Physician Wellness

Physician Wellness Must be a Priority

“To better assess the state of primary care in the U.S., [The Physicians Foundation] worked with the Milbank Memorial Fund to release the first-ever national primary care scorecard in February of 2023. This initial scorecard provided a benchmark of the state of primary care and found that underinvestment, workforce shortages and lack of research funding threaten this essential sector of health care. The scorecard also included necessary recommendations to address the challenges faced by primary care physicians, pointing the way towards a future in which primary care is better supported and all patients can live healthier lives.” (The Physicians Foundation, 2024)

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Meditation & Body

Well-Being

Happiness & Unwinding

The Physicians Foundation’s 2023 Survey of America’s Current and Future Physicians

Key Findings

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Physician burnout is leading to tragic outcomes to address their mental health.
- More than half of physicians know of a physician who has ever considered, attempted or died by suicide, increasing in comparison to 2022 and 2021.
- Nearly four in 10 residents (38%) know a colleague/peer who has ever considered suicide.
- Almost half of students (45%) know a colleague/peer who has considered suicide ever and one-quarter know of a colleague/peer who has considered suicide in the past 12 months, which is significantly higher compared to residents and physicians.

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Current and future physicians agree that these changes to the healthcare practice environment are not good for the future of healthcare and impact patient access to high-quality, cost-efficient care.
- Most physicians (71%), residents (66%) and medical students (65%) agree that a hospital/practice’s top priority is financial gain.
- Most physicians (67%), residents (63%) and students (58%) also agree that consolidation is impacting patient access to high-quality, cost-efficient care.
- Only 11-16% physicians, residents and students agree private equity funding is good for the future of healthcare, with 42-53% in disagreement.

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Healthcare consolidation is causing a drastic shift in the healthcare practice environment, and physicians are often not involved in the decision-making process.
- Among those physicians experiencing the respective merging/acquisition scenarios, only one-fifth have been involved in the decision process.

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The future of medicine is dependent on change to offer the right resources and eliminate barriers impacting physicians’ wellbeing and autonomy to deliver high-quality and cost-efficient care.

Summary of Survey

The state of physician wellbeing—for both current and future physicians—remains low.

For the third year in a row, 6 in 10 physicians often have feelings of burnout, compared to 4 in 10 in 2018.

Physicians Reporting Feelings of Burnout

Residents Reporting Feelings of Burnout

Medical Students Reporting Feelings of Burnout

Medical students’ overall wellbeing is lower than both residents and physicians

Three-quarters of medical students have felt inappropriate feelings of anger, tearfulness or anxiety, much more compared to residents (68%) and physicians (53%).
More than half of medical students (55%) have felt hopeless or that they have no purpose, greater compared to residents (43%) and physicians (34%).
Nearly two-thirds of medical students have felt levels of debilitating stress, much more compared to residents at 45%.

Current and future physicians need systems and workplaces to prioritize physician wellbeing and perspectives

Only 31% of physicians agree that their workplace culture prioritizes physician wellbeing, declining from 36% a year ago.
50% of physicians or more shared that their workplace rarely or never takes action on 8 of the 16 evidence-based wellbeing solutions identified to support physicians.
At least half of physicians and residents report third-part involvement, including insurance requirements, documentation protocols, regulatory policies and mandatory training requirements, consistently hinder their autonomy to deliver high-quality and cost-efficient care.

Current and future physicians report stigma and structural barriers affect their overall wellbeing and mental health.

Nearly 8 in 10 physicians (78%), residents (79%) and medical students (76%) agree that there is stigma surrounding mental health and seeking mental health care among physicians.
Approximately half of physicians (48%), residents (48%), and students (55%) said they know a physician/colleague/peer who said they would not seek mental health care.
4 in 10 physicians were either afraid or knew another physician fearful of seeking mental health care given questions asked in medical licensure/credentialing/insurance applications.