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More than 90 percent of doctors in the United States report that they regularly feel burned out, while 60 percent say they have considered leaving the profession altogether.
This is according to a survey conducted by healthcare company Athenahealth, which surveyed 1,000 doctors across the country late last year and released its results today.
Many doctors said excess paperwork and patient demands were causing them to burn out, and that they needed to work an extra 15 hours a week on average just to keep up with their workload.
Burnout has increased among doctors in recent years, linked to staffing shortages in the healthcare sector. It is estimated that there are currently 250,000 unfilled jobs as doctors or nurses in the United States.
The above data comes from an Athenahealth survey conducted late last year among physicians.
The report was commissioned by Athenahealth and is the latest in its Physician Sentiment Survey (PSS), which reveals feelings among staff.
Of the physicians, 750 were primary care physicians and 253 were specialists.
They were interviewed for 12 to 13 minutes over two weeks in late October and early November last year.
At the time, the US healthcare system was beginning to battle a ‘triple epidemic’ of Covid, flu and RSV for the second year in a row.
At the peak of the tripledemic, many children’s hospitals were reportedly overwhelmed with patients.
The survey also found that 60 percent of doctors believed they could not spend enough time with each patient.
And 75 percent said they felt overwhelmed by “excessive communication demands” from the patient, such as frequent text messages, calls and emails outside of scheduled visits.
Dr. Nele Jessel, chief medical officer at Athenahealth, said the technology could help ease doctors’ workloads.
In particular, he pointed to AI, which he suggested could help them respond to patient requests.
“If we do this right,” he said, “we will use technology to reduce administrative work and increase efficiency in ways that allow doctors to refocus on their patients.”
The previous survey, conducted in January 2022, found that 49 percent of doctors interviewed said they were burned out.
A total of 63 percent also said they were overwhelmed, while 68 percent said they did not have enough time to spend with patients.
It comes as experts warn of a “massive” crisis affecting the country’s health service, with very few functions covered.
According to estimates, there were around 193,000 vacant positions for nurses in the US during 2023, and around 60,000 vacant positions for doctors.
Many hospital systems have also been rocked by staff strikes in recent months, amid disputes over pay and working conditions.
