Burnout Information


Burnout is felt to be a prevalent syndrome among physicians and health professionals (HP’s).

Burnout is a stress syndrome, felt by sufferers as emotional exhaustion. Its parameters often have somatic (exhaustion, insomnia, GI symptoms, rapid breath), emotional (sadness and depressed mood, negativism, decreased creativity and increased cynicism), and interpersonal manifestations (quickness to anger, defensiveness, edgy and ready to blame others, and a negative world -view). It is often correlated with the process of grief, as a work-life dream is lost. Depersonalization of patients and distancing develop in patient/staff relations and disorganization and ineffectiveness increase.

People suffering from burnout seem to progressively feel a lack of personal accomplishment in their work. Patients are apparently less satisfied when receiving care from burned-out physicians and health professionals. Physicians, for example, are less committed and less contributory to the continuing success of the practice. As the burnout-process progresses burning out providers prefer to decrease contact with patients/staff, become less respectful listeners, behave irritably, order more tests, refer patients to others and plan to leave patient care as early as possible.

If untreated it may aggravate more serious anger, depressive and illness symptoms. It may also be a trigger for revitalization and life change consideration. Burnout has been correlated as a prime factor in turnover, absenteeism, reduced morale and various kinds of personal dysfunction.

The following is an excerpt from "Burnout: A Grief Syndrome©", written by CPWB Director John-Henry Pfifferling. Read the burnout appraisal and answer the yes/no questions that follow to get a better understanding of how you may be suffering from professional burnout.



Burnout Risk Appraisal



I have developed a simple, individual risk assessment tool: the burnout risk appraisal. The items (factors) reflect a high probability that a mismatch between an individual and job forces (or home stressors) promote burnout. Each item in the appraisal suggests strategies that an individual can use to ameliorate burnout risk. Each item suggests risks that a counselor can use to neutralize burnout. The items do not predict burnout; they confer risk especially when the items are cumulative.

The Burnout Risk Appraisal is not an assessment of the work place. In my experience three or more of these items confer risk and four or more confer high risk. Each factor can be modified as consciousness is raised concerning its impact. Informed, motivated and disciplined people have self-corrected the risk. Together with my clients we have analyzed each item, decided on which factors predispose a clash of expectations and then decided on corrective actions.

Reducing individual burnout risk was enhanced when a partner, work team or the work culture, provided support. Where available a good career coach, counselor or therapist is often useful or essential when change is felt as too difficult.

No single factor causes individual burnout, although some factors like No. 9 are close to causative. [This item, alone, is so significant that there even exists a word to describe a person whose personal identity is so tied up with their professional identity that other facets of their being are starved: enantiadromia.] For example, “Is your personal identity bound up with your work role or professional identity?” suggests that when such an individual confronts disappointment or failure it could be incident-specific or cumulatively devastating. In a burnout-prone setting, internalizing achievement as your self-esteem is dangerous if not toxic. Merging personal identity with professional identity blends professional and non-work roles, usually subverting non-work.

To reverse any risk factor, a friend, counselor (peer or professional) may directly tell someone of his or her risk. Ideally, they can then look for ways to balance the person’s life-with attention to other fulfilling activities. For example, in my practice I have dealt with enantiadromic physicians who were so devastated by allegations of medical malpractice (or in the case of an attorney loss in a lawsuit) that dwelling on the loss led to emotional exhaustion. My initial attention to enantiadromia resulted from participating in a psychological autopsy, after a suicide where the physician seemed to have no identity outside of medicine. I will never forget a case where a mislabeled manila envelope, from a prominent medical malpractice law firm, when received by a doctor, led to his suicide.

Burnout Risk Survey

  • Are your achievements your self-esteem?
  • Do you tend to withdraw from offers of support?
  • Will you ask for/accept help?
  • Do you often make excuses, like, “It’s faster to do it myself than to show or tell someone?
  • Do you always prefer to work alone?
  • Do you have a close confidant with whom you feel safe discussing problems?
  • Do you “externalize” blame? (Obsessively seek to place blame away from yourself)
  • Are your work relationships asymmetrical? Are you always giving?
  • Is your personal identity bound up with your work role or professional identity?
  • Do you value commitments to yourself to exercise/relax as much as you value those you make to others?
  • Do you often overload yourself—have a difficult time saying “no?”
  • Do you have few opportunities for positive and timely feedback outside of your work role?
  • Do you abide by the “laws:” “Don’t talk, don’t trust, don’t feel?”
  • Do you easily feel frustrated, sad or angry from your regular work tasks?
  • Is it hard for you to easily establish warmth with your peers and/or service (patients/clients) recipients?
  • Do you feel guilty when you “play” or rest?
  • Do you get almost all of your needs met by helping others?
  • Do you put other’s needs before or above your own needs?
  • Do you often put aside your own needs when someone else needs help?


For more information on how to deal with professional burnout, contact the CPWB, or fill out this membership application and send it to:
Center for Professional Well-Being
21 West Colony Place, Suite 150
Durham, NC 27705
.

 

Back to top