Early career physicians cite higher burnout rate

Editor's Note

Findings from a physician survey developed by the American Medical Association and applied with physicians in a large medical group in Texas, showed that while satisfaction was high, so was burnout at a rate of 33% overall and 42.9% among physicians with less than five years’ experience, according to a December 9 news story from American Medical Association (AMA).

The survey findings come from an AMA survey designed to assess organizational culture, practice efficiency, self-care and retention. Overall, survey findings from this medical group helped identify where physicians needed support. For example, one fourth of physicians noted they feel a great deal of stress because of their job and one major source of stress was documentation burden. Specifically, 23.6% of physician respondents reported spending more than eight hours on documentation work outside of work.

One surprising outlier with survey findings was that male physicians in the medical group experienced higher stress compared to their female colleagues. This is despite some established research suggesting the opposite among physicians in general, per the news story. Additionally, while 62.9% of surveyed women physicians noted feeling valued, only 35.7% of male doctors reported the same.

A practice leader overseeing the survey noted that drilling down to data specific to the organization helped identify unique areas for improvement. She also stressed the value of being transparent with the results to direct collaborative, ongoing improvements.