Clinician burnout is a growing public health concern, with the National Academy of Sciences reporting that 35-54% of US nurses and physicians exhibit substantial symptoms of burnout.
Research led by the College of Health and Human Services at George Mason University found that health care professionals were more than twice as likely to report burnout with higher levels of anxiety and frustration than those who reported lower levels of anxiety and frustration. Additionally, primary care physicians reported burnout at twice the rate of other health care professionals in primary care practices.
Dr Debora Goldberg, associate professor of health administration and policy, led the new study, one of the few that have examined anxiety as a component of burnout and the rate of burnout among different professionals in a primary care practice.
"Burnout is a syndrome characterised by high emotional exhaustion, high depersonalisation, and a low sense of personal accomplishment from work," explains Goldberg. "It is important to understand how health care professionals respond to these changes and if certain groups are more likely to experience burnout and why. This is critical due to the tremendous amount of change taking place in the health care industry, projected physician and nurse shortages, and most recently the extraordinary responsibilities placed on them during the COVID-19 pandemic."
The research team surveyed 1,273 healthcare professionals from 154 primary care practices in Virginia. They used the Change Diagnostic Index© (CDI) to assess the participants' feelings, emotions, and attitudes following organisational and technological change.
They found that rates of burnout varied by profession in primary care practices.
Physicians reported the highest rates of burnout at 31.6%, nearly twice the rate of other staff in these practices: 17.2% of advanced practice clinicians, 18.9% of clinical support staff, and 17.5% of administrative staff.
Physicians who experienced increasing anxiety and withdrawal were more than three times as likely to report burnout compared to those who did not experience high levels of these domains. Anxiety was high across health care professionals and anxiety significantly raised the odds of burnout across health care professionals.
"This is not just a physician problem," explains Goldberg. "These findings tell us that we need to prioritise understanding and addressing clinician burnout at a system level and at a local level. The human cost as well as significant physician shortages expected in the future make this a critical public health concern."
The researchers suggest that a better understanding of how health care professionals respond to change and burnout can help guide programs and services to support individuals experiencing burnout and build strong work environments to prevent burnout among healthcare professionals in the future.
Abstract
Background: The rising prevalence of burnout among physicians and other healthcare professionals has become a major concern in the United States. Identifying indicators of burnout could help reduce negative consequences such as turnover, loss of productivity, and adverse health behaviors. The goal of this study was to examine whether individual behaviors and attitudes towards major disruptive change has an effect on workplace burnout.
Methods: This study analyzed survey responses from 1273 healthcare professionals from 154 small to medium-sized primary care practices participating in the EvidenceNOW initiative in Virginia. Healthcare professionals' behaviors and attitudes, such as anxiety and withdrawal, were assessed to determine associations with workplace burnout. Results were examined by professional role.
Results: Workplace burnout was reported by 31.6% of the physicians, 17.2% of advanced practice clinicians, 18.9% of clinical support staff, and 17.5% of administrative staff. Regardless of burnout status, results show all healthcare professional groups had high levels of anxiety. Providers had significantly higher scores for anxiety than all other healthcare professionals. Providers who experienced higher levels of anxiety and withdrawal were more than three times as likely to report burnout compared to those who experienced low levels in these domains.
Conclusions: Understanding individual behaviors and attitudes towards disruptive change may help practice leaders and policymakers develop strategies to reduce burnout among healthcare professionals. Programs should focus on strengthening the work environment of small to medium-sized practices to improve organizational capacity for change and address high levels of anxiety experienced by physicians, advanced practice clinicians and staff.
Authors
Debora Goetz Goldberg, Tulay G Soylu, Victoria M Grady, Panagiota Kitsantas, James D Grady, Len M Nichols
[link url="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/05/200520191407.htm"]George Mason University material[/link]
[link url="https://www.jabfm.org/content/33/3/378"]The Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine abstract[/link]