OP-ED: The Early Beginnings of Physician Burnout By Hadijat Audu, MD and Jasmine Gray, MD Psychiatry Fellows at Charles R. Drew University
Dr. Hadijat Audu Dr. Jasmine Gray
Every year hundreds of medical students participate in a joyous occasion referred to as the“ White Coat Ceremony” in anticipation of embarking on their journey to become an esteemed physician. That ceremony is a rite of passage for medical students. A white coat is placed on each student’ s shoulders. Often the Hippocratic Oath is recited, signifying their entrance into the profession. While the resultant rigors of obtaining a medical education and the taxing requirements associated with becoming a licensed professional are for the most part well known, there has been an underreported factor: the hefty psychological toll often endured by physicians in addition to a burdensome student loan debt. Sadly, and perhaps less publicized until more recently, according to Medscape, the website providing access to information for clinicians and medical scientists, about 1 in 10 physicians said they had thought about or attempted suicide. Recent Studies have shown that suicidal thoughts among physicians is higher than in the general population, 7.2 % vs. 4 %.
Physician burnout, an occupational pattern characterized by exhaustion, depersonalization, pessimism, and a decreased sense of accomplishment, currently is on the rise in the United States. While research has revealed that the COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to the increasing rate of physician burnout, this phenomenon has origins extending far beyond the onset of the pandemic. Of note, It is worth considering that burnout is one of the centerpieces in the education and training of a physician.
Physician training and accompanying burnout, begins when many aspirants matriculate to college as premedical students, which adds additional rigors to the education process. Add to the already heavy academic burden, many physicians in training are unable to independently shoulder the cost of higher education. which leads to their having to incur student loans. Such financial strain adds further stress to an already overwhelming circumstance, as students face the unrelenting pressure of sustaining academic success, followed by paying for obligatory medical school applications and interviews.
Argument # 1: Failing to successfully mitigate or at least decrease physician stress and burnout leads to dire outcomes.
It is an occupational maxim that physicians will face many stressors during their professional employment in the field of medicine and experience negative consequences as result. In fact, many of these individuals will begin to feel strained beginning with their tenure as a student. A systematic review and meta-analysis conducted by Rotenstein and Ramos, et. al., found that 27 % of medical students screened positive for depression and 11 % reported suicidal ideation during medical school. Similarly, 28 % of residents screened positive for depression and 60 % for burnout.
In addition, Li and Shah reported that,“ Ultimately, 14 of 21 studies found links between burnout and clinically significant errors. Significant associations exist between burnout and medical errors. Physician demographics, including psychological factors, well-being, and training level, modulate this relationship. These findings, which only represent a fraction of the data available via literature review, show that efforts to address this issue must begin
CDU College of Medicine | PG. 43