Tag: physician health

Physicians Care with Vetters Enterprises

5 Ways for Physicians to Care for Themselves

Posted on by VettersEnt

While the primary focus of the nurses and physicians in your practice is taking care of the patients that come in for various ailments all year long, the most effective doctors are the ones who also take care of themselves. Many physicians jeopardize their short and long-term health and well-being to meet the demands of the job, which also harms the patients that they aim to treat. How can doctors take better care of themselves?

Why Do Doctors Neglect Their Health?

While the health care industry has come a long way, some doctors still hold onto the idea that paying attention to personal, physical or mental needs is a sign of weakness and that working as hard as possible around the clock is a sign of strength. While working more and sleeping less can work for a small period of time, in the long term it can cause serious health consequences. Why do doctors routinely neglect their health? One recent study attributed it to a variety of things—sleep deprivation, long hours, heavy workloads, disempowerment, bureaucracy, rigid practice culture, the stress of malpractice lawsuits and more.

5 Ways for Physicians to Care for Themselves

  1. Get enough sleep every night. Working without enough sleep is not something to be proud of. Instead, it’s dangerous to your life and the lives of patients underneath your care. The more tired that you are, the more likely you are to make a critical mistake.
  2. Avoid negative coping mechanisms for stress, like overindulging in alcohol or taking drugs. Instead, try to engage in exercise or experiment with meditation to relax after a long day on the clock.
  3. Never be afraid to seek professional help. Physicians are human beings just like anyone else, and there is no shame in asking for help coping with intense stress.
  4. Schedule small breaks throughout the day. Even 2-5 minutes of walking around outside in between appointments can make a big difference in how you feel and how much exercise you’re getting.
  5. Find self-care practices that are sustainable and good for your well-being. A great self-care practice could be anything from swimming in your apartment complex’s pool to volunteering at a local soup kitchen. Anything that fills up your cup instead of taking more out is a good way to care for yourself.

Take Care of Your Physicians with Vetters Enterprises

Vetters Enterprises specializes in practice management, private practice business support and revenue cycle optimization. We can perform in-depth assessments of your practice or facility and identify potential issues. Let us keep your business as healthy as you keep your patients! Give us a call at (443) 352-0088.

Prevent Physician Burnout with Vetters Enterprises

The Real Cost of Physician Fatigue

Posted on by VettersEnt

According to a number of recent studies, physician fatigue is no longer a marginal problem, but instead an epidemic sweeping through hospitals and medical practices. Physician burnout has a far-reaching impact on physicians themselves, patients and the finances of every healthcare facility.

Physician Fatigue 101

Physician fatigue is used to refer to doctors experiencing emotional exhaustion, a decreased feeling of success and pride at work, cynicism, exhaustion, depersonalization of patients and a lack of empathy. Burnout can be subtle and affect any healthcare practitioner.

There are four core factors that increase stress levels and the likelihood of physicians specifically experiencing burnout and fatigue.

  1. Time: Doctors are under a great deal of pressure to do a lot of tasks in a short amount of time and document the entire process.
  2. Chaos: Physicians experience disorder on a regular basis, even in organized offices that sometimes lack resources or a streamlined workflow.
  3. Lack of Control: Feeling a persistent lack of control over the tasks performed, work conditions and environment can increase fatigue.
  4. Competing Demands: When doctors are constantly pulled in two different directions, like needing to increase the number of patients but also spend more valuable time with each patient, it can also contribute to burnout.

It has been directly linked to:

  • Physician alcohol and drug abuse
  • Decreased patient satisfaction and care quality
  • Higher malpractice risk
  • Higher turnover
  • Physician suicide

With physician fatigue being a potentially fatal disorder, it’s vital that your practice takes it seriously.

On Patients

Burnout can compromise patient care and patient experience. When anyone experiences high levels of stress for long periods of time, their memory, attention and decision-making will be affected. In a career where skilled, competent and timely decision-making is so important, the consequences of physician fatigue can be deadly for patients.

On Practices

To demonstrate the devastating impact of physician fatigue can be demonstrated in one study by the American Medical Association. This found that in a healthcare system with 500 doctors and the average national rate of burnout (54%), a whopping $12 million a year would need to be spent only to replace the physicians that were lost. That figure does not factor in decreased productivity, financial ramifications of mistakes and more.

Reduce Physician Fatigue with Vetters Enterprises

Let us help you eliminate the chaos in your office and reduce stress levels with our services in practice management, private practice business support and revenue cycle optimization. We can perform in-depth assessments of your practice or facility and identify potential issues. Give us a call at (443) 352-0088.