Category: Industry Expertise

We know that physicians are more prone to burnout compared to other professions1. Recognizing the early signs of burnout in yourself or your colleagues is critical: emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and a decreased sense of personal accomplishment. The top reasons cited as to why burnout rates are worsening include higher workload, lack of work-life integration, social isolation, and rapidly changing policies and procedures2. To ensure that you can continue to provide high quality patient care, while leading a fulfilling life, here are some tips to safeguard your mental and emotional health.

Every industry has been grappling with the issue of burnout. As described by the Maslach Burnout Inventory, burnout is characterized by emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and a decreased sense of personal accomplishment. Physicians seem to be particularly vulnerable to its debilitating effects, even compared to professions with a similarly long training pathway.

Every practicing physician has thought about retirement, particularly in this unprecedented Covid era. Between 2017 and 2021, there has been a 9% drop in psychological well being. In fact, 49% of working Canadian MDs had “high levels of emotional exhaustion” on the Maslach Burnout Inventory, up 24% from 2017.

As a medical specialist, one of the biggest decisions you will face coming out of your fellowship is whether to start your own solo practice or to join an established multi-physician group practice. We will go through the pros and cons of each, and at the end, I will give you my mostly unbiased opinion on what works best for most new grads. To set the stage, solo practices are much less common; according to the CMA in 2017, only 21% of Cardiologists and 19% of Respirologists ran one.

Your practice is likely your largest financial asset, but do you treat it as such? While we plan the transition with our current potential partners, we have found that many physicians have overlooked the strategic value…