Clinician well-being is essential for safe, high-quality patient care.
However, clinicians of all kinds, across all specialties and care settings, are experiencing alarming rates of burnout. Burnout is a syndrome characterized by a high degree of emotional exhaustion and depersonalization (i.e., cynicism), and a low sense of personal accomplishment at work. Clinician burnout can have serious, wide-ranging consequences on individual clinicians and learners, health care organizations, and patient care.
On the other hand, clinician well-being supports improved patient-clinician relationships, a high-functioning care team, and an engaged and effective workforce. Supporting clinician well-being requires sustained attention and action at organizational, state, and national levels, as well as investment in research and information-sharing to advance evidence-based solutions.
In the face of the unprecedented challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic, the nation must acknowledge the toll of the crisis on the well-being of clinicians. Health workers need support as they navigate the long-term effects of COVID-19. We must take collective action to achieve health workforce well-being at this critical juncture for the U.S. health system. The National Plan for Health Workforce Well-Being provides guidance and next steps to work with leaders in health care and public health, educational institutions for health professional, policymakers, health IT companies, payers, regulators, associations, and others involved to cultivate a health system to support care providers and optimize their well-being.
Take the next step and join our health workforce well-being movement
Starting on the 1-year anniversary of the National Plan, the NAM invites health organizations and other key actors to join an inaugural cohort of Change Makers in affirming their commitment to institutionalizing health worker well-being as a long-term value. The NAM’s Change Maker Campaign will provide a dynamic mechanism to facilitate information sharing and collaboration across ongoing well-being initiatives, document their impact, and amplify effective solutions to common challenges. Sign up as a Change Maker today >>
About the Clinician Well-Being Collaborative
In 2017, the National Academy of Medicine launched the Action Collaborative on Clinician Well-Being and Resilience, a network of more than 200 organizations committed to reversing trends in clinician burnout. The Clinician Well-Being Collaborative has three goals:
- Raise the visibility of clinician anxiety, burnout, depression, stress, and suicide
- Improve baseline understanding of challenges to clinician well-being
- Advance evidence-based, multidisciplinary solutions to improve patient care by caring for the caregiver
The Clinician Well-Being Collaborative is proud to have contributed to the movement to address burnout by publishing a National Plan for Health Workforce Well-Being in October 2022. On the Plan’s one-year anniversary, the Collaborative opened the Change Maker Campaign to advance the National Plan and spark a national movement to support health workforce well-being. The Clinician Well-Being Collaborative will continue to identify evidence-based strategies to improve clinician well-being at both the individual and systems levels, including through convening, publishing, and shaping the national conversation.
Quick Links
Collaborative Leadership
Victor Dzau, Co-Chair
Darrell Kirch, Co-Chair
Vivek Murthy, Co-Chair
Thomas Nasca, Co-Chair
Staff
Anh Tran, Director
Farida Ahmed, Associate Program Officer
Bram Bond, Program Specialist
Catherine Colgan, Research Assistant
Samantha Phillips, Communications Officer
Recent Updates from the Clinician Well-Being Collaborative
Health Organizations and Key Actors Invited to Advance Health Workforce Well-Being Movement by Joining NAM Change Maker Campaign
The NAM recently announced an inaugural cohort of Change Makers and invites health organizations and other key actors to join in affirming their commitment to institutionalize health worker well-being as a long-term value. The NAM’s Change Maker Campaign will provide a dynamic mechanism to facilitate information sharing and collaboration across ongoing well-being initiatives, document their impact, and amplify effective solutions to common challenges. Change Maker organizations will receive public recognition through an annual Change Maker for Health Workforce Well-Being badge to display on websites and other materials. Their work will be instrumental in identifying successes and challenges, measuring progress, and inspiring support for health worker well-being across the nation.
Health Leaders Operationalize National Plan for Health Worker Well-Being
The NAM is pleased to share new short videos from health leaders on the critical need to advance health workforce well-being. Get inspired by how leaders across the health sector are using the National Plan for Health Workforce Well-Being to cultivate a movement to optimize care providers’ well-being.
Resources from the Clinician Well-Being Collaborative
