4 surveys find female physicians experience more burnout

By Alexis Kayser for Becker’s Hospital Review

Female physicians face higher levels of burnout than their male counterparts, according to four surveys referenced in a Sept. 14 article on the American Medical Association’s website.

The article used the results to explain the “higher odds of burnout for women doctors” and advocate for a health system that better fits their needs.

Findings from the four surveys:

• A survey published in JAMA Network Open in July found women experienced more childcare stress during the pandemic, as some workplaces shifted remote and transmission anxieties heightened. Healthcare workers that experience childcare stress are 80 percent more likely to burn out, the study said.
• A Mayo Clinic survey published in March found female physicians were 27 percent more likely to burn out and 37 percent less likely to find a “satisfying work-life balance.”
• McKinsey Quarterly’s 2021 “Women in the Workplace” survey found that after COVID-19, women in senior-level positions are 1.5 times more likely than men to consider leaving their career or dialing back their role.
• In March 2021, the KFF Women’s Survey found that due to a lack of paid leave, women are still expected to take the lead on household responsibilities.