Approximately 33 percent of residents identified maintaining a successful work-life balance as the most challenging aspect of completing a medical residency program for the third year in a row, according to a recent Medscape report.
More than 1,500 students participating in accredited U.S. medical resident programs at hospitals across the nation provided their thoughts and insights for Medscape's "Residents Lifestyle and Happiness Report 2017."
Here are six insights from the report.
1. While 33 percent of residents cited work-life balance as the biggest challenge, 19 percent said dealing with pressures and demands on time constituted their greatest challenge. The two answers remained the No. 1 and No. 2 answers from the organization's findings in 2016.
2. Of those who identified bullying as an issue in the workplace, 56 percent said attending physicians instigated the bullying, followed by nurses (46 percent), senior residents (38 percent) and peers and other residents (27 percent).
3. Approximately one in 10 residents admitted to feeling depressed all or most of the time, mirroring the organization's 2016 findings. However, 85 percent of residents surveyed said they had never considered attempting suicide.
4. More than two-thirds (67 percent) of residents strongly or somewhat agreed a stigma exists among peers against seeking mental health support.
5. Slightly less than half (46 percent) of residents surveyed identified their ideal romantic situation as being in a long-term relationship with another physician.
6. Roughly 48 percent of residents said they are too fatigued to function due to long shifts. The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education recently revised professional standards for accredited residencies and fellowship programs allowing first-year residents to work for up to 24 hours at a time during each shift, with the option to work longer than 24 hours. The rule went into effect July 1.
To read the full report, click here.