As you read this, doctors are on the frontlines fighting a global pandemic. Lives depend on their skills and expertise, but what often gets overlooked is the fact that doctors are still prone to stress. Sure enough, according to a report by Medscape, more than 42% of physicians across various specialties say they are burned out.
Burnout is still a common occurrence among physicians and it’s a matter that practitioners and healthcare institutions should take seriously. After all, doctors are human like us and they deserve a break from their daily challenges. The issue of stress and burnout in the medical field continues to be a critical topic in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, so it’s important to explore the options that are currently available to people in the medical field. Here are a few key solutions:
1. Creating a culture of collaboration
At the organizational level, administrators will need to establish a robust program for engaging the needs of physicians and specialists. Initiatives such as mental health interventions and counseling not only encourages productivity but improves personnel retention. These should also involve physicians in the decision-making mechanisms of the organization.
Not all policies are reflective of what’s happening on the ground, so giving physicians a place in “higher up” conversations creates a culture of trust and collaboration. This, in turn, simplifies complex processes and leads to better outcomes for the whole organization.
2. Training for bigger roles
Indeed, much of the occupational stress that doctors experience stems from a lack of professional support. When you have multiple specialists doing the same tasks without giving them an opportunity to expand their horizons, you risk creating an avenue where job dissatisfaction is rampant. One way to correct this is to invest in job enrichment and build an environment where constant learning is emphasized.
This keeps the organization from thinning itself out with only a few specialists capable of handling certain tasks such as administering anesthesia or handling data security. In addition, providing doctors with enough autonomy to apply newly-acquired skills helps enhance productivity and bring innovation to the fore. Through skill development programs and participation in workshops, conferences, and team-building should be considered along these lines.
3. Developing a stress engagement program
Work stress interventions are critical to any organization, and that goes for hospitals and clinics. There is always a need to draft a game plan for knowing how to keep physicians and other practitioners engaged and prevent the onset of stress.
There are a number of ways you can go about this. For one, you may opt for a more workable shift-rotation scheme. Psycho-physiological needs should also be met, so if your organization is based in Washington, you may recommend a Seattle pain relief clinic or pain management center that’s capable of addressing stress-induced conditions such as fibromyalgia.
Stress is rampant in the medical field because practitioners are committed to providing quality life-saving services. Organizations will only need to confront the reality that doctors, nurses, attendants and everyone else down the line require enough support, especially now as healthcare systems are met by unprecedented challenges.
