Ophthalmologists are the third happiest group of physicians at work, according to a new Medscape report on physician burnout.
A total of 39% of ophthalmologists who participated in the study said they were happy at their jobs. Only preventative medicine physicians (40%) and plastic surgeons (41%) ranked higher on the list. Among the lowest ranked specialties were internists (21%), emergency medicine physicians (21%), and physical medicine and rehabilitation specialists (19%).
Of the ophthalmologists who participated in the study, 34% reported feeling the effects of burnout. For comparison, that rate was 6% higher than preventative medicine physicians (28%), who reported the lowest rate of burnout, and 20% lower than urologists (54%), who reported the highest rate of burnout. Only 26% of ophthalmologists, however, reported seeking professional help for burnout--this placed ophthalmologists in the middle of the list of specialists. Physicians cited a number of reasons for not seeking professional help, including being too busy to do so and not feeling like their symptoms were severe enough to warrant the assistance of a counselor or therapist.
Click here to read the full report.
Feeling Burned Out? These Resources Can Help
As a member board of the American Board of Medical Specialties community, ABO diplomates can access a variety of physician well-being resources through the National Academy of Medicine (NAM). The Clinician Well-Being Knowledge Hub provides clinicians and health system leaders with valuable resources to combat clinician burnout in their professional and personal lives. According to research, burnout is nearly twice as prevalent among physicians as compared to US workers in other fields. Clinician burnout can have serious, wide-ranging consequences that can affect physicians and their patients. The ABO supports efforts to build a culture in medicine that supports clinical well-being.