Publications by authors named "Colin P West"
Importance: Burnout remains prevalent among physicians and can negatively affect quality, safety, and cost of patient care. Few randomized studies on interventions to address burnout have been conducted to date.
Objective: To determine whether wearing a smartwatch and having access to its physiological data (eg, sleep, step count, and heart rate) improves physician well-being (and if so, which dimensions of well-being).
Importance: Few studies have assessed whether factors outside the workplace, such as support from a spouse or partner, are associated with work-life integration (WLI) satisfaction and burnout among physicians. Evaluating such an association may help with developing novel strategies to address burnout and improve WLI satisfaction among this group.
Objectives: To compare spousal support among female and male physicians and explore associations of spousal support with WLI satisfaction and burnout.
Objective: To evaluate the prevalence of burnout and satisfaction with work-life integration (WLI) among physicians and US workers in 2023 relative to 2011, 2014, 2017, and 2020, as well as physicians in 2021.
Participants And Methods: Between October 19, 2023, and March 3rd, 2024, we surveyed US physicians and a probability-based sample of the US working population using methods similar to previous studies. Burnout and WLI were measured using standard tools.
Objectives: IBM is characterized by slowly progressive muscle weakness making it challenging to detect significant changes in weakness during a clinical trial. Trial participants receiving placebo may behave differently from in natural history studies. We aimed to quantify the change in muscle strength and IBM Functional Rating Scale (IBMFRS) of IBM patients receiving placebo during clinical trials.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHealth care worker well-being is critical to delivering optimal care to our patients. With greater understanding of these issues, evidence-informed models of employee well-being have been developed to guide efforts to improve well-being in the workplace. To ensure that organizational approaches resonate with staff needs, these models can be improved for local application by engaging employees in a co-creation process in which they actively participate in developing and refining the institutional framework for employee well-being.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: To explore associations of bias frequency, sources, and types with burnout in a large, multispecialty sample of residents and fellows and to determine whether and how odds of burnout change after adjustment for bias experiences in multiple demographic subgroups.
Methods: Trainees in graduate medical education programs at Mayo Clinic sites were surveyed between October 12, 2020, and November 22, 2020. Survey items measured personal experiences with bias (frequency, sources, types), burnout (2 Maslach Burnout Inventory items), and demographic characteristics (age, gender, race/ethnicity, lesbian-gay-bisexual-transgender-queer-nonbinary-other identification, disability, socioeconomic background, year in school, specialty).
Sense of Belonging Among Medical Students, Residents, and Fellows: Associations With Burnout, Recruitment Retention, and Learning Environment.
Acad Med
February 2025
Purpose: This study examines sense of belonging (belongingness) in a large population of medical students, residents, and fellows and associations with learner burnout, organizational recruitment retention indicators, and potentially modifiable learning environment factors.
Method: All medical students, residents, and fellows at Mayo Clinic sites were surveyed between October and November 2020 with items measuring sense of belonging in 3 contexts (school or program, organization, surrounding community), burnout (2 Maslach Burnout Inventory items), recruitment retention indicators (likelihood of recommending the organization and accepting a job offer), potentially modifiable learning environment factors, and demographics (age, gender, race and ethnicity, LGBTQ+ identification, disability, socioeconomic background).
Results: Of 2,257 learners surveyed, 1,261 (56%) responded.
Article Synopsis
- The study aimed to analyze burnout reports among graduating medical students based on demographics like sex, race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation over the years 2019 to 2021 in a national sample.
- Data was collected from the AAMC Graduation Questionnaires, showing that Asian, bisexual, and gay or lesbian students reported higher burnout levels, while female, Hispanic, and White students experienced lower disengagement scores.
- The findings indicated a stable or improving trend in burnout levels across various intersectional groups during the study period, highlighting that certain demographic groups, particularly male and sexual minorities, were at a greater risk for burnout.
Article Synopsis
- The research explored perceived organizational support among physicians in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic and its links to burnout and professional fulfillment.
- Data was collected from 1,162 physicians via mail and 6,348 online, measuring burnout with the Maslach Burnout Inventory and organizational support using Stanford's tools.
