01907 Summer 2020 V3

SUMMER 2020 | 17
athletic background really prepared me
for that."
After graduating from Swampscott
High, Dr. Beaulieu played four years of
college basketball at Bates, before going
to New York Medical College, where she
received her medical degree.
The daughter of Dr. John Beaulieu
and emergency room nurse Paula
Beaulieu will have a lot to teach that
next generation. As an emergency room
physician at UMass Medical Center,
she treated many of the 5,028 the city
recorded as of June, not to mention other
cases from other communities as well.
"We've seen high volumes of sick
people," she said. "One of the hardest
things that I've found is that they're all
alone. There's no family that's allowed
back in to see them. So what you have
is family members on the other end
of the telephone, and that's how you
communicate. It's not being able to have
personal interactions."
The other thing she feels may be a
little off-putting to people who come
into the emergency department is how
the physicians and nurses are dressed.
"We're in full PPE (personal protective
equipment), with face shields, masks and
gloves, and we can look very scary to
people coming into the hospital."
But while it can be
difficult, she said, it's
also part of the
rewards of working
in emergency
medicine.
"I'm caring
for people at
their worst
times and
on their
sickest
days," Dr.
Beaulieu
said.
"There's
something
about that."
Yes, she
said, every
member of the
team has to be
versatile.
"You have to be
ready to treat whoever
comes through that door,"
she said. "You're not seeing the
same thing every day, and anyone can
walk through that door. Often, it's all
hands on deck. And you pretty much
have to be able to do everything."
It's also important, she
said, not to be a robot.
"I don't think it's a
bad thing to show
emotions when
you're caring for
people on their
worst days,
especially
now
with the
pandemic."
she said.
"I think
it's a good
thing to
show your
emotion
and show
how much
you care about
the people you're
taking care of.
"You still have
to go to work, though,
and do what needs to be
done,"she said. "But we're all
human. It's OK to let that show."
There are times when that emotion
might get a little overwhelming.
"And when that happens, one of
the great things about UMass is that
everyone's so supportive," she said. "If
you see someone having a rough time,
there's always someone there to lift
them up.
"I think difficult patient encounters
stay with us sometimes," she said. "I
know there are cases that stick with me."
Last month, Dr. Beaulieu received the
Massachusetts ASEP (American College
of Emergency Physicians) Resident
of the year award. She was nominated
by her program director, Dr. Richard
Church, director of residency emergency
medicine at UMass.
The criteria included commitments
to emergency medicine, compassion
and patient care, recognition as a strong
leader, commitment to the emergency
medicine community, and commitment
to the education and enrichment of
others.
She was unsure of when, or how, she
will be honored for this.
"Because of social distancing, it's
probably going to be
an online
ceremony,"
she
said.
Being in
an emergency
department, you're on a full
team that's composed of nurses,
doctors, respiratory therapists,
and others. It's a big team, and
we work side by side every
day. Having an athletic
background really
prepared me for that.
— Allie Beaulieu