Are physician wellness strategies relevant? Resarch

CANADA: A cross-sectional study carried out recently probes into the relevance and effect of carrying out physician engagement and wellness activities by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto 

Organisational initiatives such as peer support programmes, mentorship programmes and leadership and management programmes for physicians were carried out at the hospital. An online survey was also conducted, in which the physcians at the hospital were invited to answer questions regarding their perceived impact of the wellness initiatives carried out by the hospital. The survey also incorporated the two item, Maslach Burnout Inventory tool.

Analysis of survey results proved that in a total of 103 survey responses (40.9% response rate)  39.8% of the respondents reported experiences of burnout. The participants were of the opinion that issues such as workload, leadership, and virtual medical care were all genuine issues that needed to be discussed

The study concluded that organisational strategies are imperative to address physician burnout and to support physician wellness. Repetitive evaluation of the impact and relevance of initiatives with physicians, conducted by hospitals and healthcare facilities are also important, taking into account organisational culture, external variables participation, and the needs and interest of the physician over time.