Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

Can doctors recover from burnout?

Sara Taylor, MD
Physician
December 19, 2017
Share
Tweet
Share

The question was recently posed on Twitter about how long it takes to recover from burnout, even when positive changes have been made. I have considered burnout from many angles, both personally and professionally, and had not really considered this question specifically before.

Physician burnout has come to the forefront of discussions in the medical community for both physicians and organizations. With burnout cited as impacting over 50 percent of practicing physicians in the United States, and similar figures expected here elsewhere, it becomes apparent why a sense of urgency exists around this physician health concern.

But what really is burnout?

You can find many variations of the definition of burnout, but they all contain the same three underpinnings: exhaustion, cynicism and decreased effectiveness at work. I don’t know about you, but I find this definition difficult to put into a real-life context. I believe this is why burnout is so insidious and under-recognized before it goes on to more serious consequences such as mental illness, substance misuse, relationship breakdowns and, tragically, suicide.

My husband Colin, also a physician, was quite burned out before we were able to put the pieces together. When does work stress reach that critical tipping point of too much, and our ability to cope becomes more difficult? From all of my work and research in this area, it really depends on the individual. The factors leading to burnout may be more generalizable, but our reaction to those stressors is so complex when you consider all of the other variables such as supports, health, self-awareness, stress-relieving activities, etc.

What causes burnout?

Although work burnout impacts other professions as well, when it comes to physicians, many identifiable influences, all in the form of stressors, exist. Right now, much of the research and many intervention strategies are aimed at organizational causes such as: regulatory metrics (output driven indicators, satisfaction measures), the time lost to clerical input (electronic medical records entry) and increasing complexity of medicine (continuous new guidelines and protocols), just to name a few.

The practice of medicine itself cannot be overlooked as a significant cause — continuous exposure to human suffering, patient expectations with internet searches and online doctor ratings, the ever-increasing workload (often organizational driven). To narrow down the causes, I believe that lack of control and lack of autonomy are two of the more impactful ones.

How can burnout be managed?

Back to an individual approach to physician burnout, Colin and I both believe that the management of burnout has to be individualized as well. This may be contrary to some people’s way of thinking, especially given the push for the need for organizational changes. Although we agree that these changes need to happen, they are not likely to be the entire solution. Given that some people are more prone to burnout than others, a one-size-fits-all approach cannot be the sole answer. <

An inevitable need to address emotional intelligence, self-care, and dare I say resilience (it has become a bit overplayed in this discussion, but cannot be downplayed), exists in this context. For example, self-awareness, emotional regulation and empathy are highly adaptive qualities as a leader — both personal leadership and professional leadership. Setting boundaries, perspective and taking care of one’s well-being are all very important parts of this conversation.

Can you fully recover from burnout?

So back to the question: Can you fully recover from burnout? Burnout is a syndrome, or a constellation of symptoms, representative of a bigger problem. No true measure exists to diagnose burnout except for questionnaires often used for research such as the Maslach Burnout Inventory.

In a comprehensive article by Christina Maslach and Michael Leiter, “Understanding the Burnout Experience: Recent Research and Its Implications for Psychiatry,” they do touch on the treatment of burnout with the caveat that much work is to be done in the area. Some of the general themes that emerged include the following:

  • Improving engagement
  • Workload modifications
  • Recovery initiatives
  • Strategies to improve workplace civility
  • Peer support

So, in an attempt to answer this question, I invite you to consider some other points:

  • External variables will always be fluid and subject to change
  • How do we tackle erosion of meaning in work except at an individual level?
  • Doesn’t this fluctuate too?
  • Building communities can work, but what does the impact of difficult community members have on it?
  • The one thing we have control over is our internal environment and how we react to external forces

Physician burnout is dynamic and ever-changing, on a day-to-day individual level, and on a broader systems/organizational level. We need to keep the conversation going, support one another and find creative ways to help every physician prevent and manage burnout.

ADVERTISEMENT

Sara Taylor is a family physician who blogs at Sara T., MD. 

Image credit: Shutterstock.com

Prev

Why nurse practitioners train on the backs of physicians

December 19, 2017 Kevin 41
…
Next

What does it mean to be an accredited investor?

December 20, 2017 Kevin 0
…

Tagged as: Primary Care, Psychiatry

Post navigation

< Previous Post
Why nurse practitioners train on the backs of physicians
Next Post >
What does it mean to be an accredited investor?

