Dedicating This Labor Day to the Meaning of Moral Injuries (and Achievements) for Psychiatrists

Psychiatry & Society

H. Steven Moffic, MD, believes moral injuries may eventually replace the issue of burnout. Why has burnout not been reduced over the last 15 to 20 years? It may be the overlay of moral injuries, which obstructs healing. In the research on moral injuries, it looks like it has a prevalence of around 50%. Treatment is unfortunately quite spiritual, and thus can be difficult to prescribe. Sharing with trusted individuals or spiritual leaders can help.

"As Labor Day approaches, that might be the most important thing for us psychiatrists to focus on: our own labor, and unfortunately, how we have been suffering from external forces that are inhibiting our ability to heal as much as we can," said Moffic. "May our work be even better in the upcoming year."

Dr Moffic is an award-winning psychiatrist who specialized in the cultural and ethical aspects of psychiatry and is now in retirement and retirement as a private pro bono community psychiatrist. A prolific writer and speaker, he has done a weekday column titled “Psychiatric Views on the Daily News” and a weekly video, “Psychiatry & Society,” since the COVID-19 pandemic emerged. He was chosen to receive the 2024 Abraham Halpern Humanitarian Award from the American Association for Social Psychiatry. Previously, he received the Administrative Award in 2016 from the American Psychiatric Association, the one-time designation of being a Hero of Public Psychiatry from the Speaker of the Assembly of the APA in 2002, and the Exemplary Psychiatrist Award from the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill in 1991. He presented the third Rabbi Jeffrey B. Stiffman lecture at Congregation Shaare Emeth in St. Louis on Sunday, May 19, 2024. He is an advocate and activist for mental health issues related to climate instability, physician burnout, and xenophobia. He is now editing the final book in a 4-volume series on religions and psychiatry for Springer: Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, Christianity, and now The Eastern Religions, and Spirituality. He serves on the Editorial Board of Psychiatric Times.