Stand Up

5:05 a.m.: Alarm. Get out of bed.
5:30 a.m.: Respond to e-mails, work on lectures, update ongoing projects.
6:30 a.m.: Drink tea, eat granola bar on morning commute.
6:45 a.m.: Arrive at work, respond to electronic health record alerts, secure messages from patients, work e-mails.
8:00 a.m.–noon: See patients. Sit at computer, typing before, during, after all encounters. Stand up to examine patients and to walk them to/from the lobby.
Noon: Walk to meetings (usually 15-20 minutes late because of patient care). If no meeting, microwave leftovers to eat in front of the computer and finish some alerts.
1:00–4:30 p.m.: See patients.
4:30–6:00 p.m.: Respond to electronic health record alerts, secure messages from patients, work e-mails.
6:30 p.m.: Start dinner. Sit down and open Annals of Internal Medicine to an article finding that “Both the total volume of sedentary time and its accrual in prolonged, uninterrupted bouts are associated with all-cause mortality, suggesting that physical activity guidelines should target reducing and interrupting sedentary time to reduce risk for death” (1)

I think to myself, “Doctors are some of the worst patients.” It’s a joke we tell ourselves when we miss our own doctors’ appointments (or fail to schedule them in the first place). We self-diagnose, defer treatment, and generally think we “know what’s better” when evidence routinely suggests we do not.

In response to our daily and professional expectations, many of us also adopt unhealthy lifestyles. As a primary care doctor, I counsel my patients on healthy lifestyle choices while slumped over my keyboard. I explain the importance of posture to improve their chronic low back pain, taking the opportunity to stand up to illustrate the contrast between a “natural” alignment and the malignant one I had been holding for the beginning of our 30-minute visit at my desk. “Do as I say, not as I do,” I joke.

But it’s not funny. Evidence has already shown that activity benefits health. It can improve mobility (2), depression (3), and chronic pain (4). The Annals study I read as I prepared dinner goes even further to suggest that lack of movement is a health risk. It’s a fine line, but the study suggests that simply standing up more often and for longer periods of time might help us live longer.

Some practices have standing desks between patient rooms where physicians can finish charting. Some have convertible desks that can raise up between patient visits so physicians can stand. Some practices are admittedly so busy that physicians run between exam rooms in 15 minutes or less. (Note: This is not a recommended solution.)

Like any important widespread issue, physicians ' sedentary lifestyles probably also requires systematic changes. Most of my sedentary time is mandated by the amount of computer-related work I have to do. The administrative burdens of medicine are well-documented, as are their effects on physician wellness (5). Many physician organizations, including my own (American College of Physicians and Society of General Internal Medicine) have been in Washington, calling for changes to rules and regulations that keep us at our desks when we would prefer to be with our patients (6). Now I add to the list the impact this has on our own physical health, and I’m making my own call for action. No joke, our lives depend on it.

6:45 p.m.: Stand up.

References

1. Diaz KM, Howard VJ, Hutto B, Colabianchi N, Vena JE, Safford MM, et al. Patterns of sedentary behavior and mortality in u.s. middle-aged and older adults: a national cohort study. Ann Intern Med. 2017;167:465-475. [PMID: 28892811] doi:10.7326/M17-0212
2. Gill TM, Guralnik JM, Pahor M, Church T, Fielding RA, King AC, et al; LIFE Study Investigators. Effect of structured physical activity on overall burden and transitions between states of major mobility disability in older persons: secondary analysis of a randomized trial. Ann Intern Med. 2016;165:833-840. [PMID: 27669457] doi:10.7326/M16-0529
3. Gartlehner G, Gaynes BN, Amick HR, Asher GN, Morgan LC, Coker-Schwimmer E, et al. Comparative benefits and harms of antidepressant, psychological, complementary, and exercise treatments for major depression: an evidence report for a clinical practice guideline from the American College of Physicians. Ann Intern Med. 2016;164:331-41. [PMID: 26857743] doi:10.7326/M15-1813 
4. Staud R. Tai chi reduced severity of fibromyalgia symptoms at 24 weeks compared with aerobic exercise. Ann Intern Med. 2018;168:JC70. [PMID: 29913495] doi:10.7326/ACPJC-2018-168-12-070
5. Downing NL, Bates DW, Longhurst CA. Physician burnout in the electronic health record era: are we ignoring the real cause? Ann Intern Med. 2018. [PMID: 29801050] doi:10.7326/M18-0139 
6. Erickson SM, Rockwern B, Koltov M, McLean RM; Medical Practice and Quality Committee of the American College of Physicians. Putting patients first by reducing administrative tasks in health care: a position paper of the American College of Physicians. Ann Intern Med. 2017;166:659-661. [PMID: 28346948] doi:10.7326/M16-2697