International – Clinician Well-Being Knowledge Hub

Burnout in the Brain at Work

NAM — Thu, 15 Aug 2019 19:41:09 +0000

Long-term exposure to a stressful working environment where demands of the job exceed the resources of the worker may develop into job burnout. It is a major concern in working life, and in Finland, approximately one fourth of working aged people experience symptoms of burnout. The present thesis explores how pre-attentive auditory processing, and attentional and cognitive control processes are associated with burnout, through using scalp recordings of ERPs extracted from continuous EEGs. The findings show that burnout is associated with alterations in ERP responses reflecting involuntary attention shift and voluntary task-related processes.

Primary Prevention for Future Doctors: Promoting Well-Being in Trainees

NAM — Tue, 13 Aug 2019 20:15:10 +0000

In this article, the author discusses a study on the health and well-being of medical students of Netherlands. He comments that physicians need to maintain their own health and well-being in order to maximize their ability to provide quality health care to their patients. He lays emphasis on mindfulness, which means a person should be fully present in the moment of self, for the well-being in doctors.

Exploring public sector physicians’ resilience, reactions and coping strategies in times of economic crisis; findings from a survey in Portugal’s capital city area

NAM — Wed, 03 Apr 2019 18:12:10 +0000

This paper, published in BMC Health Services Research, explores how Portuguese public sector physicians are adapting to the recent economic crisis in Europe and evaluates their ability to keep performing their functions under deteriorating conditions. Age, types of specialization, valuation of job flexibility and independence were significantly associated with changes in public sector hours between 2010 and 2015. Being divorced, not Portuguese, of younger age, having a poor opinion of recent government health policies, and working a high number of hours per week are all factors more likely found in physicians considering migration. On the other hand, enjoying current working environment, not wanting to disrupt provision of service, and leisure time were found to protect against scaling down public sector hours or considering migration. Understanding the influence of personal characteristics on adaptation to changing circumstances is vital in designing policies to improve working conditions and retention.

Economy and ethics in daily hospital routine – physicians in conflict between the well-being of patients and profitability

NAM — Wed, 03 Apr 2019 17:33:57 +0000

This German article discusses the increasing role of economics in medical decision making; economics now guides and influences the structure of hospitals, the number and quality of personnel, and the treatment and care of patients. Naturally, when necessary services cannot be provided due to inadequate finances or when doubtful offers are supposed to increase revenues, moral conflicts arise. Scenarios and cases are presented in which financial impetus becomes more important than patient interest. The article poses that communicating values is important and patient health should be first prioritized over economical decision making.

Critical health infrastructure for refugee resettlement in rural Australia: case study of four rural towns

NAM — Mon, 01 Apr 2019 19:21:12 +0000

This article, published in Australian Journal of Rural Health, explores how the regional resettlement of refugees impacts rural health services and identifies vital health infrastructure for resettled refugees. The shortage and high turnover rate of practitioners threatens comprehensive rural health care. The article identifies general practices with interest and surge capacity, subsidized dental services, mental health support services; clinical support services for rural practitioners; care coordination in the early settlement period; and a supported volunteer network as necessary for health care infrastructure. Furthermore, intensive medical support is crucial during the early resettlement period.

The comparison between resilience, responsibility and subjective well-being (SWB) amongst male and female physicians in Ahvaz, Iran

NAM — Mon, 01 Apr 2019 18:44:13 +0000

The study compared resilience, responsibility, and subjective well-being between male and female physicians of Golestan hospital in Ahvaz, Iran. The results found subjective well-being to be higher in male physicians than in female physicians but no significant differences in resilience and responsibility.

Alleviating costs and maintaining resilience under a new junior doctors’ contract

NAM — Tue, 26 Mar 2019 14:21:06 +0000

Published in the British Journal of Health Care Management, the article underlines the prevalence of burnout in junior doctors in Britain and details the results of a prospective study to identify the sources of burnout.The article also makes recommendations to the Guardian of Safe Working, an organization with the assigned duty of overseeing compliance with junior doctors’ contracts.

Adaptation and Resilience Among Clinicians Under Missile Attack: Shared Traumatic Reality

NAM — Mon, 25 Mar 2019 19:40:45 +0000

Published in the International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction, Pruginin’s article explores shared traumatic reality (STR), a process in which clinicians function as caregivers and are exposed to the same conditions as their patients. Caregivers in Israeli communities surrounding Gaza are exposed to trauma in two ways: (1) exposure to vicarious trauma through client interaction and (2) direct exposure resulting from their belonging to the communities affected. A focus-group based study elucidated a central theme that STR is perceived not as static, but instead as ongoing adaptation and change, encompassing three foci: (1) intrapersonal, (2) clinicians’ spouses and family members, and (3) broad working environment. The study develops the understanding of resilience and needs of caregivers.

Job Burnout

NAM — Wed, 13 Mar 2019 18:46:28 +0000

This article is an international review on research of burnout which include the addition of new conceptual models illustrating the focal shift onto engagement, the positive antithesis of burnout, and promises to yield new perspectives on interventions.

Suicide Among Health-care Workers: Time to Act

NAM — Wed, 13 Mar 2019 18:20:48 +0000

This article, published in The Lancet, highlights the prominence and implications of physician burnout in UK. Furthermore, there is a need for collaboration to understand and tackle the deep-rooted underlying issues associated with mental ill health in the medical professions.