MENTAL HEALTH
HOW TO OVERCOME PHYSICIAN BURNOUT AND THRIVE By Nora Vasquez, MD
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re you feeling the effects of physician burnout? If you answered yes, then you are not alone. In fact, for years we have known that occupational burnout affects over 50% of physicians in the United States. What exactly is burnout? Burnout is defined by the World Health Organization as feelings of overwhelming exhaustion, increased cynicism and negativity related to one’s job and reduced professional efficacy. Burnout is an occupational hazard that is expressed due to prolonged exposure to chronic stressors. Occupational stressors that drive physician burnout include, but are not limited to, increased workload, increased charting, lack of staff or resources, loss of autonomy and loss of community. That is to say that even the most resilient physicians are susceptible to burnout due to the demands, challenges and responsibilities placed upon them. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 global pandemic has exacerbated burnout and is contributing to an exodus of highly skilled and talented medical professionals leaving medicine at alarming rates. Hospitals and medical institutions are struggling to retain their workforce or even recruit new staff to alleviate the workload strain. It’s estimated that the cost to replace one physician ranges from $250,000 to $1,000,000. We know that burnout also has a detrimental 16
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cost for physicians personally and professionally. A Mayo study in 2017 revealed that when physicians are burned out, the overall quality of health care delivery suffers. There are more medical errors, decreased satisfaction scores, decreased morale and productivity. Most notably, the personal cost of physician burnout is devastating, as it often leads to depression, substance abuse, broken relationships and even suicide. Alarming data reveals that women physicians’ suicide rate is 130% higher than females in the general population. This is a tragedy that must be addressed at both the medical institutional level as well as on the individual level. As a Board-Certified Internal Medicine Specialist, I experienced the effects of burnout throughout my training and career, but I didn’t even know it at the time. At the height of my burnout, I started noticing that my usual optimistic thoughts were being replaced with dread and more negative thinking. I also recognized that I was feeling less fulfilled at work and so exhausted that resting on the weekends didn’t rejuvenate me. It was then that I knew something had to change. After exploring my options, I decided to hire a physician coach who helped me overcome my burnout and transformed my life for the better. This pivotal experience inspired me to become a Certified Physician
Coach to help medical professionals mitigate burnout so that they too could enjoy the life they worked so hard to create. Since then, I have worked with hundreds of physicians throughout the United States and Canada. As such, I understand the daily challenges physicians struggle with as they lead and serve their patients, while also taking care of their family responsibilities. What is remarkable is that most physicians don’t realize how untreated burnout is preventing them from experiencing true fulfillment in their personal and professional lives. Once they learn the effective skills to overcome burnout and how to implement evidencebased strategies, they can create a work-life balance that allows them to enjoy their life more fully. The good news is that premier leaders at medical schools, hospitals and medical institutions nationwide now recognize the importance of investing and promoting physician coaching and wellness programs. Wellness has been defined as “the complex and multifaceted nature of physicians’ physical, mental and emotional health and well-being.” Every medical student, resident and attending physician deserves to have access to a physician coach. Professional physician coaching is an effective strategy that promotes wellness and is supported by an increasing body of evidence. According to a JAMA article pub-
