PENDING REVIEW: (written early November 2023)
Silence is one of the most powerful and insidious tools in allowing discrimination to flourish.  As healthcare professionals it is our jobs to take care of those most in need of care.  This is often the most down-trodden and the most disadvantaged.  As we enter into the modern era of public awareness and comprehensive care, we know it is insufficient to our ideals to treat merely the physical ailments, or even the psychological ailments.  We need to also address the societal ailments.

However, we must also represent ourselves.  Our values, our families, our futures, our careers.  It has been very clearly proven that no one else will.  Further, we know that without sustainability in our practices, we have no plausible chance of addressing societies ailments.

We must also recognize that our opponents; those that would wish an end to our autonomy, our viability, and also wish an end to our patient’s wellbeing at the cost of tax dollars…they are in positions of authority above us, and they will do everything within their capacities to thwart our efforts.  They know our collective mind-set regarding righting inequities.  They realize there are individual rifts on these concepts.  They know that self-representation is close, in the public’s eye, to discrimination.  We will have many apparently unrelated entities challenging us on our positions where concepts of self-interest may conflict with inclusivity of others, equity for all, diversity where possible.  The stage has already been set by years of anti-woke rhetoric.

As mentioned elsewhere, our interest in self-representation does not cast aspersions on the needs of others being represented.  Again, we applaud other groups for representing others.  Many of us will already be in those groups as well.  But, the purpose of United Family Physicians of Alberta is to not lose sight of self-representation.  We need to acknowledge the variety of practice styles that are of crucial importance to a flourishing medical community.  We need to be able to distinguish between allowance of various practice styles and the concepts of inclusivity.

We should not stymie our discussions for fear that others may think we are transgressing against diversity, equity, inclusion.  But, we should be willing to introspect upon our ideas if someone calls us out.  And, when we call someone out, we should be willing to hear their perspective.  Commonly, when we have good hearts, our differences may be merely from looking at the same situation from different angles.  And, most family doctors got to where they are by having good hearts.

Heading into the fight, we will need to be strong allies and good friends.  We need to give each other the benefit of the doubt, while also expecting accountability.  These things come together through frank discussion.

If we have differences, we should try to find common ground through honest and vulnerable discussion.  And, we should have these discussions within the group.  Our vulnerabilities are our own to know and struggle with, they are not the play-things of our opponents.