ENTtoday
  • Home
  • COVID-19
  • Practice Focus
    • Allergy
    • Facial Plastic/Reconstructive
    • Head and Neck
    • Laryngology
    • Otology/Neurotology
    • Pediatric
    • Rhinology
    • Sleep Medicine
  • Departments
    • Issue Archive
    • TRIO Best Practices
      • Allergy
      • Facial Plastic/Reconstructive
      • Head and Neck
      • Laryngology
      • Otology/Neurotology
      • Pediatric
      • Rhinology
      • Sleep Medicine
    • Career Development
    • Case of the Month
    • Everyday Ethics
    • Health Policy
    • Legal Matters
    • Letter From the Editor
    • Medical Education
    • Online Exclusives
    • Practice Management
    • Resident Focus
    • Rx: Wellness
    • Special Reports
    • Tech Talk
    • Viewpoint
    • What’s Your O.R. Playlist?
  • Literature Reviews
    • Allergy
    • Facial Plastic/Reconstructive
    • Head and Neck
    • Laryngology
    • Otology/Neurotology
    • Pediatric
    • Rhinology
    • Sleep Medicine
  • Events
    • Featured Events
    • TRIO Meetings
  • Contact Us
    • About Us
    • Editorial Board
    • Triological Society
    • Advertising Staff
    • Subscribe
  • Advertise
    • Place an Ad
    • Classifieds
    • Rate Card
  • Search

Work Overload: Sense of achievement key to combating professional burnout

by Gina Shaw • August 2, 2011

  • Tweet
  • Email
Print-Friendly Version

Strategies

How can burnout among otolaryngologists be alleviated? Part of the challenge, Dr. Teknos said, is the fact that the level of burnout, and the reasons for it, vary depending on the level of a physician’s career. "Based on this and other studies that have been done, we can see that residents are in the worst shape. Essentially, 86 percent of residents in otolaryngology are either highly or moderately burnt out," he explained. "Next are the chairs, followed by microvascular surgeons, followed by academic faculty."

You Might Also Like

  • Ethical Implications of Burnout in Otolaryngology Residents
  • Ethical Implications of Burnout in Residents
  • Call of Duty: Personal, Professional Merits of Humanitarian Work
  • Generation Gap: Combating “fogeyphobia” in the workplace
Explore This Issue
August 2011

For residents, the biggest determinant of burnout is emotional exhaustion, caused primarily by a lack of balance between personal and professional life. "The number one thing that residents say really affects their burnout level is insufficient time for exercise and insufficient extracurricular time."

Chairs, on the other hand, report that their biggest stressors relate to departmental budgets and deficits, billing audits, disputes with the dean and loss of faculty. "Theirs are more global, high-level issues," Dr. Teknos said. "For faculty in general, their biggest stressors are inadequate research time and low collections, then departmental budgets and inadequate administrative time. Microvascular surgeons are most stressed by excess workload and work invading family life."

With all these varied stressors, why is it that residents in otolaryngology are the most burnt out of all? It’s what they don’t have, Dr. Teknos said. "For most faculty, what balances off the emotional exhaustion and depersonalization of their careers is that they have a high sense of personal accomplishment. Residents, because of where they are professionally, don’t have that sense of achievement."

This particular insight may point to useful interventions for combating burnout, said Michael Johns III, MD, director of the Emory Voice Center and associate professor of otolaryngology at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta and a author of both studies. "Medicine is a flow experience; if you really enjoy what you’re doing and have a strong sense of personal accomplishment, you’re not worried about hours spent doing it. Across the board, the less control you have over your own destiny, the more burnt out you’re going to be. So trying to create situations where residents, faculty and chairs have some control over what they’re doing is key."

In an academic medical center setting, that might mean building in a certain amount of discretionary "clinical-academic" time for faculty members. "I’ve got some of that time, and it’s my choice as to whether I see patients, take on a teaching role in the school of medicine or apply for more research grants," Dr. Johns said. "It gives me a certain autonomy." For residents, that’s harder to do, Dr. Johns acknowledged. "You can give them some elective time, but they’re already overloaded."

Pages: 1 2 3 | Single Page

Filed Under: Career Development, Practice Management Tagged With: academic otolaryngology, morale, work life balanceIssue: August 2011

You Might Also Like:

  • Ethical Implications of Burnout in Otolaryngology Residents
  • Ethical Implications of Burnout in Residents
  • Call of Duty: Personal, Professional Merits of Humanitarian Work
  • Generation Gap: Combating “fogeyphobia” in the workplace

The Triological SocietyENTtoday is a publication of The Triological Society.

The Laryngoscope
Ensure you have all the latest research at your fingertips; Subscribe to The Laryngoscope today!

Laryngoscope Investigative Otolaryngology
Open access journal in otolaryngology – head and neck surgery is currently accepting submissions.

Classifieds

View the classified ads »

TRIO Best Practices

View the TRIO Best Practices »

Top Articles for Residents

  • Do Training Programs Give Otolaryngology Residents the Necessary Tools to Do Productive Research?
  • Why More MDs, Medical Residents Are Choosing to Pursue Additional Academic Degrees
  • What Physicians Need to Know about Investing Before Hiring a Financial Advisor
  • Tips to Help You Regain Your Sense of Self
  • Should USMLE Step 1 Change from Numeric Score to Pass/Fail?
  • Popular this Week
  • Most Popular
  • Most Recent
    • The Dramatic Rise in Tongue Tie and Lip Tie Treatment
    • Vertigo in the Elderly: What Does It Mean?
    • Experts Delve into Treatment Options for Laryngopharyngeal Reflux
    • Some Laryngopharyngeal Reflux Resists PPI Treatment
    • Weaning Patients Off of PPIs
    • Vertigo in the Elderly: What Does It Mean?
    • New Developments in the Management of Eustachian Tube Dysfunction
    • Some Laryngopharyngeal Reflux Resists PPI Treatment
    • Eustachian Tuboplasty: A Potential New Option for Chronic Tube Dysfunction and Patulous Disease
    • The Dramatic Rise in Tongue Tie and Lip Tie Treatment
    • Podcasts Becoming More Popular Method of Education for Otolaryngologists
    • How to Embrace Optimism in the Midst of the COVID-19 Pandemic
    • Tips on How to Approach Conversations with Patients about the COVID-19 Vaccine
    • Steps You Should Take to Protect Your Voice and Hearing During Telemedicine Sessions
    • Routine Postoperative Adjunct Treatments Unnecessary for Idiopathic Cerebrospinal Fluid Leaks

Polls

Have you spoken with your patients about receiving the COVID-19 vaccine?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...
  • Polls Archive
  • Home
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use

Visit: The Triological Society • The Laryngoscope • Laryngoscope Investigative Otolaryngology

Wiley
© 2021 The Triological Society. All Rights Reserved.
ISSN 1559-4939

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.
This site uses cookies: Find out more.