- Findings revealed that male physicians reported higher organizational support than females, with factors like family status and specialty impacting support levels, indicating a need for targeted interventions to address support disparities.
Article Synopsis
- The study aimed to examine how work impacts personal relationships among U.S. physicians and its connection to burnout, considering factors like specialty and demographics.
- Data was collected from a diverse group of U.S. physicians and assessed for their feelings of isolation and burnout between late 2020 and early 2021.
- Findings showed that women, married physicians, and those in specific specialties reported higher isolation levels; however, after accounting for these factors, being a physician alone was not linked to increased burnout risk, highlighting the need for supportive interventions.
Virtual interviews may limit an applicant's ability to ascertain the culture of a training program. No-stakes campus visits (NSCVs) have been offered but their value is unknown. The purpose of our study was to determine factors that influence applicants' rank lists and determine barriers to and perceptions of NSCVs and their impact on applicants' final rank lists.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- The Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act led to a rise in electronic health record (EHR) systems, increasing the documentation burden, which affects healthcare professionals' experience and contributes to burnout.
- A systematic review analyzed 135 articles to identify methods for measuring this burden, categorizing them into 11 different areas like overall EHR time, clinical documentation activities, and administrative tasks.
- While various measures exist, they tend to be one-dimensional and may not fully address the complexity of documentation burden, with limited evidence supporting their validity and applicability across different healthcare settings.
Impact of a Participatory Wellness Continuing Medical Education Program on Physician Burnout and Well-Being.
J Occup Environ Med
October 2024
Article Synopsis
- * Improvements were noted in health behaviors, including increased fruit and vegetable intake, energy levels at work and home, and overall quality of life.
- * The program also boosted physicians' confidence and frequency in counseling patients about wellness, highlighting its effectiveness in promoting professional well-being.
Article Synopsis
- The study aimed to explore how healthcare workers' perceptions of their supervisors' leadership abilities impact their well-being and job satisfaction.
- Researchers analyzed data from various groups of healthcare professionals, including physicians and residents, to establish a reliable method for assessing leadership capability.
- Findings indicated that simple measures of leadership perception were strongly linked to reduced burnout and increased job satisfaction, suggesting that including these assessments in worker surveys could enhance organizational efforts to improve employee well-being.
Article Synopsis
- This study investigated the prevalence of legally prohibited questions asked to applicants of internal medicine and pediatrics fellowships during interviews, and how these experiences vary between the two groups.
- An anonymous survey was distributed to applicants for the 2021 fellowship matching year, gathering responses on their experiences with such questions, comparing results by subspecialty preference and demographics.
- Approximately 33.3% of internal medicine and 26.5% of pediatrics applicants reported being asked prohibited questions, with common themes being relationship status, national origin, and family planning, primarily posed by program faculty and directors.
Teamwork Climate, Safety Climate, and Physician Burnout: A National, Cross-Sectional Study.
Jt Comm J Qual Patient Saf
June 2024
Article Synopsis
- Dentists today face a variety of stressors impacting their well-being, but there is a lack of effective tools to measure their distress levels, which this study aims to address using the Well-Being Index (WBI).
- The research involved 597 dentists who completed a 9-item WBI survey alongside assessments of quality of life, fatigue, burnout, and issues like suicidal thoughts and job dissatisfaction.
- Results indicate that the WBI can effectively determine levels of distress, showing higher scores in those with lower quality of life and greater fatigue, burnout, or suicidal ideation, suggesting it could help pinpoint dentists at risk for negative professional outcomes.
Vacation Days Taken, Work During Vacation, and Burnout Among US Physicians.
JAMA Netw Open
January 2024
Importance: Vacation has been shown to be an important restorative activity in the general population; less is known about physicians' vacation behaviors and their association with burnout and professional fulfillment.
Objective: To examine the number of vacation days taken per year and the magnitude of physician work while on vacation and their association with physician burnout and professional fulfillment, by individual and organizational characteristics.
Design, Setting, And Participants: This cross-sectional survey of US physicians was conducted between November 20, 2020, and March 23, 2021.