St. Louis-based Mercy health system used surveys to identify and address causes of burnout, according to an Aug. 31 article from the American Medical Association.
A team from each Mercy department looked at data from national American Medical Association surveys, then formulated plans for the specific challenges they saw.
Here are three strategies the health system has implemented to improve burnout:
1. Mercy implemented specific focus groups — such as for mid-career women, or physicians struggling with efficiency — after its employees reported feeling less valued in 2021 than 2020.
2. Awareness of and participation in programs increased after Mercy introduced discussion groups for physicians and advanced practitioners: Additionally, the system added the healing-oriented Rapha program, which offers mentorship, a speaker series and a social network to support well-being.
3. Family medicine physicians were 7.8 percent less satisfied with their careers in 2021 than in 2020, and reported a burnout increase of nearly 10 percent. Mercy is looking to automate some family practice processes, including the request of prior authorizations from payers, to lessen the burden on physicians.