Make a Difference—Get Involved

As I write this, we are all hopeful that the worst of the COVID-19 public health crisis will soon be behind us. Many of us have avoided the virus and appreciate our good fortune, but too many others have not been as lucky. The loss of lives, disruption of families, economic insecurity and other hardships resulting from this crisis will continue to resonate for years.

None of us have remained unaffected, and we all yearn for a sense of pre-2020 normalcy. It is therefore understandable that many of us are now focused upon the opportunity to reengage in personal activities and renew personal relationships.

We should also take time to reflect on our professional lives. More than a year of isolation cannot help but provide us with a broader perspective and a consideration of the numerous opportunities that we have previously taken for granted or put off until a later time. As members of the physiology scientific and teaching community, we have likely postponed or been unable to complete the experiments we wanted to conduct, the papers we were going to write, the courses we were going to develop and the grants we wanted to submit.

Interestingly, the ability to participate in these everyday tasks was not fully appreciated until they were out of our reach. This time of change also presents each of us with the additional opportunity to engage in activities that benefit our colleagues, our scientific discipline and ourselves. Importantly, we can each be a force to effect positive change in the scientific community. Now is the time to act.

While it is often easy to identify opportunities within our communities to participate in, the chance to influence matters on a wider scale may seem out of reach. However, for physiologists, a readily available outlet is participation as a member or member-leader in APS activities. As a champion of our discipline, APS is committed to creating an environment where individuals can exchange ideas and be safe, accepted and respected. Moreover, members who participate in Society activities find that the benefits far exceed the energy expended. The relationships that are formed, the added insight into the world of science and the personal satisfaction from helping guide our field forward are well worth the time and effort. For those disillusioned by our national political conversation, the Society provides an ideal platform to make a positive difference in the world.

As we each evaluate our future professional activities, please consider participation in the many opportunities available in the APS sections, interest groups and committees. As a member-driven scientific society, participation permits each of us to serve our scientific community and enact change in our world. APS members are asked to take a stand for change and commit to inclusion, respect and equality and to foster the open-mindedness that is the staple of discovery and creativity. Through APS participation, we can each help shape the future.

David Mattson, PhD, FAPS, is a professor and chair of physiology at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta. He is an outgoing APS councilor. 

This article was originally published in the May 2021 issue of The Physiologist Magazine.