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Association of Work Control With Burnout and Career Intentions Among U.S. Physicians: A Multi-institution Study

Original source published: 2024-11-26

The bottom line

Control over one's schedule, workload, and team composition was independently associated with lower burnout and weaker intent to reduce hours or leave across 19 medical centers — and hiring input was the domain physicians most lacked. Expanding clinician influence over these decisions is therefore a promising candidate for retention pilots, though this cross-sectional design cannot show that granting control improves retention. Anesthesia-specific effects are inferred rather than shown.

What the source found

Surveyed >2,100 physicians across 19 medical centers (Nov 2022–Dec 2023) using a multicomponent measure of work control; poor control over clinical schedule, workload, patient load, or team composition was independently associated with higher burnout and intent to reduce hours or leave; 74.6% had adequate schedule influence (highest domain) vs 49% for hiring input.

Limitations and applicability

Cross-sectional; physician general population, not anesthesia-specific; self-reported control and burnout; academic/non-academic mix may not represent all practices.

Population and setting

U.S. physicians across 5 academic and 14 non-academic medical centers

Read original publication

Used in FairShare guides

  • Schedule Control, Not Just Fewer Hours: What a 2024 Study Found
  • Building Healthy Workplace Expectations Before You Graduate
  • Workforce Capacity Hiding in Plain Sight

About this evidence

Research question / practical issue

How does this source inform Leadership, Culture, and Fairness and Retention and the Anesthesia Workforce and Understanding Anesthesia Burnout for the population it studied?

Study design, evidence tier, and source class

Peer Reviewed Cross Sectional Survey · primary source · evidence tier 1

Source type: Peer Reviewed Cross Sectional Survey · primary · Evidence tier 1

Topics: Leadership, Culture, and Fairness, Retention and the Anesthesia Workforce, Understanding Anesthesia Burnout

Audience: Anesthesiologists, CRNAs, Department Leaders

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