Burnout among physicians

Abstract

Burnout is a common syndrome seen in healthcare workers, particularly physicians who are exposed to a high level of stress at work; it includes emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and low personal accomplishment. Burnout among physicians has garnered significant attention because of the negative impact it renders on patient care and medical personnel. Physicians who had high burnout levels reportedly committed more medical errors. Stress management programs that range from relaxation to cognitive-behavioral and patient-centered therapy have been found to be of utmost significance when it comes to preventing and treating burnout. However, evidence is insufficient to support that stress management programs can help reducing job-related stress beyond the intervention period, and similarly mindfulness-based stress reduction interventions efficiently reduce psychological distress and negative vibes, and encourage empathy while significantly enhancing physicians’ quality of life. On the other hand, a few small studies have suggested that Balint sessions can have a promising positive effect in preventing burnout; moreover exercises can reduce anxiety levels and exhaustion symptoms while improving the mental and physical well-being of healthcare workers. Occupational interventions in the work settings can also improve the emotional and work-induced exhaustion. Combining both individual and organizational interventions can have a good impact in reducing burnout scores among physicians; therefore, multidisciplinary actions that include changes in the work environmental factors along with stress management programs that teach people how to cope better with stressful events showed promising solutions to manage burnout. However, until now there have been no rigorous studies to prove this. More interventional research targeting medical students, residents, and practicing physicians are needed in order to improve psychological well-being, professional careers, as well as the quality of care provided to patients.

Communication Skills Training for Physicians Improves Patient Satisfaction

“…38 Conscientious steps to improve physician satisfaction and engagement are therefore vital for improving the quality of patient care 39 and conveying the important message that healthcare providers are valued and respected as persons. We employed the same process to build relationships with physicians attending the training as the one we encouraged them to use in relating to patients.…”

Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction and Transcendental Meditation: Current State of Research

“…[12][13][14][15] A beneficial effect for patients with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) was repeatedly shown with both TM and MBSR, including improvements in depression, fatigue and tension. 16,17 Generally, MBSR was found to help with insomnia, though it was not superior to cognitive behavioral therapy.…”

Is Balint training associated with the reduced burnout among primary health care doctors?

“…Balint group refers to a method designed to enhancing communication skills among physicians, but also putting emphasis on the doctor–patient relationship [7]. The reason why this education is considered adequate for physicians is not only the improvement of their communication skills but also their psychological skills [8] and training to be able to apply a patient-centered approach [9]. According to Samuel [10], Balint training is based on goals which help doctors to better understand and explore their interpersonal skills and limits, enhance the perception of their communication with patients and blind spots in interactions with them.…”

“…Prevention of physicians’ burnout via Balint groups has been demonstrated in various studies [7,9,13–17]. The term ‘Burnout’ refers to the dimensions of emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and reduced personal accomplishment, which most commonly occur with professionals who provide human care.…”

“…headache, fatigue, gastrointestinal disorders), behavioral, emotional and/or defensive symptoms [22–24]. Albeit there are numerous studies on the relation between Balint groups and burnout, they include either a small number of respondents or only consist of case reports and discussions in Balint groups [7,9,13–17]. The present study represents the first research in Serbia in relation to Balint groups and encompasses a large sample size.…”