Despite highly skilled physicians and advanced technology, the U.S. has not yet figured out how to provide effective affordable health care to everyone. Meanwhile, the health care system is increasingly fractured and stressed—and so are our doctors. Physician burnout impacts nearly half of all seasoned physicians in practice and up to 75% of resident physicians in training1. Over water cooler conversations, as well as in my work as a psychiatrist at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC), I hear more and more physicians report anxiety, stress and emotional exhaustion. Many feel as if they are perpetually swimming upstream; others feel there is no joy or meaning in their work; some want to quit medicine altogether. These good doctors are in crisis in increasingly high numbers — an epidemic that requires immediate attention.
Last year, the UNC School of Medicine launched the Taking Care of Our Own program to address the problem of physician burnout and we have been met with a deluge of physicians asking for help. Burnout, however, is not a diagnosis. It is a constellation of symptoms that include emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and loss of perspective that work is meaningful2. Untreated, burnout syndrome can erode professional behavior at work and healthy relationships at home. This leads to decreased empathy and compassion, poor communication and potentially worse patient outcomes. The personal consequences include disrupted relationships with family and friends, self-medicating with alcohol or other substances, depression and an increased risk of suicide, which is higher among physicians than the general population, in part due to the stigma associated with seeking mental health treatment.
Not a day goes by without my hearing from a physician in distress who has learned about the Taking Care of Our Own program. These conversations have a striking degree of similarity. They typically begin with an apology—a statement about how embarrassing it is to ask for help in dealing with anxiety or depression; or a recent loss; or other emotional stressor that makes it too difficult for the doctor to remain professional and compassionate while managing a demanding workload.
