Doctors hit hardest by pandemic at higher risk of burnout - AMA

[Mary Wilson]

MAR 30, 2022

Sara Berg, MS

At the national level, the overall rate of physician burnout—comprised of emotional exhaustion and depersonalization scores—improved during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic (fall 2020) compared to earlier time points in 2011, 2014 and 2017, according to a new triennial study.

Despite these global findings, experiences during the early days of the pandemic were diverse and varied widely based on specialty, personal COVID-19 experiences, and geography. The survey administration occurred prior to the first wave of the pandemic for many areas of the country and may not reflect physicians’ experiences.

More than 7,500 physicians responded to a survey conducted by researchers from the AMA, the Mayo Clinic and Stanford University School of Medicine. The study found that, overall, 38.2% of U.S. physicians exhibited at least one symptom of burnout in 2020, compared with 43.9% in 2017, 54.4% in 2014 and 45.5% in 2011.

Despite the overall trend, burnout did not improve for physicians specializing emergency medicine, hospital medicine, infectious disease, or critical care and increased among physicians who had to deliver care without adequate personal protective equipment (PPE) or whose practice suffered disruptive economic consequences from COVID. ...

https://www.ama-assn.org/practice-m...3fb&utm_medium=smarpshare&utm_source=facebook

 

[Mary Wilson]

Changes in Burnout and Satisfaction With Work-Life Integration in Physicians and the General US Working Population Between 2011 and 2020

ORIGINAL ARTICLE| VOLUME 97, ISSUE 3, P491-506, MARCH 01, 2022

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mayocp.2021.11.021

Tait D. Shanafelt, MD, Colin P. West, MD, PhD, Christine Sinsky, MD, Hanhan Wang, MPS, Lindsey E. Carlasare, MBA, Lotte N. Dyrbye, MD, MHPE, Show all authors

Abstract

Objective
To evaluate the prevalence of burnout and satisfaction with work-life integration (WLI) among physicians and US workers in 2020 relative to 2011, 2014, and 2017.

Methods
Between November 20, 2020, and March 23, 2021, we surveyed US physicians and a probability-based sample of the US working population using methods similar to our prior studies. Burnout and WLI were measured using standard tools. Information about specific work-related COVID-19 experiences was collected.

Results
There were 7510 physicians who participated in the survey. Nonresponder analysis suggested that participants were representative of US physicians. Mean emotional exhaustion and depersonalization scores were lower in 2020 than in 2017, 2014, and 2011 (all P<.001). However, emotional exhaustion and depersonalization scores did not improve in specialties most heavily affected by COVID-19. Overall, 38.2% of physicians reported 1 or more symptoms of burnout in 2020 compared with 43.9% in 2017, 54.4% in 2014, and 45.5% in 2011 (all P<.001). Providing care without adequate personal protective equipment (odds ratio [OR], 1.53; 95% CI, 1.35 to 1.72) and having suffered disruptive economic consequences due to COVID-19 (OR, 1.49; 95% CI, 1.32 to 1.69) were independently associated with risk of burnout. On multivariable analysis, physicians were at increased risk for burnout (OR, 1.41; 95% CI, 1.25 to 1.58) and were less likely to be satisfied with WLI (OR, 0.71; 95% CI, 0.64 to 0.79) than other working US adults.

Conclusion
Burnout and satisfaction with WLI among US physicians improved between 2017 and 2020. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on physicians varies on the basis of professional characteristics and experiences. Physicians remain at increased risk for burnout relative to workers in other fields.

https://www.mayoclinicproceedings.org/article/S0025-6196(21)00872-7/fulltext

 

[sharon sanders]

bump this