Top

Published in:

01-05-2011 | Healthcare Policy and Outcomes

Dynamic Tension Between Success in a Surgical Career and Personal Wellness: How Can We Succeed in a Stressful Environment and a “Culture of Bravado”?

Authors: Charles M. Balch, MD FACS, Tait S. Shanafelt, MD

Published in: Annals of Surgical Oncology | Issue 5/2011

Excerpt

“Many cancer surgeons are troubled by commonly occurring stressors, which may be masked by the bravado of the surgical culture…It is time to recognize and proactively address the problems of burnout and poor quality of life in physicians…. Our data show that burnout, and its associated problems, are truly widespread occupational hazards that deserve a systematic, organizational intervention… Tension exists between a culture of productivity and the need for self-care”.1

“Getting to wellness in all its dimensions and maintaining wellness throughout a career requires a mutual pact between the individual surgeon and the leadership that control their workplace environment…. Ultimately, quality outcomes for our patients may be enhanced if greater wellness can be cultivated in our surgical teams”.2

…

Guest R, Scardino P, et al. Cancer surgeons’ distress and well-being, I: the tension between a culture of productivity and the need for self-care. Ann Surg Oncol. 2011.

Guest R, Scardino P, et al. Cancer surgeons’ distress and well-being, II: modifiable factors and the potential for organizational interventions. Ann Surg Oncol. 2011.

Shanafelt T, Chung H, White H, Lyckholm LJ. Shaping your career to maximize personal satisfaction in the practice of oncology. J Clin Oncol. 2006;24:4020–6.PubMedCrossRef

Gabbard GO, Menninger RW. The psychology of postponement in the medical marriage. JAMA. 1989;261:2378–81.PubMedCrossRef

Shanafelt TD, Balch CM, Bechamps GJ, et al. Burnout and career satisfaction among American surgeons. Ann Surg. 2009;250:463–71.PubMed

Kuerer HM, Breslin T, Shanafelt TD, Baile WF, Crawford W, Balch CM. Road map for maintaining career satisfaction and balance in surgical oncology. J Am Coll Surg. 2008;207:435–42.PubMedCrossRef

Balch CM, Shanafelt TD, Sloan J, Satele DV, Kuerer HM. Burnout and career satisfaction among surgical oncologists compared with other surgical specialties. Ann Surg Oncol. 2011;18:16–25.PubMedCrossRef

Shanafelt TD, Balch CM, Bechamps G, Russell T, Dyrbye L, Satele D, et al. Burnout and medical errors among American surgeons. Ann Surg. 2010;251:995–1000.PubMedCrossRef

Campbell DA, Jr. Physician wellness and patient safety. Ann Surg. 2010;251:1001–2.PubMedCrossRef

10.

West CP, Huschka MM, Novotny PJ, Sloan JA, Kolars JC, Habermann TM, et al. Association of perceived medical errors with resident distress and empathy: a prospective longitudinal study. JAMA. 2006;296:1071–8.PubMedCrossRef

11.

West CP, Tan AD, Habermann TM, Sloan JA, Shanafelt TD. Association of resident fatigue and distress with perceived medical errors. JAMA. 2009;302:1294–300.PubMedCrossRef

12.

Balch CM, Copeland E. Stress and burnout among surgical oncologists: a call for personal wellness and a supportive workplace environment. Ann Surg Oncol. 2007;14:3029–32.PubMedCrossRef

13.

Balch CM, Freischlag JA, Shanafelt TD. Stress and burnout among surgeons: understanding and managing the syndrome and avoiding the adverse consequences. Arch Surg. 2009;144:371–6.PubMedCrossRef

14.

Shanafelt TD, Balch CM, Dyrbye L, Bechamps G, Russell T, Satele D, et al. Special report: suicidal ideation among American surgeons. Arch Surg. 2011;146:54–62.PubMedCrossRef

15.

Shanafelt T. A career in surgical oncology: finding meaning, balance, and personal satisfaction. Ann Surg Oncol. 2008;15:400–6.PubMedCrossRef

16.

Spickard A, Jr, Gabbe SG, Christensen JF. Mid-career burnout in generalist and specialist physicians. JAMA. 2002;288:1447–50.PubMedCrossRef

17.

Dyrbye LN, Shanafelt TD, Balch CM, et al. Relationships between work-home conflicts and burnout among American surgeons: a comparison by sex. Arch Surg. 2011;146:211–7.PubMedCrossRef

18.

Dyrbye LN, Shanafelt TD, Balch CM, et al. Physicians married or partnered to physicians: a comparative study in the American College of Surgeons. J Am Coll Surg. 2010;211:663–71.PubMedCrossRef

Title: Dynamic Tension Between Success in a Surgical Career and Personal Wellness: How Can We Succeed in a Stressful Environment and a “Culture of Bravado”?
Authors: Charles M. Balch, MD FACS
Tait S. Shanafelt, MD
Publication date: 01-05-2011
Publisher: Springer-Verlag
Published in: Annals of Surgical Oncology / Issue 5/2011
Print ISSN: 1068-9265
Electronic ISSN: 1534-4681
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1245/s10434-011-1629-z

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on sleep in brain health

Springer Medicine

Dynamic Tension Between Success in a Surgical Career and Personal Wellness: How Can We Succeed in a Stressful Environment and a “Culture of Bravado”?

Excerpt

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on sleep in brain health

Springer Medicine

Excerpt

Please log in to get access to this content

Other articles of this Issue 5/2011

Leucocyte-Depleted Blood Transfusion is an Independent Predictor of Surgical Morbidity in Patients Undergoing Elective Colon Cancer Surgery—A Single-Center Analysis of 531 Patients

Sequential Transcatheter Arterial Chemoembolization and Portal Vein Embolization versus Portal Vein Embolization Only before Major Hepatectomy for Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Different Distribution of Breast Cancer Subtypes in Breast Ductal Carcinoma in situ (DCIS), DCIS with Microinvasion, and DCIS with Invasion Component

Resveratrol Induces Notch2-Mediated Apoptosis and Suppression of Neuroendocrine Markers in Medullary Thyroid Cancer

Minimally Invasive Surgery Is Underutilized for Colon Cancer

Efficacy of Para-Aortic Lymphadenectomy in Early-Stage Endometrioid Uterine Corpus Cancer