Can a humanities background prevent physician burnout?

[摘要] These days, it seems impossible to talk with physicians without hearing about some aspect of discontent with the practice of medicine. There is even a “Physician Misery Index” ( www.geneia.com ), and the name says it all. These conversations cover a gamut of concerns including reimbursement, reduced time spent with patients, increased regulatory oversight, the need for preapproval for testing and prescriptions, maintenance of certification, and of course for those of us who have been doing this for a while, there are the challenges of the electronic medical record (EMR). In the old days, we used to bore our nonmedical friends and family with energetic, jargonized discussions of diagnostic and therapeutic enigmas. Now, we numb them with our complaints about what we increasingly view as a job. At the extreme, this discontent sears our professional being and results in early retirement, change of profession, and, for many, searching for ways to limit clinical practice time—while often saying how much they wish they could “just practice medicine.” Such are some of the manifestations of burnout.

[学科分类] 卫生学