BLOG: Accessible support, community engagement needed to help mitigate burnout in oncology

A supportive, encouraging environment is one piece of the puzzle to help mitigate the burnout impacting oncology physician associates nationwide.

In a survey of 234 physician associates working in oncology, nearly half reported at least one symptom of burnout — an increase from 30% in years prior.

Women who work as physician associates in oncology report even higher rates of burnout.

Burnout is the result of unmanaged chronic, work-related stress, which providers working in oncology are particularly susceptible to because of the complexity of our patient care work environment. With nearly 40,000 new physician associates expected to enter the field in the coming years, it is critical that we make strides to reduce the risk for burnout by providing accessible support and community engagement tailored for advanced practice providers.

Juggling a lot

Providers who care for patients with cancer are known to be at an increased risk for experiencing burnout because of the significant amount of compassion needed for such complex care.

Then, consider the caregiver duties in the personal lives of physician associates, and it is clear that we are juggling a lot.

The pandemic amplified the way we care for patients, including adapting for disruptions with our own staffing, all the while trying to provide a high level of patient care. We have all taken on increased administrative duties while managing the variety of ways that we care for patients with telehealth, in-person visits and electronic communications.

While juggling patient care, we also juggle our own professional aspirations, including continuing education and ensuring we are maintaining our licensure requirements, which can be time-consuming to manage.

An ideal environment

Many patients who I care for travel to our facility for chemotherapy and radiation, oftentimes from states away. The patient experience would be better if chemotherapy could be provided at the local level.

To ensure continuity of care, it is essential that we communicate with patients’ local oncology providers. However, it can be challenging to find contact information for other advanced practice providers outside of our institution, so it would be beneficial if advanced practice providers who work in oncology across the country had access to communicate with other advanced practice providers within a secure platform. This would create an ideal environment where physician associates could exchange information about complicated patient cases.

Set an example

One of the best ways to mitigate the effects of burnout is to have a healthy work-life balance. This is easier said than done in the demanding oncology field.

For those in a leadership role, it is important to set an example for your team and create an environment where your team feels supported and encouraged to use vacation time.

In addition to taking personal time off, it also is important to take time to pursue professional development to maintain licensing requirements, including CME hours, journal reading and keeping up to date with new therapy options.

It is encouraged that we use our professional development time to stay up to date on research, rather than our personal time, after a long day of caring for patients.

Having a community resource focusing solely on advanced practice providers with information that is relevant in our individual areas of expertise would help to consolidate and reduce the research workload. It would also strengthen the support system and help expand the knowledge base as the number of physician associates practicing across the country continues to grow.