Physician Stress: What’s Causing It & How to Deal with It

A recent study from Physician Wellness Services (PWS) and Cejka Search revealed some troubling findings on physician stress levels.

Of the 2,000 physicians surveyed, 87% reported being moderately-to-severely stressed or burned out on an average day.

Stress has a major impact on individual well-being and job performance, no matter one’s career. The critical nature of a physician’s responsibilities, though, makes it hugely important for doctors to manage stress effectively.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem that they are. PWS and Cejka found that 63% of physicians are more stressed out today than they were three years ago, raising the risks of stress present to their employers, their patients, and themselves.

“The implications of this are serious, both for individual physicians and for healthcare organizations,” said Alan Rosenstein, MD, the medical director at PWS.

“The problem is that it’s much more intense than one realizes and can frequently lead to frustration, dissatisfaction, fatigue, burnout and depression which can interfere with job, home life, and physician well-being.”

Roots of the Problem
For the past three years, economic woes have plagued most Americans, and physicians have not been excluded from such concerns.

Docs listed the state of the U.S. economy as their top external stress factor, and their worries have merit: in a survey from Physicians Practice, only 13.7% of physicians said that the recession had not affected their practice.

Work-related issues, including administrative demands, too many hours, and demanding on-call schedules, were also highly cited as major stress factors.

And if 2011 was a stressful year to be a physician, 2012 may shape up to be even more challenging. HIPAA 5010 enforcement begins in March, mandated conversion to ICD-10 code sets will become more imminent, and Meaningful Use deadlines will continue to loom over tech operations and training.

Addressing the Issue
Stress is a manageable affliction, but some MDs may be hesitant to acknowledge that their stress is negatively affecting them. You can’t manage stress until you’re willing to recognize that it’s a problem.

“As physicians, we need to remind ourselves that we are not invincible, that reacting to stress is not a character defect, and that we can take steps on our own to help adjust to the pressures of the surrounding environment,” says Dr. Rosenstein.

The oft-prescribed, old-fashioned methods of stress relief are valuable for a reason –they work, for providers and patients alike.

Exercise, a healthy diet, and a proper amount of sleep can do a world of good. Schedule downtime for yourself and avoid unnecessary overexertion during your off-hours.

If stress is becoming a major force in your life, take even stronger action. If you own your practice, assess whether bringing another doctor, nonphysician provider, or nurse onto your staff would ease your workload. If necessary, consider if you’d take a pay cut to make room in the budget for the additional support.

If you handle the administrative work of your practice, use technology to lower the amount of stress it causes you. Outsourcing medical billing tasks or utilizing a more technologically advanced practice management system could streamline your processes and lessen your paperwork.

If you have superiors, air your concerns to them and see if adjustments can be made to your schedule or workload – you may be surprised at their response.

Recruiting doctors is an expensive challenge in today’s physician-short job market. It’s in your employer’s best interests to avoid turnover by keeping you happy and healthy.

“Healthcare organizations need to provide an environment in which physicians can thrive and find and offering solutions to help deal with stress and burnout plays a huge role in that,” says Lori Schutte, president of Cejka Search. “

How do you deal with physician stress in your practice?

Madelyn Young is a Content Writer for CareCloud and an expert on practice management, medical billing, HIPAA 5010, ICD-10 and revenue cycle management. You can read her work on Power Your Practice and the CareCloud Blog. Contact Madelyn with story suggestions, contributor articles, or any other feedback at madelyn@poweryourpractice.com or follow her on Twitter @madelyn_young.


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