There is a crisis going on affecting physicians, one which we thought only affected soldiers, called moral distress syndrome. Moral distress syndrome is evidenced by the rise of suicide and burn out among physicians and other clinicians and can include the following conditions: depression, PTSD, risk of suicide, divorce, emotional detachment, and the inability to build relationships and the lack of empathy. While military veterans can report to a Veteran's Hospital for treatment, physicians cannot find treatment or support because they are at risk of losing their medical license, hospital privileges and their jobs. As a result, their condition mostly goes untreated and many have to deal with the issue themselves or count on their family or circle of friends for support. The Moral Distress in Physiciansby Eldo Frezza, MD raises awareness of this problem and details the struggles physicians are struggling with. The book is designed to start a dialogue by having one physician talking to other physicians about the condition and their struggles in a safe and open environment. The author brings all aspects of the moral distress syndrome together in a format familiar to the physician: Grand Rounds with a Magistral lecture. This is presented in a format where the audience can ask questions and directly participate in the discussion. Told in a business novel format, the book is divided into three parts:In the first part of the book, the research, the data, and the crude numbers of the condition are given. Moral Distress Syndrome, PTSD, Burnout, suicide, divorce rates, emotional detachment, legal distress syndrome, and physicians leaving medicine are all topics covered. The second part of the book describes the pain, the emotions, and the distress by having the main character define some personal experience to get the audience and the reader feeling the depth of moral distress. In the third part, the author focuses on society, the suffering of physicians and the introduction of the term moral distress as it relates to the medical community. Part of the narrative focuses on the main character, a physician who uses his empathy to try to point out his problems, weaknesses, and issues and to find possible solutions to the situation for him and all physicians who are also struggling. The section ends with a discussion of the societal, patients' and physicians' responsibilities, the birth of moral injury and the American Medical Association recommendations for physicians to find good friends and a safe space to discuss these issues. To make it easier to follow the material, each chapter begins with an outline of points to be discussed, much like a speaker providing an outline of the material covered in a presentation. Even though the format of the book is a business novel, the reader can read each chapter separately and be able to understand the points made without having to follow the storyline. However, the storyline personalizes the topic to every physician who is experiencing this condition or struggling with the day-to-day challenges of their work. | The Moral Distress Syndrome Affecting Physicians by Eldo Frezza, MBA, FACS, Hardcover | Indigo Chapters