I Quit to Protect My Patients: A Doctor’s Ethical Line in the Sand

In this powerful episode of From Print to Pod, Dr. Sulana Misra, the author of I Quit as a Civil Surgeon. This Is Why shares the deeply personal and political reasons behind her decision to resign as a USCIS-designated civil surgeon. As immigration policy shifts and ethical boundaries blur, she opens up about the weight of responsibility, the threat to patient data, and the moral dilemma of participating in a system she no longer trusts. This conversation sheds light on how medicine, ethics, activism, and patient care intersect in times of social upheaval.SUBSCRIBE TO OUR PODCAST → https://www.doctorsonsocialmedia.com/podcastOUR DIRECTORIES → https://www.doctorsonsocialmedia.com/directories Takeaways:Resigning can be a form of advocacy: Dr. Misra chose to step away from her federal role to stand by her ethics and speak out against harmful immigration practices.Physicians must protect patient trust: The attempted access to her full EMR—including non-immigration patients—was a red line that underscored growing federal overreach.Ethical discomfort is a red flag: Dr. Misra encourages clinicians to listen to their bodies and instincts when something feels wrong in their practice or environment.Silence is not neutral: Staying quiet in the face of injustice can be complicity, especially when physicians hold trusted voices in society.The personal cost is real: Her decision meant loss of income and opportunity, but it also brought clarity, solidarity, and a deeper commitment to justice and patient care.  Chapters:00:00 – Welcome & Introduction00:45 – What Is a Civil Surgeon?02:00 – Why Dr. Misra Took the Role03:30 – What Prompted Her to Quit07:00 – Ethics, Safety, and Listening to the Body09:40 – Impact on Her Practice and Colleagues11:00 – Advocacy Through Resignation12:00 – Grassroots Physician Activism in LA13:00 – Patient Data and Ethical Responsibility14:20 – Final Reflections and A Call to Physicians  Send us a message to tell us what you loved about the show!Doctorsonsocialmedia.com, or SoMeDocs for short, is a healthcare omnimedia platform committed to promoting autonomy for the individuals in healthcare. Subscribe to our newsletter to not miss our new articles, episodes, or events: https://doctorsonsocialmedia.com/subscribe. Contact us anytime, at [email protected]  (please note that we receive many emails and may not respond to all).