24
doc • Spring 2016
Kentucky
Physician Health and Well-Being
Ensuring Medical Staff
Well-Being
By John A Patterson
MD, MSPH, FAAFP
In his role as Chief Medical
Officer for Lexington Clinic,
Robert Bratton MD is concerned about medical staff
well-being in light of the growing awareness
of our national epidemic of physician stress,
burnout and suicide. He says, “I have seen
many of my colleagues battle this in various
ways. Two years ago, we lost one of our physicians to suicide. Most of us never suspected
this desperate act by a colleague who was
obviously struggling. Stress and burnout have a
profound effect on your ability to cope and can
affect your care of your patients. Studies have
shown - if physicians are burned out - they are
less likely to provide high quality care and their
patient satisfaction scores are typically not as
high. Really I don’t think that is any surprise to
us as physicians.”
“Studies have
shown - if
physicians
are burned
out - they
are less likely
to provide
high quality
care and
their patient
satisfaction
scores are
typically not
as high.”
– Robert Bratton MD
He has observed some generational differences between physicians in a couple of
important ways. Physicians under age 50 seem
less stressed by the demands of technology
whereas older physicians often cite technology
as a main source of their practice-related stress.
Early career physicians also seem more aware
of the value of team-based, interdisciplinary
care models, work-life balance and self care,
whereas older physicians are more likely to
have a ‘captain of the ship’ mentality, habitually
leading and dominating rather than co-leading
and collaborating. They are also less likely to
prioritize self-care activities.
He says, “Physicians are faced with everincreasing demands on their personal and
professional lives and especially primary care
physicians who are often left with the vast
amount of paperwork and care coordination
responsibilities that are now necessary to care
for patients. Estimates suggest that at least 400
physicians commit suicide every year. That is
equivalent to 3-4 medical school classes per
year taking their own life. Furthermore, some
studies show that many physicians now discourage others (including their own children)
from going into medicine. With these facts in
mind, I feel it is important to recognize physician burnout and develop ways