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Let’s address burnout in oncologists and reimagine the way we work

Nature Reviews Clinical Oncology volume 16, pages 1–2 (2019)Cite this article

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Burnout is a substantial issue associated with the medical profession, with oncology being no exception. Increasing focus is being placed on implementing solutions to address physician burnout, and successful interventions have encompassed the following themes: the presence of an organizational mandate, data-driven and grassroots quality improvements, and a focus on systems change.

Medicine is a rewarding profession, but a substantial proportion of physicians are ‘burnt out’, with oncologists being no exception1. Physician burnout was first described in the 1970s as the classic triad of high emotional exhaustion, high depersonalization, and a low sense of personal accomplishment, but remains a highly topical issue. The landmark incorporation in 2017 of physician wellness into the revised World Medical Association Declaration of Geneva heralds a professional shift globally. Burnout has an impact not only on the personal wellbeing of physicians, but also on the welfare of their patients by increasing the risk of medical error and patient dissatisfaction2,3. Health-care services can play an important part in enhancing physician wellbeing, and in the process, improve patient welfare, staff retention, and the overall performance of the health-care system. Understanding physician burnout can, therefore, become a potent advocacy tool for wider health-care reform. While many doctors in the UK continue to emigrate from a National Health Service (NHS) under strain in search of ‘sunnier shores’, the recent spate of suicides among junior doctors in Australia4 highlights that burnout remains of concern even in ostensibly better-resourced health-care systems. This observation suggests that a more nuanced approach is necessary to understanding physician wellbeing.

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge The Royal Marsden and Institute of Cancer Research National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Biomedical Research Centre for Cancer (BRC).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Royal Marsden Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK

    Krithika Murali & Susana Banerjee

  2. The Institute of Cancer Research, London, UK

    Susana Banerjee

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  1. Krithika Murali
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  2. Susana Banerjee
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Correspondence to Susana Banerjee.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Declaration of Geneva: https://www.wma.net/policies-post/wma-declaration-of-geneva/WellMD programme at Stanford Medicine: https://wellmd.stanford.edu/

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Murali, K., Banerjee, S. Let’s address burnout in oncologists and reimagine the way we work. Nat Rev Clin Oncol 16, 1–2 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41571-018-0097-9

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