Physician Burnout - Who will Save Us?

In this article you will learn why Physician Burnout is a Physician Leadership Issue and what to do when you realize no one is coming to rescue you.

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In articles and comments all over the internet, physicians do the same thing - blame, justify and complain about the work stresses we are under.

It is a futile show of frustration despite the fact that our concerns are legitimate.

On average 1 in 3 physicians are suffering from symptomatic burnout on any give office day. New levels of work stress seem to pile on each week. You can feel the longing to be rescued.

It is as if we are locked high in the castle tower, at the mercy of our evil captors - EMR, ICD-10 and Obamacare. Surely the king of everything that is right has dispatched a brave night to free us.

We shake our fists and ask "who is going to do something about this?" We dream of being rescued from these days of drudgery. This is not what we thought our practice would be like back in training.

All of these concerns are true and valid. AND understand one thing ...

Complaining and dreaming of a rescue is Playing the Victim - Pure and Simple

There is no brave knight coming to save you or anyone else

This only distracts you from Saving Yourself

Let me set a framework for addressing burnout effectively - the straightest path to meaningful change in your work day and your organization.

In the end you will see that Burnout is a Physician Leadership issue.

Physician Burnout Vs. The Bottom Line: The Epic Battle

The wave of consolidation sweeping healthcare in the US is causing wholesale collapse of private practice in many markets. Physicians are trading in their practices for employee status in rapidly growing provider networks usually based on a local hospital system.

Let me show you how this move sets up an invisible Battle that will determine your quality of life … and how to restore Balance as an employee physician.

The Heart of the Healer Physician Wellness Retreat was an amazing time on Orcas Island over our four days together in September

We worked on our Ideal Life and Ideal Practice Descriptions and created BIG and Little Bucket Lists ... with yoga and meditation in the mornings and whale watching and mountain hiking in the afternoons. All in the best summer weather of the year.

Here is a video of the cherry on top of the whole experience - our Float Plane flight back to Civilization

Physician Burnout Podcast

I was the speaker today in a wide ranging 30 minute conversation about the state of physician burnout in healthcare and what can be done about it. We had fun and came to the conclusion that this information needs to be a core curriculum component at the AAMC.