The Pharmaceutical Industry Needs to Wake Up to a Growing Problem: Physician Burnout

Dr. Richard Vanderveer Chief Innovation Officer/ThinkGen

#IntellusWW

Speaker Introduction Richard B. Vanderveer, Ph.D. Chief Innovation Officer

Over the last couple of years I have been getting

increasingly frustrated…

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…by my inability to get pharmaceutical marketers and marketing researchers to care

about physician burnout.

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Three Reasons Why We Must Pay Attention To Physician Burnout…

1. Physician burnout is serious, and there is a lot of it 2. Physician burnout influences practice attitudes and

behavior 3. The extent of physician burnout might well be one

of the most important segmentation variables for us to employ and one of the easiest to measure

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1. Physician Burnout Is Serious, And There Is A Lot Of It

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2016 AAMC Physician Specialty Data Report 9

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Suicide

Depression and Anxiety

Burnout

Physician Suicide Is Just The Tip Of The Iceberg

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Physician Burnout is defined as:

“a long-term stress reaction characterized by depersonalization, including cynical or

negative attitudes toward patients, emotional exhaustion, a feeling of

decreased personal achievement and a lack of empathy for patients”

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Most Burned Out Specialties 2015-2020

•  Critical Care •  Emergency Medicine •  Internal Medicine •  Neurology •  Urology •  (Rheumatology 46%)

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AMA Wire, January 31, 2017 23

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2. Physician Burnout Influences Practice Attitudes And Behavior

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What Impact Is This Having?

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WebMD: “Doctor Burnout Widespread, Helps Drive Many Medical Errors”

• 6,700 doctors surveyed

• 10% said they had made at least one significant medical error in the past three months

• Those suffering from Burnout were “twice as likely” to have made a significant medical error

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3. The extent of physician burnout might well be one of the most

important segmentation variables for us to employ and one of the easiest

to measure

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How Do You Measure Physician Burnout?

• No need to develop your own metrics

• Validated burnout scales already exist

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The “Maslach Burnout Inventory” Measures…

•  Emotional Exhaustion •  Depersonalization •  Personal Accomplishment

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… Or Use A One Item Measure of Burnout 1.  I enjoy my work. I have no symptoms of burnout.

2.  Occasionally I am under stress, and I don’t always have as much energy as I once did, but I don’t feel burned out.

3.  I am definitely burning out and have one or more symptoms of burnout, such as physical and emotional exhaustion.

4.  The symptoms of burnout that I’m experiencing won’t go away. I think about frustration at work a lot.

5.  I feel completely burned out and often wonder if I can go on. I am at the point where I may need some changes or may need to seek some sort of help.

Barbara M. Rohland,1,*,† Gina R. Kruse2 and James E. Rohrer2 Stress and Health 20: 75–79 (2004) Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI: 10.1002/smi.1002

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Rheumatologists- Some Background Information

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• Burnout among Rheumatologists is increasing •  40-50% of Rheumatologists report feelings of burnout, a

10% increase since 2011 •  Burnout was the topic of the Opening Address by the

President of the American College of Rheumatology at 2019 ACR

•  Primary drivers include: •  Workforce shortage and time limitations •  Insurance and financial challenges •  Patient engagement and adherence issues

A Brief Case Study •  A product for the treatment of gout •  Used by Rheumatologists •  “Expensive” and administered by infusion •  “High Touch” •  Hypothesis: The 46% of Rheumatologists

who are burned out will be less likely to use the product

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BUT WHAT IF….

BURNED OUT PHYSICIANS DON’T DO MARKETING RESEARCH???

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