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Getting Serious About People Over Profit: Addressing Burnout by Establishing Meaning and Connection
Physician Leadership Journal ; 9(4):29-35, 2022.
Article in English | ProQuest Central | ID: covidwho-1989459
ABSTRACT
Interventions to promote healthy sleep may reduce physician burnout susceptibility.5 An extensive study of physicians reported sleep-related impairment in 40% of attending physicians and 51% of house staff physicians.6 There was large correlation between sleeprelated impairment and interpersonal disengagement, work exhaustion, and overall burnout.6 After adjustment for other variables, high sleep impairment levels increased the odds of self-reporting a clinically significant medical error by 96%.6 Besides medical errors, sleep-related impairment and occupational distress have also been associated with unsolicited patient complaints. Activities that enhance social supports (e.g., peer support programs and Balint groups) and add meaning to work (e.g., professional development time, mentorship, time to develop connections with patients, etc.) are likely to provide some benefit, as they support physicians' capacity to maintain perspective, sense of purpose, and enhance sense of control over their situation.9,10 One study showed such a group normalized struggles, reduced isolation, and provided new strategies for navigating challenging interactions.11 In another study, self-facilitated physician small-group meetings improved burnout, symptoms of depression, and job satisfaction.12 Although rates of burnout among physicians have grown, physicians are resilient when compared to other occupational groups. A recent review found the rate of burnout among nurses working in hospitals ranged widely from 5% to 50%, based on specialty differences and geographical regions.14 More specifically, the review indicated the overall prevalence of emotional exhaustion was 34.1%, of depersonalization 12.6%, and of lack of personal accomplishment 15.2%.15 This same review took COVID-19 into account and noted nurse burnout risk factors as younger age, decreased social support, low family and colleague readiness to cope with COVID-19 outbreak, increased perceived threat of COVID-19, longer working time in quarantine areas, working in a high-risk environment, working in hospitals with inadequate and insufficient material and human resources, increased workload, and lower level of specialized training regarding COVID-19.15 Burnout has many consequences in nurses. Emotional exhaustion is negatively associated with the quality and safety of care, patient satisfaction, nurses' organizational commitment, and productivity.14 Nurse burnout has been a significant factor in predicting medication-associated errors.16 Protective factors in nurses include belief in readiness to cope with COVID-19 outbreaks, willingness to participate in frontline work, prior training and experience in COVID-19 patients' management, safe practices, and increased social support.15 Empathy and nursing organizational climate have been found to be protective against burnout, suggesting this could be targeted in managerial interventions.17 Nursing surveys of three types of work engagement (i.e., vigor, dedication, and absorption) and resiliency suggested some protection from burnout.18 Mindfulness-based interventions could potentially have a protective effect for burnout in nurses.19 (See Table 2 for an overview of how burnout impacts feelings about careers in nurses and physicians.) COVID-19 PANDEMIC AS ACCELERANT TO THE BURN Healthcare workers were already hurting before 2020 and the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Collection: Databases of international organizations Database: ProQuest Central Language: English Journal: Physician Leadership Journal Year: 2022 Document Type: Article

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Collection: Databases of international organizations Database: ProQuest Central Language: English Journal: Physician Leadership Journal Year: 2022 Document Type: Article