Beyond the Economics of Burnout
Authors: Edward M. Ellison
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2019)

Editorials4 June 2019Beyond the Economics of BurnoutEdward M. Ellison, MDEdward M. Ellison, MDThe Permanente Federation and Southern California Permanente Medical Group, Pasadena, California (E.M.E.)Author, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/M19-1191 Annals Author Insight Video - Edward M. Ellison Jr., MD In this video, Edward M. Ellison Jr., MD, offers additional insight into the article, "Beyond the Economics of Burnout." SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail In an ever-evolving health care environment, understanding the economic impact of physician burnout is essential. As the co-CEO of one of the largest consortiums of medical groups in the world (1), I believe that Han and colleagues' (2) estimation of the costs of physician burnout in the United States is a fresh and much-needed exploration of the economic effects of this condition. This work is a valuable early step in an overdue and important conversation we need to have in the health care community. My contribution to that discussion is 3-fold: to affirm that physician burnout negatively affects health care ...References1. The Permanente Federation. Kaiser Permanente Web site. Accessed at https://permanente.org on 12 April 2019. Google Scholar2. Han S, Shanafelt TD, Sinsky CA, Awad KM, Dyrbye LN, Fiscus LC, et al. Estimating the attributable cost of physician burnout in the United States. Ann Intern Med. 2019;170:784-90. doi:10.7326/M18-1422 LinkGoogle Scholar3. Shanafelt TD, West CP, Sinsky C, Trockel M, Tutty M, Satele DV, et al. Changes in burnout and satisfaction with work-life integration in physicians and the general US working population between 2011 and 2017. Mayo Clin Proc. 2019. [PMID: 30803733] doi:10.1016/j.mayocp.2018.10.0233. ved from https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mayocp.2018.10.023 Google Scholar4. Andrew L, Brenner B. Physician suicide. Medscape. Accessed at https://emedicine.medscape.com/article/806779-overview on 1 August 2018. Google Scholar5. Schernhammer ES, Colditz GA. Suicide rates among physicians: a quantitative and gender assessment (meta-analysis). Am J Psychiatry. 2004;161:2295-302. [PMID: 15569903] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar6. Anderson P. Doctors' suicide rate highest of any profession. WebMD. Accessed at www.webmd.com/mental-health/news/20180508/doctors-suicide-rate-highest-of-any-profession on 12 April 2019. Google Scholar7. Sinsky C, Colligan L, Li L, Prgomet M, Reynolds S, Goeders L, et al. Allocation of physician time in ambulatory practice: A time and motion study in 4 specialties. Ann Intern Med. 2016;165:753-760. [PMID: 27595430]. doi:10.7326/M16-0961 LinkGoogle Scholar8. Caloyeras JP, Kanter M, Ives N, Kim CY, Kanzaria HK, Berry SH, et al. Physician professional satisfaction and area of clinical practice: evidence from an integrated health care delivery system. Perm J. 2016;20:35-41. [PMID: 27057819] doi:10.7812/TPP/15-163 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: The Permanente Federation and Southern California Permanente Medical Group, Pasadena, California (E.M.E.)Disclosures: The author has disclosed no conflicts of interest. Forms can be viewed at www.acponline.org/authors/icmje/ConflictOfInterestForms.do?msNum=M19-1191.Corresponding Author: Edward M. Ellison, MD, 393 East Walnut Street, Pasadena, CA 91108; e-mail, edward.m.[email protected]org.This article was published at Annals.org on 28 May 2019. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement Annals Author Insight Video - Edward M. Ellison Jr., MD In this video, Edward M. Ellison Jr., MD, offers additional insight into the article, "Beyond the Economics of Burnout." FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoEstimating the Attributable Cost of Physician Burnout in the United States Shasha Han , Tait D. Shanafelt , Christine A. Sinsky , Karim M. Awad , Liselotte N. Dyrbye , Lynne C. Fiscus , Mickey Trockel , and Joel Goh Metrics Cited byCommentary: Just because we can doesn't mean we shouldEstimating the Attributable Cost of Physician Burnout in the United StatesDonald E. Girard, MD, David A. Nardone, MD, David H. Hickam, MD, MPH, and Timothy Goldfarb, MHAPutting a Price Tag on Physician Burnout—A Major Hazard for Back Care ProfessionsCost of physician burnout in USAPhysician burnout costs US $4.6bn a year, study finds 4 June 2019Volume 170, Issue 11Page: 807-808KeywordsElectronic medical recordsHealth careHealth economicsPatientsPrevention, policy, and public healthPsychiatry and mental healthSafetySafety studiesSexual identitySuicide ePublished: 28 May 2019 Issue Published: 4 June 2019 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2019 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...