When Expert Knowledge is Not Enough, Solidarity and Sense of Duty Can Save the Day
When Expert Knowledge is Not Enough, Solidarity and Sense of Duty Can Save the DayTHE CASE OF MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS CHALLENGED BY THE COVID PANDEMIC SHOWS WHAT STRATEGIES MAY BE ADOPTED WHEN EXPERTISE, KNOWLEDGE, AND EXPERIENCE CAN'T HELP
During the first part of the COVID-19 pandemic, hospitals and medical professionals experienced an unprecedented situation of disarray. Not only was a critically large portion of the population hospitalized, but existing protocols and even the knowledge of doctors fell short of finding a cure for a disease nobody had seen before. In their last paper, which appeared in the Academy of Management Journal, Bocconi Professors Amelia Compagni and Giulia Cappellaro, together with Prof. Amit Nigam (University College of London), analyze how doctors coped with an unprecedented situation of knowledge disruption, where their medical expertise and experience did not offer any definitive help in finding a way to deal with the emergency.
However, the authors find that doctors, leveraging solidarity and a sense of duty, implemented a series of positive strategies that are shaping their ability to deliver care to patients even after the pandemic.