Healthcare Provider Burnout
Nearly 10 Years of Experience working in hospital systems
Between staffing shortages, safety concerns, insurance hold-ups, and unmanageable caseloads, working in modern healthcare can feel all-consuming and contribute to healthcare burnout. There’s a special type of frustration that comes from loving to help others, making a career of it, and then feeling like you can’t do it anymore due to medical staff exhaustion. When things go well, it's easy to remember why we do the work! When things don’t, we wonder for the ten-millionth time, "Why do I do this, again?" Hopefully, we learn to build flexibility and resiliency from the moments that don't go well. If we're extra lucky, we have excellent colleagues to help share the load. But, those lessons are a lot harder to find when it feels like you’re swimming upstream most days at work, battling provider burnout.
Sound like a "normal" day?
Medical residents are facing significant challenges with the 'hidden curriculum' of healthcare burnout, often experiencing medical staff exhaustion while still trying to manage their coursework. Meanwhile, nurses and floor staff are laboring in understaffed units, where they are pressured to compromise safety and the quality of care, further contributing to provider burnout. Social workers and care managers are tirelessly bridging the ever-widening gap between client needs and a shrinking resource pool, all while navigating the complexities of these demanding environments.
What Healthcare Burnout Looks like
Mental & Physical Exhaustion due to healthcare burnout can lead to worsening feelings of hopelessness and being trapped. Medical staff exhaustion often results in increased apathy, as well as atypical feelings of frustration or anxiety when interacting with patients. This provider burnout can contribute to increased dissatisfaction between staff and management, ultimately causing a general decline in both professional and personal confidence.
