Healthcare Professional Burnout: Contributors, Consequences & Solutions

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guest: Colin P. West, M.D., Ph.D. The practice of medicine is often stressful and at times, even frustrating. Sometimes the stress and frustration can get out of hand and lead us to feeling overwhelmed and hopeless. This has been described as burnout. There’s good evidence to suggest that well over half of all physicians practicing in the U.S. have exhibited some symptoms of burnout at some time during their career. Healthcare professional burnout not only has negative consequences for the clinician, but also for patients, as patient care can often suffer. What are the symptoms of burnout, can we prevent them and how can we manage those who are experiencing professional burnout? We’ll discuss these questions and more with Colin P. West, M.D., Ph.D., an internist in the Division of General Internal Medicine at the Mayo Clinic. Connect with the Mayo Clinic’s School of Continuous Professional Development online at https://ce.mayo.edu/ or on Twitter @MayoMedEd.