Volume 12

April - 2020

Cover: Sundays with Joshua

Sailing has always been a means of escape. Nothing is more challenging than putting your skills and your training into action against two elements that can be totally unpredictable - wind and water. At this time when a lot of control seems to be out of our hands, I went to a place where I felt comfortable. In both sailing and in the ED, I use my training and experience to negotiate in places where I might at times feel exposed, but I also feel some semblance of control.

Letter from the Editors:

It has officially been one year since we’ve started this endeavor into promoting emergency medicine wellbeing and all of your constant support and submissions. We’ve been amazed by your kindness, talents, and passion for this wonderful specialty of our. Now, more than ever, it is important for us to focus on our wellbeing between shifts that may seem to be more and more difficult each day. We thank you for a wonderful first year, and we look forward to many more to come!

Tranquil and bright

Any chance to do a piece with tons of bright colors and lots and lots of shading, I jump on it!

Unlike other forms of art that can be ruined by a few stray lines, chalk is easily blendable and stackable allowing me to never feel afraid to make a stroke. This dynamic and anti-perfectionistic quality, along with the relaxing feel of the chalk itself, and the prismatic array of colors at my fingertips; it is all of these aspects of chalk art that help calm my brain during times of stress. I plan to continue this creative outlet during residency for continued wellness.

Del Mar

I was walking on the beach just north of San Diego and noticed that when the tide retreated after each wave the sunset would reflect off of the water. It made for a beautiful walk at the end of the day. I try to do this every couple of weeks, and the peace and tranquility of the beach and sunset provide a great setting to decompress.

Man and Machine

In a rushed emergency world, we can sometimes forget to take a moment and observe the simple beauty amongst our workspace. The collection of photos are random moments that show either simple geometry, lighting or beautiful colour. By taking photos in the moment and reflecting on them later, it helps to process and value everything that happened in that moment, which sometimes can be clouded by adrenaline.

Beauty, STrength, Perseverance

It took years for water to work its way through underground channels, heated by water, constantly raging against the rock until finally it broke through and continues to shine and demonstrate its power every 10-30 minutes with a brilliant rupture of superheated water. All three elements of beauty, strength, and perseverance are demonstrated in the creation of this geyser. I feel as though emergency medicine requires all three: beauty in the treatment and care for everyone around you, strength to continue your studies and perseverance to continue working through difficult times.

It was a magical time trying to capture this series of all three stages of the geyser eruption. I was particularly proud of the bubbles self-contained within the surface tension of the water and the moment of bursting power.

Do you want to see your art shared with the community? Don’t forget to submit today!

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This Months Featured Artists:

Blaire Banfield

Hello all! My name is Blaire Banfield, I am a current MS4 at the University of Florida COM who matched into EM at Orlando Health. When not shut away studying for hours on end while stress shoving M&Ms in my face I enjoy hiking, brewing beers, and going to Pet Adopt-athons and snuggling baby animals. I also recently fell in love with Chalk Art! My boyfriend and his mom travel around the SE to chalk art festivals and I tagged along a few years ago and became hooked. See more work on her Instagram.

Neville Vlok, MD

I am a South African emergency physician with a keen prehospital interest. I do love photography, but am mostly without my camera and then forced to do some candid iphoneography. When not working prehospitally or in the emergency room I love to get outdoors and explore a new mountain bike trail. See more of his work on Twitter.

Tyler Kirchberg

I am a 3rd year medical student planning on applying into Emergency Medicine. I have always loved the outdoors, and I use photography as a fun and rejuvenating way to capture some of my favorite places to be outside. In my free time I also enjoy swimming, biking, skiing, camping, and reading.

Veronica Bonales, MD

Physician in Emergency Medicine. Started painting as a challenge to myself. Started with watercolor, then progressed to acrylics and now playing with oils. I love everything creative including photography, writing, blogging, beading and quilting.

Jonathan Warren, MD

A PGY-2 at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center and founder of Art of Emergency Medicine. His hobbies include photography, hiking, Netflix, and dogs. He’s always on the lookout for the next adventure. Find more of his photography on Instagram.

You can learn more about the artists featured in this and other volumes at our contributors page!