Thursday, September 9, 2010

Physician burnout: what's the solution?

There have been a number of articles over the years evaluating physician burnout. Due to changes in reimbursement over the past few decades, physicians are often seeing more patients each day. They're spending less time with each patient and they're burning out because of the increased workload, the paperwork, and the stress associated with the practice of clinical medicine. So, what's the solution?

We know that some physicians are leaving clinical practice to pursue other careers. Others are looking for less strenuous work models such as cash or concierge practices. Is this the right solution? Are these physicians finding better work/life balance after making these types of transitions?

I think the solution needs to start in the medical schools. Students need to be educated about the importance of work/life balance and they also need to learn how to creatively develop practice models that will allow them to reach an appropriate balance. Our health care system also needs to be changed so that physicians are being adequately reimbursed for their services.

For those who do choose to leave clinical medicine, they need to know how to find the right opportunities. If you're a surgeon and you want to pursue a non-clinical career, do you know what you could do with your education and training? What if you're a radiologist or a pathologist? If you're considering a career transition, you may want to work with a career coach who can guide you through that process. Click here to learn about the career coaching services we offer on NonClinicalJobs.com.

No comments:

Post a Comment