Addressing Burnout in Urology: A Qualitative Assessment of Interventions

Introduction: We characterized physician burnout among urologists to determine the prevalence and efficacy of specific burnout interventions utilized and to determine involvement of workplaces in effective burnout interventions. Methods: The Western Section of the American Urological Association created an electronic, 29 question workforce survey. Several questions focused on assessing the level of urologist burnout, prevalence of work sponsored burnout interventions and efficacy of specific interventions. Results: A total of 440 responses were received (25.9% response rate); 82.2% of responders were male. The majority of urologists noted some level of burnout (79.5%) with no significant difference between those who reported no burnout vs some level of burnout (p=0.30). The most commonly tried interventions to reduce burnout were participating in regular physical exercise (76.6%), reading nonmedical literature (67.1%) and decreasing or modifying work hours (52.3%). The interventions most frequently cited as "very effective" were hiring a scribe (62.5%), regular exercise (56.1%) and participating in 1-on-1 gatherings with colleagues outside of work (44.6%). There were no significant differences noted when comparing "very effective" interventions by gender. The interventions most frequently cited as not effective were stress or burnout seminars (26.9%) and meditation/mindfulness training (11.5%); 42.5% reported workplace interventions to help prevent or reduce burnout. Conclusions: Certain practice-changing and personal burnout interventions were noted to be "very effective" in decreasing burnout. Fewer than half of responders noted workplace sponsorship of interventions. Organizational support may lead to increased participation and effectiveness of burnout interventions.