Physician burnout is an epidemic in the U.S. health care system, with nearly 63% of physicians reporting signs of burnout such as emotional exhaustion and depersonalization at least once per week.
As a patient you may experience:
- Cynical or negative attitudes or lack of personalization.
- Noticeable emotional exhaustion.
- Rushed visit or short answers to questions that don’t really address a concern.
- Lack of empathy for patients.
The burnout epidemic is often associated with system inefficiencies, administrative burdens and increased regulation and technology requirements. An example of this is every payer or health insurance company has different requirements say for a prior authorization request that may require a peer to peer interview or additional documentation or reports pulled from a electronic health record system. There are more telehealth and follow up emails now required in a post COVID world allowing for 12 hour days.
And the bottom line is this, sadly providers are paid for quantity of services and not quality. While we are seeing some changes in this evolving to value based care…quality care for you, sadly this is still years out.
I am delighted to have Joe Sherman MD on the show today.
Dr. Sherman. is a pediatrician, coach and consultant to physicians and healthcare organizations in the areas of provider well-being, leadership, and career discernment.
His services include individual coaching, medical team support, physician retreats and workshops. He is a trained facilitator with the Center for Courage & Renewal and a Master Certified Physician Development Coach with the Physician Coaching Institute.
I wanted to bring Dr. Sherman on the show to share from the perspective of the physician. If you are frustrated imagine how physicians are feeling. Studies show that during the pandemic burnout rate was as high as 63% more recently it is at 53% still a high rate.
Top 3 specialties are:
1) Emergency medicine — 65 percent of physicians reported burnout
2. Internal medicine — 60 percent
3. Pediatrics — 59 percent
With our healthcare in the current state with no hope on the horizon for healthcare reform, what do we need to know to understand what the physician is going through and how can we work in partnership to support one another for better health.
Welcome to the show Dr. Sherman!
Today we will discuss:
1) How has the culture of medicine contributed to so much disillusionment among doctors?
2) What is the impact of physician burnout and disillusionment on patient care?
3) How has your own life experience led you to your work with physicians and healthcare organizations?
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