Thank God It's Friday!: Achieving Balance between Continuity of Care and Intensivist Burnout

摘要

The global demand of ICU care delivered by an intensivist continues to grow. The shortfall of intensivists is expected to worsen over the next two decades as the aging population increases (1). At a time in which debates regarding 24/7 coverage continue (2-5), fewer additional physicians may choose to enter the field due to the implications regarding physician lifestyle. Meanwhile, the current pool of available intensivists is decreasing for reasons including job burnout (6-8) and early retirement (9). Burnout syndrome (BOS) is an inability to cope with the emotional stress at work (10) or an excessive use of energy and resources, which can lead to feelings of failure and exhaustion (11). BOS has been associated with job withdrawal/absenteeism, retraining to another specialty, and high turnover. Moreover, burnout leads to lower effectiveness at work and is associated with decreased job commitment and satisfaction (12). People who experience burnout can negatively impact their colleagues with greater personal conflict and disruptive behavior (12).