Sacrifice as a Part of Medical Education: A Reflection on the COVID-19 Pandemic

James T Aluri; Margaret S Chisolm; Lester Liao

doi:10.1177/23821205241250144

Sacrifice as a Part of Medical Education: A Reflection on the COVID-19 Pandemic

J Med Educ Curric Dev. 2024 May 6:11:23821205241250144. doi: 10.1177/23821205241250144. eCollection 2024 Jan-Dec.

Authors

James T Aluri¹, Margaret S Chisolm², Lester Liao³

Affiliations

¹ Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
² Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
³ Montreal Children's Hospital, McGill University Health Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic demanded significant sacrifices from medical learners. We examine the meaning of sacrifice and frame it as a "side effect" of being dedicated to the good of the patient. We contend that sacrifice has played a central role in medicine, even before the pandemic, for professionals and learners alike. We identify three limits to the role of sacrifice in medical education and practice to separate healthy from harmful experiences of sacrifice. Developing an understanding of sacrifice in medical education and practice can help trainees and clinicians know when to marshal resilient responses to healthy sacrifices and reject harmful sacrifices encountered. Maintaining this balance requires a broader reflection on the nature of medical schools and their ability to support virtuous professional identity formation.

Keywords: COVID-19 pandemic; Medical education; professional identity formation; virtue ethics.