New initiative focuses on physicians' physical, mental, financial and social health

QuantiaMD, the medical learning network, announces the launch of an initiative addressing physician wellbeing. The new Physician Wellbeing Special Interest Group (SIG) provides educational content, expert advice, tools and services aimed at lowering the prevalence of physician burnout and mitigating its negative impact on patient care. The comprehensive initiative focuses on physicians' physical, mental, financial and social health and can be accessed at http://www.quantiamd.com/home/sig_physician_wellbeing.

QuantiaMD reached out to its physician members and found that almost half want to prioritize their wellbeing, but currently do not. Other industry studies have highlighted the growing prevalence of physician burnout and stress and the positive correlation between physician health and patient care outcomes. Physician work satisfaction has been decreasing due to factors such as less time available to spend with patients, greater administrative burden and the increasing difficulty of staying up-to-date on medical thinking. With new healthcare regulations placing greater pressure and accountability on physicians, it is vital that they continue to maintain a healthy work-life balance in order to provide optimal patient care.

"Whether it is due to pride, misconceptions about what we think is professional physician behavior, or just bad habits, we are all susceptible to burnout; a condition that can be comparable to PTSD, and not to be taken lightly," said Steven D. Passik, PhD, Professor of Psychiatry and Anesthesiology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center. "Beyond the danger this poses to us, we must also remember that our patients see us as role models and our behaviors do affect them. We need to make changes for ourselves as well as a public change in the community that is our practice."

QuantiaMD physicians indicated that burnout, stress management and exercise are three of the top wellbeing areas they would like to address.

In response to this, QuantiaMD's initiative provides an interactive educational series on burnout and will soon offer a series on exercise and fitness. The Physician Wellbeing SIG also offers case studies, expert advice on legal and financial topics, and the opportunity for active dialogue among physicians facing challenges of caring for themselves as they strive to care for others.

"Any profession that is a vocation-be it firefighter, teacher, clergy or physician-is practiced by people who put the interests of others before themselves," said Michael Paskavitz, Editor in Chief of QuantiaMD. "However, over time, there is a price to pay for not looking after yourself, and many of our members have expressed the need for support in their personal lives as medical professionals. We hope this interest group enables members to honor their vocation while also ensuring their own personal wellbeing."

The Physician Wellbeing SIG is one of many groups that QuantiaMD members can join to learn and connect with colleagues across the country who share the same passions. They are destinations for engaged physicians, focused on clinical topics such as diabetes or infectious disease, and practice topics such as leadership or doctor-patient relationships. SIGs offer short interactive educational segments, resources, discussions and advice from experts.

About QuantiaMD

QuantiaMD is a medical learning network where physicians connect and learn from the colleagues they know and trust. On QuantiaMD, physicians learn about clinical advances from expert faculty and connect professionally to better manage their practices, support their patients, and take care of themselves. Members access QuantiaMD for free through any smartphone, tablet or computer. To learn more, or to join, visit www.quantiamd.com.