By JAMIN BRAHMBHATT
NOVEMBER 29, 2016
Burnout is eating away at health care providers across the United States. I was recently feeling like a case study. But I found my way back by thinking deeply about why my energy had faded and by taking time to care for my own health.
When I started my medical practice, my patients exhilarated me. I drew energy from engaging them, sharing their emotions as they came to understand their condition, and guiding them from diagnosis through treatment. But I realized that was starting to change, and I needed to find out why.
I knew that the long hours and demands of being a physician and surgeon, along with red tape and regulations, were adding stress and anxiety. The administrative burdens of going it alone in a small practice and the nightmare of tracking electronic records made me feel as if I was no longer in control. With less time available for each patient, the inspiring relationships with them that had long energized my medical career began to collapse. And that eventually affected my personal life.
Jamin Brahmbhatt, MD, is a urologic surgeon specializing in chronic testicular pain and infertility and co-director of the PUR Clinic at South Lake Hospital in Clermont, Fla., in affiliation with Orlando Health.