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What is burnout?
No one is immune to the difficulties of balancing life and work demands. Physicians, both resident and attending, who labor long hours under high stress situations are subject to sleep deprivation and may even have difficulty finding time to manage basic bodily needs. Add to that the burdens of trying to ease other people’s suffering, cope with sadness and loss, and calm patients’ and families’ fears, and the combination can lead to burnout syndrome and stress.
Burnout Syndrome is a growing problem among practicing physicians and is defined as a constellation of symptoms that include emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and loss of perspective that work is meaningful. Untreated, burnout syndrome can erode professional behavior at work and healthy relationships at home. This leads to decreased empathy and compassion, poor communication and potentially worse patient outcomes. The personal consequences include disrupted relationships with family and friends, self-medicating with alcohol or other substances, depression and an increased risk of suicide, which is higher among physicians than the general population, in part due to the stigma associated with seeking mental health treatment. If you are struggling in some way with burnout syndrome or other can erode professional behavior at work and healthy relationships at home. This leads to decreased empathy and compassion, poor communication and potentially worse patient outcomes. The personal consequences include disrupted relationships with family and friends, self-medicating with alcohol or other substances, depression and an increased risk of suicide, which is higher among physicians than the general population, in part due to the stigma associated with seeking mental health treatment. If you are struggling in some way with burnout syndrome or other issues, you aren’t alone and don’t need to suffer in silence.
How Common is Burnout?
Medscape National Physician Burnout, Depression & Suicide Report 2019
What can we do as individuals to prevent burnout?
Moving from Burnout to Wellness: What Can Individuals and Institutions Do?
- PPT presentation from Nadia Charguia, MD- Director of TCOOO
R– Reset expectations, make them reasonable
A– Active recognition of our needs
C– Create boundaries
E– Embrace imperfection at times
Why does burnout matter?
Additional Resources:
Taking Care of Our Own / Resident Burnout
- Taking Care of Our Own: A Multispecialty Study of Resident and Program Director Perspectives on Contributors to Burnout and Potential Interventions
- Physician Burnout: It’s time to Take Care of Our Own
Burnout Epidemic
- The Widespread Problem of Doctor Burnout
Chen, P. Well blog, New York Times (2012) - Physician burnout presents differently in male and female doctors
Drummond, D. KevinMD.com (2012) - The Physician Burnout Epidemic: What It Means for Patients and Reform
Schattner, E. The Atlantic (2012) - Physician Burnout: Preparing for a “Perfect Storm”
Straight A Review. Steadier Group (2012)