Serendipity in Shutdown with Jackie Howitt, MD & Gretchen Volk, MD
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What sparked the idea for this episode and who are the guests?
Support for the Nocturnist comes from the California Medical Association. Season five of the Nocturnist Stories from the World of Medicine is sponsored by the Physicians Foundation.
At the Nocturinous, we are careful to ensure that all stories comply with healthcare privacy laws. Details may have been changed to ensure patient confidentiality. All views expressed are those of the person speaking and not their employer.
You're listening to the Nocturnists, stories from the world of medicine. I'm Emily Silverman. During the peak of the pandemic, the demand for physicians far outstripped the supply. Urgent calls went out for doctors who could help, people who could come out of retirement or leave the comfort of their medical specialty to staff up the hospital wards and ICUs. Today's episode features the voices of two of those doctors, Jackie Howitt and Gretchen Volk. Jackie retired from her clinical Obigaine practice in 2019 and educates med students as a clinical associate professor in the Department of Health Humanities at the University of Rochester. Gretchen is an urgent care pediatrician in Rochester who completed her pediatric residency at Strong Memorial Hospital.
When Jackie and Gretchen first reached out to me about their story, I was very intrigued because they were proposing that they tell their story together, as a dialogue. We had never done that before at The Nocturnous. Usually our stories are monologues. But in this case, it made all the sense in the world since this particular story is about friendship and solidarity. So we paired Jackie and Gretchen with one of our amazing story coaches, screenwriter Melissa Brandt, who helped them shape their story for the stage. And wow, the results were incredible. Before I speak with Jackie and Gretchen, take a listen to their amazing live performance at the Nocturnus in San Francisco in June of 2022. Here's Jackie and Gretchen.
It's April twenty twenty. Ам объединяли вачь міськові кes. Watching those enlarging red dots on the US maps. Watching the ковід деф ноберз інкріз. Seeing images of refrigerator trucks used as temporary morgues in New York City. I'm in the Rochester airport. And it's quiet. Lots of bright lights, but no hustle and bustle of people. The marquis all have listed The cancelled departures and arrivals. The only flight out today. It's the one that's taking me. To JFK.
Тукверно Кумо камінь ТВ и Нью-Йорк та Healthcare workers. And so I signed up to volunteer, not truly expecting they would accept an offer of help from a general pediatrician. But they did.
I didn't think they would want a retired OBGYN either, but they did.
So it's Easter morning twenty twenty. I'm walking through this ghostly quiet Rochester airport. It feels like a church if you get there too early for a funeral. It's very somber and it fits my mood because I'm scared. I make my way to the jet blue departure gate and I'm surprised to find a party unfolding. There's a mountain of donuts There's urns of coffee. There's a big bubbling group of University of Rochester medical personnel. They're all wearing matching fleece vests. And they're arranging themselves into a clumsy pyramid for a group photo. Hey, I'll take that for you guys. Oh it's
okay, I'm not with them. Are you? No, I'm Gretchen. Gretchen, Jackie,
nice to meet ya. Ah, I just take a big breath. I'd been feeling so alone until that moment. And now Maybe it'll be me and Jackie. Ас агенсте Ворд, Ас агенст ковід. Or just us against this inappropriately giddy you of our group. Before we board, Jackie gives me her phone number, just in case.
So we get on the plane and we're each assigned our own row. There's no one beside me, there's no one in front of me, there's no one behind me. I'm masked. I'm gloved. I take out my Clorox wipe and dutifully wipe down all the surfaces near me. All of a sudden the flight attendants go running up the aisle, whooping and carrying a banner. Та це фір контріб'юнс.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What sparked the idea for this episode and who are the guests?
0:00–11:03
2
How did Jackie and Gretchen first meet in the deserted Rochester airport?
11:03–22:25
3
What motivated each of them to volunteer for COVID‑19 relief in New York City?
22:25–34:47
4
What were the most memorable moments working on the front lines in NYC?
34:47–45:32
5
How did they cope with returning home and re‑integrating into their communities?
45:32–49:15
6
What was the process of turning their real‑life story into a staged performance?
49:15–51:36
7
What are Jackie and Gretchen’s future plans for international work and medical humanities?
51:36–52:50
8
What advice do they have for the next generation of physicians?
52:50–53:18