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Organizational changes needed to reduce physician burnout

Residency Program Insider, July 22, 2020

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Although physicians are more resilient when compared to the rest of the U.S. working population, they are still highly at risk of burnout, according to research letter in JAMA Open Network.

Researchers surveyed more than 5,000 physicians on their resilience using the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale. Their mean resilience score was 6.49 out of 8, which was higher than the mean score of 6.25 based on a sample of 5,000 individuals from the general U.S. population.

According to the research letter’s authors, although strengthening resilience is important for combating the symptoms of burnout, physicians are already generally more resilient than the rest of the population yet still experience the symptoms of burnout at a substantial rate. For example, 29% of the physicians who had the highest possible resilience score said they experienced burnout. 

The authors suggest resiliency training is not enough and should be supported by other efforts that address the factors that contribute to burnout. Possible areas for improvement may include “inefficient workplace processes, excessive workloads, and negative leadership behaviors.”

Source: JAMA Open Network

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