Burnout Studies
This comes from the latest Family Practice Smartbrief:
Systemic issues at root of physician burnout, experts say
A Medscape survey found clinician burnout is widespread, with 42% of physicians reporting burnout, and the causes are complicated and systemic, say researchers from the National Academy of Medicine Action Collaborative on Clinician Well-Being and Resilience in a New England Journal of Medicine perspective piece. There is currently no method to “systematically and collectively” compile and analyze data on burnout, and the National Academy of Medicine is a good candidate to coordinate such an effort, wrote Victor Dzau, M.D., and colleagues.
It is so complicated and systemic that there is no method to compile the data but…..the National Academy of Medicine is a good candidate to coordinate such an effort. Does that sound weird to you? Is that a joke? I am sure large amounts of money won’t be spent on this.
Nothing like the Olympian Perspective to clarify the issues down in the trenches. And few Olympians more qualified than Victor Dzau, anointed heir to Eugene Braunwald, giver of the death stroke to the Clinician – Teacher as a valued member, let alone leader, of the faculty of the Academic Teaching Hospital. Their perspective values “Productivity,” which means securing research funding and churning out publications by the up and coming intellects who scorn the bedside, and running volume for the lesser, faceless and interchangeable grunt-folk in the wards and clinics.
Who better to presume to advise the cure for a disease they have brewed and disseminated?
This is not complicated. If you see too many patients in too little time you will burn out. Most of us are “giving” care, you only have so much to give.
Of course this is compounded by toxic administration, the government regulations and forced EMRs.
The hamster on the wheel can only go for so long before the hamster gets tired. Either change the wheel, or get a new hamster.