Surgeon General Advisory highlights need to address HCW burnout

Editor's Note

Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, MD, on May 23, issued an Advisory highlighting the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on healthcare workers (HCWs) and the urgent need to address HCW burnout across the country.

Among the Advisory’s recommendations:

• Transforming workplace cultures to empower HCWs and be responsive to their needs.
• Eliminating punitive policies for seeking care for mental health and substance abuse disorders.
• Protecting the health, safety, and well-being of all HCWs.
• Reducing administrative burdens to help HCWs have productive time with patients and colleagues.
• Prioritizing social connections and communities as core values of healthcare.

“The nation’s health depends on the well-being of our health workforce. Confronting long-standing drivers of burnout among our health workers must be a top national priority,” Dr Murthy says.