Mar 31, 2022
The ‘Great Resignation’ comes to medicine.
*Last year, a Texas A&M University professor predicted a mass exodus of workers in the wake of the pandemic, as people reflected on whether their jobs provided them a sense of purpose. He called it “The Great Resignation.” *
*In medicine, job dissatisfaction, combined with increasing levels of burnout, is also forcing many doctors to reflect in the same way. Preliminary data from the Canadian Medical Association’s National Physician Health Survey shows nearly half of those surveyed (46%) are considering reducing their clinical hours in the next two years.*
*Some, like Dr. Kathy Bonapace, have decided to quit the profession altogether. *
*“The day I knew I needed to stop was when I was operating on a patient, doing a hysterectomy, and I became so nauseous. I thought, “Oh, my God. I'm going to throw up.. And as soon as I finished that case, I went to the area where we usually dictate. I closed the door, laid on the floor with my feet up, and thought, “How am I going to get through the day?” That was the realization I needed to do something different.”*
*In this episode, host Dr. Caroline Gérin‑Lajoie speaks to Dr. Kathy Bonapace about the difficult decision to leave her busy practice in rural Quebec and what she’s found to fill that void. *
*And clinician researcher Dr. Nadia Khan shares findings from two studies looking at why so many doctors in BC are disengaged with medicine. *
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