Survey: Optometrists ‘happier than other health professions’ but burnout is high
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NEW ORLEANS — A survey of American Academy of Optometry fellows revealed a low level of depression but a high level of burnout, Bernadette Melnyk, PhD, APRN-CNP, FAANP, FNAP, FAAN, said during the annual meeting plenary session.
Melnyk, vice president for health promotion and chief wellness officer at The Ohio State University, conducted a national wellness survey of 4,000 academy fellows in the spring of 2023.
Of 321 respondents, 76% were non-Hispanic and white, 51% were women and half worked in academia, Melnyk said.
“Twenty percent reported heavy alcohol use,” she said. “Fellows frequently struggled with fruit and vegetable consumption, physical activity and sleep. A lot of people attempted to cope with COVID with unhealthy eating and increases in alcohol use.”
“Professional working women specifically skyrocketed with alcohol use,” she said.
When comparing optometry with other professions, “the good news is you’re happier than other health professions,” Melnyk said.
Just 4% of respondents said they were depressed, and 9% suffered from clinical anxiety. However, one out of three said they were burned out, and 44% said they have a poor quality of life.
“Fellows have lower rates of depression and anxiety and stress than dentists and pharmacists,” Melnyk said. “You slept and exercised more, which is great. But you have higher alcohol use than pharmacists; yet not as much as dentists.”
Melnyk advised looking to your work site for wellness support.
Of those surveyed, 32.4% said their workplace is moderately supportive of wellness, and only 42% said they felt that they mattered to their organization.
Respondents who said their work site supported their wellness were 6.7 times more likely to report that they mattered, three times more likely to report good mental health and 2.8 times more likely to report no burnout, Melnyk said.
“People need to be appreciated,” she said. “They need to be told they matter.”
The survey also showed that “fellows are very unlikely to leave the profession within the next year,” Melnyk said.
“I urge you to make a commitment today to take better self-care,” she said.
Melnyk recommended practicing gratitude to decrease stress and improve mood, moving more and sitting less to increase energy, eating healthy, refraining from smoking and drinking alcohol in moderation if one drinks, which means no more than one standard drink a day.
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Melnyk B. Plenary session: Mental health in optometry. Presented at: Academy; Oct. 11-14, 2023; New Orleans.
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