Physician perfectionism and burnout are inextricably linked. Perfectionism in medicine is an unhealthy delusion that fuels not just burnout but mental illness and suicide in doctors. In this article, we explore the concept, causes, and dangers of perfectionistic thinking and behavior in doctors.
We need to talk about physician suicide. Nearly 300 physicians die by suicide every year. National tragedy does not begin to describe it. The agony experienced not just by the victims but their loved ones, colleagues, and patients doesn’t bear thinking about.
Nearly 300 doctors a year die by suicide. That’s a million patients losing their doctors every year. Beyond the horrific numbers are the human stories. In this article, we reference a physician suicide register that collected details of our lost colleagues.
We remember the human beings — physicians, bright, dedicated, loved and loving, yet still human — who died by suicide.
As a psychiatrist, it took me only a few years in practice to realise that everyone needs a therapist (at least once in their lives). Doctors, nurses, and all healthcare practitioners (HCPs) are no different.
At a recent Physicians Anonymous meeting, we discussed an article on random acts of kindness. Researchers gave 84 random people in a wintry Chicago park free hot chocolates. They were then given the choice to gift it to another or keep it for themselves. Guess what happened?
Women physicians still face disproportionate challenges within their medical careers compared to men. Unsurprisingly, those women who face more work-related stressors report less satisfaction with their careers, and more burnout occurs in female doctors.
Depending on which brand of English you speak, fine might be “awesome”, “doing great”, or “things could not be better”.
Often, however, “I’m fine” is just a throwaway term without meaning. If you are a physician, there’s a >6 in 10 chance you are NOT fine. Read on to find out more.
Few of us swear by Apollo the physician, and Asclepius, and Hygieia and Panacea. But all of us know, “First do no harm,” (which is actually a misquote from the Hippocratic Oath). The Oath underpins much of modern medical ethics and professionalism. Most of us ascribe to these broad principles, but in conversations with distressed colleagues, it is apparent that there are a minority of us who seem to be mired in hypocrisy rather than Hippocrates.
Physician self care is not selfish. It’s essential to thriving in medicine. This article will explore barriers to physician self care and help physicians develop self-care practices for their physical, emotional, spiritual and intellectual health.
When things go wrong, it is easy to focus only on the “first victim” and forget those around them affected by the error – especially the clinician who made a mistake, also known as the “second victim” in medicine.
Physicians Anonymous humbly hosts this living document of global resources for physician support.
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Cognitive distortions are exaggerated or irrational thoughts that we have. In Part 2 of this article, by learning to tackle common cognitive distortions, you will be empowered to manage your amazing mind and smooth over the bumps in the road of a career in medicine.
Extreme stress tends to bring out more of these cognitive distortions, and modern medicine is a rich source of stress for doctors and medical students. We give 6 examples of classic cognitive distortions as applied to medicine, and discover ways to challenge them with more realistic thinking.
T’was the night before Christmas, and all through the ER, everyone was stirring, shouting, vomiting, and hemorrhaging. Except for the mice, who very sensibly stayed away, because it was chaos.
This article explores why residents are at even higher risk of burnout and mental health deterioration than the average physician population. We then look at the evidence base for resident burnout prevention programs and consider why postgraduate education providers should seriously consider investing in these. Mindfulness and Coaching programs are examined as having the most evidence-base.
I recently decided I was going to leave my role as an Emergency Medicine (ER) doctor in the UK National Health Service (NHS). As service after service reaches its full capacity and beyond, the people who rely on these services do not know where to go for the help they need. All of these factors led me do decide that I no longer wanted to commit my daily energies to a system that was causing me to burn out.
A Physician’s Anonymous coach shares 7 days of their physician’s burnout diary, moving from resistance to connection and finding self.
If there was one thing that helped me deal with my own burnout, it was hearing another General Practitioner (GP) stand up in front of a lecture theatre of 200 people and say that they had been burned out too.
The life of a physician is one of the most stressful professions. In this article, I’ll discuss the trauma of medicine and what can be done about it.
“Welcome to the Trauma Surgery Unit” said Prof. “As it’s New Year’s Day we’re expecting a quiet one.” Prof’s sense of irony (i.e. sarcasm) was legendary. That night (first shift) a young man came in. “Stabbed chest. Resus!” came over the PA system, and everyone moved.
You should know: shame is a very, very bad master. And shame does not deserve your respect, because shame is a liar. Shame is also a huge problem in medicine.
