UB MED DOCTOR VISITS
Photos by Douglas Levere Photos by Sandra Kicman
“I hope to help create conditions that help trainees and physicians flourish despite the challenges of our work.”
CARE FOR PATIENTS AND PHYSICIANS
Archana Mishra, MD, confronts the stresses of medicine Recently, in the middle of a busy day, Archana Mishra, MD, clinical associate professor of medicine in the Jacobs School Su san K reimer of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences and a physician at the Buffalo VA Medical Center, was asked to evaluate a patient for transfer to the intensive care unit. As she walked into the room, she was embraced by the patient’s wife and daughters. To her surprise, the patient was someone she had cared for more than a decade ago during a critical illness. The family not only recognized Mishra, but said they had prayed to meet her again, attributing the care she had provided to their being able to share so many more years with their loved one. Moments like this are what make being a physician immensely rewarding, says Mishra, who specializes in pulmonary and critical care medicine and serves as clerkship director for fourth-year students at UB. “It gives you the energy to thrive.” In addition to providing patient care, Mishra has a strong interest in helping faculty enhance their mentoring skills and in encouraging trainees to develop into compassionate, well-rounded physicians who exhibit sound clinical judgment combined with humanistic qualities. In patient interactions, she believes it’s paramount for practitioners to provide their expertise while acknowledging that each individual knows his or her body best. The goal, she says, “should be to work together toward improving the quality of life and St ories by
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UB MEDICINE
gaining professional fulfillment as a result of that.” Helping to prevent physician burnout is another area of interest for Mishra, who teaches mindfulness and other preventive tactics to faculty, students, residents and fellows. Being a burnout survivor herself, she is dedicated to sharing her experience with others. She says that “it was a life-altering experience” and that it led her to discover better ways to cope with the stresses of being a physician and to rediscover joy in her work. “Joy is something that’s fundamental to our existence, and I hope to help create conditions that help trainees and physicians flourish despite the challenges of our work and training,” she says. Mishra, who joined UB in 2001, see patients and conducts research at the Buffalo VA Medical Center, Veterans Affairs Western New York Healthcare System. She has received many awards for teaching, including the Women Leaders in Medicine Award from the American Medical Student Association, and the Humanitarian Award from the CHEST Foundation. She has also received the Leonard Tow Gold Humanism Award given for clinical excellence and outstanding compassion in the delivery of care. Regina Makdissi, MD, a clinical assistant professor of medicine, considers Mishra a role model, having trained under her as an intern and resident before joining the Jacobs School faculty in 2006. Under Mishra’s guidance, Makdissi says she learned to be her own selfevaluator and to acknowledge positive moments that transpire every day in tending to sick and challenging patients, a perspective that continues to motivate her today. “It is still invigorating to watch her do what she does best,” Makdissi says of Mishra.
