“It’s Not Just Time Off”: A Framework for Understanding Factors Promoting Recovery From Burnout Among Internal Medicine Residents

Summary & key facts

Researchers interviewed 25 internal medicine residents and recent graduates who said they had recovered from burnout. They found two main kinds of burnout: circumstantial (caused by specific work or life situations) and existential (caused by loss of meaning or an uncertain professional role). Recovery methods were different for each kind. For circumstantial burnout, recovery often came from fixing workplace problems, improving personal life, or taking time off. For existential burnout, recovery often involved recognizing and validating the feeling, reconnecting with patients and colleagues, finding meaning in work, and redefining one’s professional role. The authors suggest this two-part fr

Key facts:

• The study used semistructured, 60-minute interviews done from June to August 2016 and reached thematic saturation after 25 analyzed interviews.
• Of 126 residents invited, 37 (29%) said they had recovered from burnout and were willing to participate; 28 were interviewed and 25 met criteria for analysis (9 PGY-2, 9 PGY-3, 7 recent graduates).
• Coding of interview data produced two categories of burnout: circumstantial and existential, and some residents had a mix of both types.
• Residents described three main ways they recovered from circumstantial burnout: resolving workplace challenges, nurturing their personal lives, and taking time off.
• Residents described four main themes in recovering from existential burnout: recognizing burnout and feeling validated, connecting with patients and colleagues, finding meaning in medicine, and redefining professional identity and role.
• The paper notes limitations: it used purposive sampling from a single internal medicine residency program, excluded residents currently reporting burnout or depressive symptoms, and is a qualitative study, so results are not statistically g
• In background literature cited by the authors, internal medicine burnout rates have been reported as high as 76%, and a meta-analysis of duty hour changes found a pooled reduction in resident burnout from 62% to 50%.

Abstract

Burnout rates for internal medicine residents are among the highest of all specialties, yet little is known about how residents recover from burnout. We identified factors promoting recovery from burnout and factors that assist with the subsequent ...

Topics

Empathy and Medical Education Healthcare professionals’ stress and burnout Innovations in Medical Education

Categories

General Health Professions Health Professions Health Sciences

Tags

Burnout Circumstantial evidence Clinical psychology Economics Epistemology Existentialism Feeling Grounded theory Law Management Medicine Nursing Philosophy Political science Psychological intervention Psychology Qualitative research Social psychology Social science Sociology Workload