Physician stress is on the rise. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, 63% of physicians in the United States have experienced burnout.
The effects of stress span beyond physician well-being. Stress can result in medical errors, including judgemental errors, incorrect diagnosis or technical mishaps. The impact of stress can all too easily seep into healthcare practices and negatively affect patient care. Physicians who refuse to believe they’re experiencing burnout pose the most significant risk regarding mistakes.
Burnout doesn’t just impact physicians in the short term. Continuous burnout results in healthcare workers leaving their careers altogether.
To safeguard the healthcare system and keep valuable practitioners in thriving careers, everyone in the industry must address the issue of burnout. Technology plays a key role in helping streamline tasks, which is a huge driver in reducing physician stress and improving patient care.
In this article, we’ll discuss the detrimental effects of physician burnout and the integral role of technology in reducing stress, and creating a healthier work-life balance.
Improving the healthcare system starts with addressing the causes of physician burnout.
Focusing on physicians’ well-being will translate to a better patient experience. While many jobs can lead to burnout, the prevalence among physicians is ten percent higher than in other careers.
When you can identify the causes of physician burnout and recognize the implications, you can seek informed solutions.
Burnout is specific to work-related stress, but triggers can vary based on the job and circumstances. For healthcare workers, several particular factors can lead to burnout, including:
The physical, mental, and emotional toll of work-related stress significantly impacts physicians and the healthcare system.
Both individual healthcare providers and the entire health system are affected by physician burnout.
1. Impact on physician well-being
The ability to qualify symptoms of burnout makes it easier to identify. The Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI), published in 1981 was the first burnout measurement system. The MBI provides a comprehensive measurement of burnout for healthcare workers.
By bringing attention to the physical and emotional changes of burnout, physicians can help avoid medical errors. To assess burnout, the Maslach Burnout Inventory looks at three main components:
2. Impact on medical care
Beyond personal well-being, burnout can significantly impact the quality of medical care. Doctors facing problems like feeling exhausted, disconnected, and less effective in their work might end up negatively impacting patients. Physician burnout can lead to:
Providing exceptional care to patients is the primary responsibility of physicians. Significant mistakes may occur if stressors are causing changes in behavior and a lapse in judgment.
The link between burnout and poor patient care cannot be understated. Research shows that doctors who show signs of burnout are two times more likely to have made a medical error. Burnout is an even greater risk for doctors who work in outpatient settings than those working in inpatient facilities.
Physicians suffering from burnout may become uninterested in their care role. Patients will likely sense a lack of compassion and attentiveness during their appointments.
When doctors are disinterested, patients will be less happy with their care. And when patients are no longer happy with their care, they’ll likely move to another clinic. After all, patients want to feel like their physician genuinely cares about their well-being.
As stress accumulates, physicians may struggle to keep up, leading to inefficiencies in the healthcare system. Longer wait times for appointments and test results can create a bottleneck of patients and a negative patient experience.
When burnout peaks, physicians may decide to leave the field altogether.
Premature departure can negatively impact patients, create turnover costs, and lower morale. Should a primary care physician leave their role, patients may be subject to fragmented care and gaps in communication.
There are many risks to patient care when a physician faces burnout. Tackling workplace stressors before they escalate is integral to providing consistent and appropriate care.
As with many other professions, technology-driven solutions can improve work-life balance. By addressing administrative burdens, healthcare providers can focus on providing exceptional patient care. The following technologies can enhance your healthcare setting and reduce burnout.
Traditional ways of capturing patient information during appointments can interfere with providing optimal care.
Electronic Health Records provide a secure way to document interactions while reducing administrative tasks. EHR can update records with voice notes or templates, allowing you to focus on your patients.
Some EHR software can also provide clinical guidelines on specific conditions and help prevent errors such as medication interactions.
Managing administrative tasks can be challenging for a primary care physician.
Whether it’s record-keeping or appointment scheduling, there are several ways to streamline overwhelming tasks. A virtual medical receptionist is one solution that can provide a better patient experience while lessening your administrative burden.
Live call and chat support provide integral communication for patients while giving you more time back. Real-time messages provide you with the up-to-date information you need regarding your practice.
Patients may not necessarily need to visit your office in person, depending on their concerns. The option for telemedicine appointments can provide flexibility to your patient and yourself.
Whether patients schedule virtual appointments online or with a medical receptionist, they’ll receive an appointment link via an electronic service. Some medical receptionist services can also send automatic email and text appointment reminders to clients to reduce your no-show rate.
Integrating telemedicine technology allows you to take control of your schedule and offers a remote work solution. Virtual visits are also beneficial for monitoring your patients and expanding access to care.
Connecting with other physicians helps you establish a reliable network of peers. You can communicate with colleagues to discuss patient care, confide in one another, and learn together.
Establishing an online community with like-minded individuals is also beneficial for mental health. After having difficult patient outcomes, you can lean on other physicians and share your experiences.
One way to use a collaborative platform further is to combine it with a scheduling app. Physicians nearby can contact one another for shift coverage and find nearby support. You’ll be less stressed knowing your patients still receive care, even if you can’t make it.
Even if you share on-call duties, your patients can connect to the right physician. An after-hours reception service can integrate your schedule and direct calls appropriately.
It’s not always easy to see opportunities for improvement within your clinic. Data analytics software can improve the patient experience by pinpointing inefficiencies. You can then use these insights to create actionable improvement strategies.
The insights through data analytics can also help you address delays in clinical documentation and meet patient demand more effectively.
As a physician, you can’t provide optimal care when you’re not feeling your best. Mobile health apps can help you manage your well-being and prioritize daily self-care.
With tools like mindfulness offerings, meditation instructions, and stress-reduction techniques, there are many ways to maintain balance. Finding a personalized approach that works for you can help prevent burnout before it escalates.
Without a doubt, stress and exhaustion have consequences for both individual physicians’ well-being and the overall health of the healthcare system. And as healthcare continues to change, dealing with physician burnout is more crucial than ever.
Fortunately, technology provides a hopeful way to ease physician’s workloads. By embracing innovative solutions and prioritizing physician well-being, we can cultivate a more resilient healthcare system.
Our 24/7 virtual medical receptionists can help ease the burden in your office.
Book your free consultation today to discuss how WellReceived can support your practice and alleviate physician burnout today.
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