.” Seeing this beautiful painting in person and giving Dr. Montazer a proper (non-socially distanced) hug is on my list.

What exactly is “Justice in Medicine?” The current coronavirus pandemic has revealed that we live in an un-just world. In the United States, this evil virus appears to discriminate against our brothers and sisters of color, disproportionately affecting and killing those whose skin is brown or black. Why is that? Is it because people of color have more angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE2) receptors and co-morbidities such as hypertension and diabetes? Or is it because our healthcare system disproportionately depends on “essential workers” who are economically disenfranchised?

Why are the brown and black of other countries not experiencing the burden of disease we are seeing in the United States? As Dr. Immanuel points out in her piece, there is no ability to socially distance in the over-populated ghettos of Calcutta, yet the burden of disease due to COVID19 in India pales in comparison to that of the United States and other countries The same relatively low morbidity and mortality currently holds true in Africa. We need to stop politicizing possible treatment regimens, and fund more clinical trials in real-time. We also need to expose the complex middleman problem in the U.S. that allows Group Purchasing Organizations (GPOs) and Pharmaceutical Benefit Managers (PBMs) to control the price of everything and our supply chain.

Justice in medicine means giving physicians the FREEDOM to practice medicine. It means giving patients the FREEDOM to choose physician-led care. Physicians are rising more than ever before to advocate for and protect these freedoms - through their art, humor, poetry, writing, ministry. And they are leading by example, harnessing the power of technology for physician-led solutions to the problems putting our freedoms at risk. This is the land of the FREE, and the home of the BRAVE. 1