Whether they work in the hospital or in the city, doctors are particularly affected by burnout syndrome, also called burn-out. Who are those affected? In what context does the burnout of health professionals find the ground to settle? And finally what solutions are available to professionals to get by?
What you will learn
In town or in hospital, more than one doctor in two is burned out
Permanent interruptions and requests during the day, numerous and cumbersome administrative tasks, insufficient pause times, feeling of never seeing the waiting room empty … Doctors are very exposed to burnout and various studies indicated that 53% of doctors felt threatened by burnout, and this phenomenon particularly affects general practitioners (60.8%).
Concerning hospital practitioners, for which two psychiatrists from the Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux com Marseille have compiled data from 37 studies conducted between 2010 and 2017. Their observation is frightening: 49% of hospital doctors experience at least one of the three characteristic symptoms of this exhaustion.
What is burnout for doctors?
Chronic stress syndrome according to WHO
Defined by WHO in its eleventh revision to the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11), the burnout is attached to a stress work-related chronicle. The organization specifies that it is "a syndrome resulting from a stress chronic work that has not been successfully managed”.
Weariness, dehumanization, loss of the feeling of accomplishment …
In its most striking manifestations, burnout by doctors takes the form of weariness, loss of the feeling of accomplishment or even dehumanization of care. Burnout is therefore responsible for depression, addiction and even suicide among doctors, especially those working in isolation, in areas with low medical density. It can also cause an increased risk of myocardial infarction or stroke.
Multiple causes of burnout for caregivers
Contrary to what one might think, it is not so much the volume of weekly working hours that will influence the burnout of doctors. Its main roots are often elsewhere according to specialists in this pathology:
- Depersonalization with many brief consultations : the pressure of the consultation time to optimize brings significant depersonalization. The doctor dehumanizes himself and "repairs subjects" more than he treats people;
- The feeling that you can't do your job properly : also called the sensation of work prevented. Here the doctor regrets to be only in the curative and not having the time to educate his patients, to do prevention, to improve their quality of life by his advice or listening.
- The feeling of not evolving / being formed : this problem often crystallizes around a weariness in repetition, combined with the impression of staying put. Caught in his daily rhythm, the practitioner regrets not to evolve in his practice and not to train enough
Identify symptoms of burnout
Three dimensions according to the WHO
According to the World Health Organization, which we cite above, three dimensions characterize burnout:
- Lack of energy or exhaustion;
- A withdrawal from work or negative or cynical feelings related to work;
- A loss of professional efficiency.
Three characteristic symptoms of doctors' burnout
How to tell the difference between temporary tiredness and a real burn-out of the doctor? According to the experts, three characteristic symptoms of burn-out should alert the victim:
- Exhaustion : you are exhausted on one or more of these three levels, Energy (your physical energy), Emotion (capacity for empathy, emotional feeling), Spirit (the "why" that made you choose the beautiful profession of caregiver).
- Cynicism : You have lost your ability to care for your patients, staff and colleagues, you are finding it increasingly difficult to empathize and connect with them. Sometimes you can blame, humiliate or demonize the people you care for – and feel guilty about it immediately.
- The doubt : you start to doubt that your work really makes a difference or you doubt the quality of what you do.
Doctor burn-out: how to get out
Faced with the worrying figures of the number of doctors affected by burn-out, several systems exist.
A national number set up by the CNOM
Since January 2018, any doctor who is in difficulty can be helped by the National Council of the College of Physicians at 0800 288 038 (toll free). This telephone platform is intended for doctors but also for interns in difficulty.
He puts them in touch with doctors of the departmental commission of ordinal assistance or of a regional association of assistance. If necessary, they are also taken care of by a clinical psychologist. This number is open 24/7 and aims to respond to the suffering of doctors, both psychologically and to help those who have financial difficulties.
Take time for yourself, refocus, reorganize your activity
If talking about the problem is a first step to get out of burnout, it is essential to take a step back. This can go through a temporary cessation of work, the time to refocus and seek the meaning that is lacking for those suffering from burnout.
Reorganizing the way you work also seems essential to get rid of this growing feeling of work overload and inability to cope. To go up the slope, it is possible to be accompanied by a caregiver (psychologist) or even to appeal to associations that have become aware of the scope of the problem, such as SPS (Care for Health Professionals).
