Sixty-four percent of oncologists said they have felt burned out for at least 13 months — an 18% increase over last year's responses, according to a Medscape report.
The "Oncologist Burnout & Depression Report 2024," released March 29, surveyed 9,226 physicians across more than 29 specialities between July 5 and Oct. 9.
Here are six things to know about oncologist burnout in 2024:
- Eighteen percent of oncologists said their burnout is so severe that they may leave medicine. Meanwhile, 5% said burnout did not interfere with their lives.
- Of oncologists surveyed, 76% said their employer seems to recognize burnout issues "somewhat" or "a lot."
- The top contributors to burnout were too many bureaucratic tasks (59%), too many hours at work (47%) and insufficient compensation (37%).
- Here are the workplace measures oncologists said would help most with their burnout: add support staff (55%), increase physician control/autonomy (47%) and increase compensation (41%).
- Seventy-seven percent of oncologists said burnout negatively affected their personal relationships.
- Oncologists said their top coping mechanisms for dealing with burnout were talking with family members and close friends (45%), spending time alone (45%) and exercise (45%).