If there is one thing HCPs are short of, besides time, money, serenity, and piece of mind, it’s fun.

                 It’s believed that only 20% of all HCPs are extroverts. That means that, once you exclude Hawkeye Pierce and Patch Adams from the mix, the rest of us tend to be introverts. Medicine is serious business, no place for monkeyshines, right?

                 This logic implies that a gulag-style environment staffed by humorless zombies is exactly what we, our staffs, and our patients want.

                 In years past, I’ve attempted to bring a sense of whimsy to my practice. I let it be known that patients who celebrated the holiday that their colonoscopy examination fell on -- using their butt as a canvas -- could get a discount on their co-pay. Imagine my surprise when I pulled back the sheet covering an elderly lady patient on Lincoln’s Birthday and found a miniaturized version (oh, the wonder of computers) of the Gettysburg Address taped to her nether cheek.

                 My brother relates a similar story: work stress had brought on chest pains, and his internist ordered an EKG. He didn’t realize his appointment fell on Halloween.

                 All of the cardiology staff was in costume. There were fairies and witches and ghouls. The two techs assigned to him were also garbed, one as a cow (complete with udders) and the other as Minnie Mouse. After he removed his shirt, they began squirting lubricant and applying the electrodes to his chest. He looked from one to the other and quipped, “You know, I’m living someone’s fantasy right now.” (Sister’s note: Too much information!)

                 The point is, you can improve your environment by bringing fun to your workplace. It doesn’t have to be anything as extensive as costumes and holiday-butts. It might be something as simple as a free lunch to the staffer that logs the 5,000th patient. Or shutting down the practice early one day and taking everyone out for some putt-putt golf. Do some local volunteerism together. Crazy hat day. Dress-up-as-what-I-really-wanted-to-be-when-I-grew-up day. Start a humor corner, with gentle jokes and whimsy to help you restore your balance when thrown off kilter. Or just bring in donuts and take a few minutes to swap bad medical jokes.

                 Here are a few groaners to start with, appropriate for any medical setting:

Did you hear about the man we admitted last night who got his arm caught in the automatic furniture upholstery machine? Don’t worry, he’s fully recovered.

Or about the woman whose left arm and leg were broken in an auto accident? She’s all right now.

Or about the teenage boy who swallowed four coins while playing the drinking game Quarters? There’s been no change yet.

THE EXERCISE:

                 You probably saw this coming a mile away, but let’s go for it anyway.

                 Come up with three ideas that inject a little fun into your workplace.

                 Senior members can bring forth grandiose schemes that benefit everyone. Those a bit further down the food chain can still inject a little whimsy into the day with funny buttons, a joke-a-day posted where the patients can see, or even a harmless little practical joke.

                 The goal is to blunt the sharp edge of work. You want to make someone, anyone, smile.

                 Come up with three things that you will attempt to do at work; one for tomorrow, another in a week, and another as a long-term idea. They should be lighthearted and funny, and should be at a level that the entire staff and colleagues can see (or even participate in).

                 Jot them down and make them happen. Good luck!

 (Tomorrow)

 (Next week)

  (Long term)

         You probably noticed this, but I’ll point it out anyway. You were smiling as you made others smile. John A. Holmes said: “There is no better exercise for the heart than reaching down and lifting other people up.”

                  However, some people will not be affected by your infusion of fun. Remember the words of Oscar Wilde, who explained, “Some cause happiness wherever they go, others whenever they go.”

Patricia Raymond MD FACP FACG is a Virginia gastroenterologist who takes the personnel hemorrhage in medicine seriously, and herself lightly. Formerly fried by compassion fatigue, and a frankly cranky caregiver, Dr.Raymond writes and speaks on helping physicians and nurses to play nicely in the sandbox of medicine.

Her books, “Don’t Jettison Medicine” and the cult comedy anthology “Colonoscopy: It’ll Crack u Up” are available at www.RxForSanity.com, or you can hear her on streaming audio each Friday from 12-1 EST as she hosts NPR’s Housecalls challenging patients to step up and accept responsibility for their own health.

Contact her at PLRaymond@RxForSanity.com.

Get more on booking Dr. Raymond’s presentations for your hospital  at  Rx For Sanity

Pre and Post Colonoscopy Humor can be found at the quirky Colonoscopy: It’ll Crack u Up

Listen and call in to live streaming audio as Dr. Raymond teaches the public to accept responsibility for their own health Fridays 12-1 EST on NPR’s Housecalls with Dr. Pat Raymond

Dr Raymond’s patient-centered gastro practice