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Pump the brakes on your week and take 10 minutes to make your life as a surgeon just a little better…

Jeff welcomes to the podcast pediatric cardiac anesthesiologist, Nicholette Kasman, MD, MAPP.

Just as there’s a big difference between the absence of illness and health, there’s a difference between flourishing and simply not suffering. Applied positive psychology is the study of what contributes to flourishing.

It’s a human tendency to have a negativity bias. Although we’re constantly looking to fix ourselves and our problems, our greatest area for growth is to lean into our strengths.

This is all applicable to the lives of physicians. When we strive for excellence, we tend to lean into that negativity bias of trying to fix everything around us. That can lead to people feeling browbeaten. If you instead train someone to look for their own strengths and the strengths in those around them, people start to feel seen and engaged. That is the foundation of psychological safety and exceptional clinical work.

What steps does Nicholette suggest we take to integrate positive psychology into the operating room?

• Step 1 - Develop a vocabulary of strengths. Take a strength survey or use another resource to grow your awareness.
• Step 2 - Start looking for the strengths in other people by noticing what they get excited about.
• Step 3 - Point out those strengths. When you name the strength you see in another person, it makes them feel seen and empowered.

Most importantly, PRACTICE identifying strengths in ourselves and others!

BIO:

Nicholette Kasman, MD, MAPP, is a pediatric cardiac anesthesiologist and Associate Professor of Clinical Anesthesia at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. She holds a master’s degree in Applied Positive Psychology from the University of Pennsylvania and is a certified coach with additional training as a positive psychology coach. Her work focuses on enhancing well-being, psychological safety, and professional growth in academic medicine. She is a lead author of Team Building Through Positive Psychology Principles in the Pediatric Cardiac Operating Room (NEJM Catalyst) and was recently featured on SurgeonMasters discussing the use of strengths to support thriving in surgery and medicine.

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PRACTICE Your Best!