Daniel Orlovich is an anesthesiology resident who blogs at Insights on Residency Training, a part of NEJM Journal Watch.

It’s time to rename resident burnout

Physician
August 20, 2020

It is time we stopped framing resident burnout in a certain way. Let’s be honest, the current descriptions give us nothing to build on.

How is burnout currently framed? 

In a strict academic sense, we are guided by clear, globally accepted definitions. We are familiar with Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, depersonalization, emotional exhaustion, and reduced personal accomplishment, as well as the various questionnaires and indexes.

However, in the real world, in the hospital and clinics, …

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It’s time to rename resident burnout

How minor fixes can help with resident burnout

Education
February 11, 2020

“How did you like it there?” I ask, sitting down next to a new fellow (between bites of a plump sandwich, hoping there is no spinach in my teeth).

I expect to hear the standard resident talking points — long hours, frequent call, and ballooning student loans. Instead, she surprises me.

“Do you know how much they charged us to park there every month?”

I frequently text friends who are residents at her previous program. It is a …

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How minor fixes can help with resident burnout

How medical humanities can help physician burnout

Physician
October 10, 2016

Something odd happens in medical school. It affects you as a patient, me as a provider, and state and federal budgets.

For the first two years of medical school, empathy levels stay the same while we bubble in multiple choice questions. Then third year comes. Eagerly, we drop the backpacks and pick up the stethoscope ready to see real life patients. What happens during this long awaited year? Read more…

How medical humanities can help physician burnout