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

More by Sara Taylor, MD

  • Refuel and engage: small tweaks towards addressing burnout

    Sara Taylor, MD
  • 3 ways to fight physician burnout

    Sara Taylor, MD
  • Is your spouse experiencing physician burnout?

    Sara Taylor, MD

Related Posts

  • Chasing numbers contributes to physician burnout

    DrizzleMD
  • Almost half of health care workers are not doctors and nurses. Health policies must address their burnout too.

    Irving Gold
  • Here’s what Dr. Seuss can teach real doctors about burnout

    Stacey Searson, MD
  • Physician burnout is as much a legal problem as it is a medical one

    Sharona Hoffman, JD
  • Despite physician burnout, medical schools are still hard to get into. Why is that?

    Suneel Dhand, MD
  • Doctors die. But the good ones leave a legacy.

    Jaime B. Gerber, MD

More in Physician

  • Why wanting more from your medical career is a sign of strength

    Maureen Gibbons, MD
  • How a rainy walk helped an oncologist rediscover joy and bravery

    Dr. Damane Zehra
  • How inspiration and family stories shape our most meaningful moments

    Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA
  • A day in the life of a WHO public health professional in Meghalaya, India

    Dr. Poulami Mazumder
  • Why women doctors are still mistaken for nurses

    Emma Fenske, DO
  • Adriana Smith’s story: a medical tragedy under heartbeat laws

    Nicole M. King, MD
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Why removing fluoride from water is a public health disaster

      Steven J. Katz, DDS | Conditions
    • When did we start treating our lives like trauma?

      Maureen Gibbons, MD | Physician
    • Mastering medical presentations: Elevating your impact

      Harvey Castro, MD, MBA | Physician
    • Why wanting more from your medical career is a sign of strength

      Maureen Gibbons, MD | Physician
    • Why what doctors say matters more than you think [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • The hidden incentives driving frivolous malpractice lawsuits

      Howard Smith, MD | Physician
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why tracking cognitive load could save doctors and patients

      Hiba Fatima Hamid | Education
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • The silent toll of ICE raids on U.S. patient care

      Carlin Lockwood | Policy
    • Addressing the physician shortage: How AI can help, not replace

      Amelia Mercado | Tech
    • Why medical students are trading empathy for publications

      Vijay Rajput, MD | Education
    • Bureaucracy over care: How the U.S. health care system lost its way

      Kayvan Haddadan, MD | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • Why wanting more from your medical career is a sign of strength

      Maureen Gibbons, MD | Physician
    • U.S. health care leadership must prepare for policy-driven change

      Lee Scheinbart, MD | Policy
    • Why the pre-med path is pushing future doctors to the brink

      Jordan Williamson, MEd | Education
    • Why the fear of being forgotten is stronger than the fear of death [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • How a rainy walk helped an oncologist rediscover joy and bravery

      Dr. Damane Zehra | Physician
    • How inspiration and family stories shape our most meaningful moments

      Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA | Physician

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

View 10 Comments >

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Why removing fluoride from water is a public health disaster

      Steven J. Katz, DDS | Conditions
    • When did we start treating our lives like trauma?

      Maureen Gibbons, MD | Physician
    • Mastering medical presentations: Elevating your impact

      Harvey Castro, MD, MBA | Physician
    • Why wanting more from your medical career is a sign of strength

      Maureen Gibbons, MD | Physician
    • Why what doctors say matters more than you think [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • The hidden incentives driving frivolous malpractice lawsuits

      Howard Smith, MD | Physician
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why tracking cognitive load could save doctors and patients

      Hiba Fatima Hamid | Education
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • The silent toll of ICE raids on U.S. patient care

      Carlin Lockwood | Policy
    • Addressing the physician shortage: How AI can help, not replace

      Amelia Mercado | Tech
    • Why medical students are trading empathy for publications

      Vijay Rajput, MD | Education
    • Bureaucracy over care: How the U.S. health care system lost its way

      Kayvan Haddadan, MD | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • Why wanting more from your medical career is a sign of strength

      Maureen Gibbons, MD | Physician
    • U.S. health care leadership must prepare for policy-driven change

      Lee Scheinbart, MD | Policy
    • Why the pre-med path is pushing future doctors to the brink

      Jordan Williamson, MEd | Education
    • Why the fear of being forgotten is stronger than the fear of death [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • How a rainy walk helped an oncologist rediscover joy and bravery

      Dr. Damane Zehra | Physician
    • How inspiration and family stories shape our most meaningful moments

      Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA | Physician

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Can doctors recover from burnout?
10 comments

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...