Healthcare: Everyone Is Talking About Provider Burnout, But What About Staff Burnout?

 

 

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Introduction

If you've spent any time in healthcare over the past two decades, especially since the pandemic, you've undoubtedly heard about provider burnout. This issue has garnered significant attention, with countless studies, committees, and initiatives aimed at addressing it. Providers drive the revenue that powers the healthcare engine, making their well-being a strategic priority for many organizations.

However, focusing solely on provider burnout might be too narrow a perspective. While there's no denying the value that providers bring to healthcare, it's essential to recognize that burnout extends far beyond this group. By concentrating only on providers, we may be overlooking and even exacerbating the challenges faced by the departments that support them. These challenges are leading to high turnover rates and declining morale among vital support staff, such as IT, Security, and Billing teams.

The Overlooked Issue of Staff Burnout

In many healthcare organizations, support staff are burning out at alarming rates, yet this issue often goes unnoticed. The IT department, Security teams (both cyber and physical), and Billing departments are just a few examples of areas where burnout is taking a toll. These departments are the backbone of healthcare operations, and without them, quality patient care would be impossible.

Unfortunately, when key leaders delay replacing these positions or cut administrative costs, they often only see the dollars saved, not the damage done to morale. This short-sighted approach can lead to overworked and undervalued staff, further contributing to burnout and turnover.

Challenges in Implementing Solutions

One significant barrier to addressing burnout across the board is the resistance to change. In my experience as a CIO managing in an Epic EHR environment, I’ve encountered this resistance firsthand. For example, my teams have developed training specifically designed to help providers struggling with the system become more productive. Despite the potential benefits, participation in these training sessions is often low, and those who do attend are sometimes reluctant to change their workflows, even if it could save them time.

Another initiative we've explored is the introduction of AI scribes to assist with documentation. These AI-generated notes are typically more consistent, accurate, and cost-effective than those produced by human scribes. However, they require some changes in how providers document their work, which has met with resistance from those who find it too difficult to adapt.

The Need for Effective Change Management

To address burnout effectively, we must create a culture that embraces change rather than resists it. Healthcare is an industry that is constantly evolving, and shielding staff from change is not a sustainable strategy. Instead, organizations should focus on developing robust change management processes that support staff in adapting to new ways of working.

By helping our workforce navigate change, we can better equip them to handle the demands of their roles, ultimately reducing burnout and improving retention. This shift in mindset is crucial for the long-term success of our healthcare organizations.

Conclusion

When you hear about provider burnout, remember that it's just one piece of a much larger puzzle. Support staff burnout is a critical issue that deserves attention, and addressing it requires a holistic approach that includes change management and a commitment to supporting all members of the healthcare team.

We may not have all the answers yet, but acknowledging the problem is the first step toward finding solutions. As the ancient proverb in the Bible at Luke 4:23 suggests, "Physician, heal thyself." In other words, we must first address the issues within our organizations before we can hope to resolve the broader challenges facing the industry.