Placebo Press
Placebo Press
Upon entering medical school, JD Schwartzman, founder of Placebo Press, was unsure whether he would have time to continue reading and writing poetry. When he first opened his school's arts magazine, he realized that he was not the only one using poetry as a creative outlet to manage the weight of medicine. Poetry publication in the modern era consists of self publishing or submitting to established literary presses, and the latter is dominated by distinguished poets with the time and community to focus their efforts primarily on the craft of poetry.
Poetry need not reflect dramatic emotional moments, yet the endeavor of working in healthcare entails constant engagement with emotionally potent experiences on both sides of the spectrum. On the same day, healthcare professionals bring babies into the world and lose patients in the neonatal intensive care unit. Students learn to intertwine the concreteness of science with the humanity of each patient. Individuals who work within or study medicine are ripe with material to express through poetry yet commonly left without an outlet suited for them to proudly share their work. Further, there is little opportunity for poets in medicine to engage with each other.
A placebo is a treatment without physiological value intended to provide psychological benefit. Countless studies in medical literature echo the sentiment that placebos can radically change a patient's illness experience. Similarly, poetry as an outlet for healthcare personnel will not change the frequency or severity of emotional medical experiences, but it provides an alternative framework to address these daily occurrences.
Placebo Press was founded with the mission to provide healthcare professionals, employees, affiliates, and students with community and publication opportunities in a legitimate literary press. Placebo Press was created for physicians, nurses, medical assistants, medical scribes, psychologists, physical therapists, medical technologists, nutritionists, paramedics, social workers, genetic counselors, and individuals of any other medical occupation. Students of any medical field are encouraged to submit.