Dr. Wei is division chief of pediatric otolaryngology/audiology at Nemours Children’s Hospital and director of the Resident and Faculty Wellbeing Program at Nemours Children’s. She is also a member of the ENTtoday editorial advisory board.
Explore This Issue
June 2020How to Bring Comfort to Others
- Send a positive daily or weekly email to your group, team, office staff, and family. Share beautiful photos, inspirational quotes, links to music, imagery, or access to free music concerts and museums. Tell jokes, share funny stories or videos, and just laugh as much as possible.
- Use video conferencing apps professionally and personally to hear people’s voices, see their facial expressions, and laugh together.
- Show gratitude through cards, handwritten letters, email, and even leaving notes in mailboxes.
- Thank those who serve in leadership positions in your organization for their constant effort and doing their best—even if you don’t think it’s enough.
- Call loved ones more often than before the pandemic, when you didn’t think you had enough time. It’s more important now than ever before that they hear from you, and you from them.
- Birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, impending births, and loss of loved ones are still happening. Remember special occasions and send gifts or cards, even if it’s by shopping online or leaving a beautifully wrapped gift in your colleague’s office or at your neighbor’s front door.
- Tell your loved ones how much they mean to you, and how grateful you are that you aren’t alone during this pandemic. Tell others who may feel alone that you are there for them. Share some of the ideas in this article with them to help them reconnect.