Reducing Burnout in Women Physicians: An Organizational Roadmap from the Harvard Radcliffe Institute Exploratory Seminar.

Abstract

Background: Women physicians comprise more than half of graduating medical students in the United States, yet their rates of burnout and attrition from academic medicine are higher than for men physicians across every career stage. Objective: In May 2024, the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University convened international experts on physician gender inequity and well-being for an exploratory seminar. The goal was to establish consensus on an institutional roadmap to mitigate burnout in women physicians. Methods: We addressed 3 main questions through presentations, roundtable discussions, and the screening of an award winning physician-directed and -produced film on the subject: (1) What are major organizational drivers of women physician burnout and institutional best practices to address these drivers? (2) What barriers hinder successful implementation of best practices? (3) How can institutions overcome these barriers? Through iterative dialogue during the seminar and post-hoc discussions on the conceptualization of this manuscript, our group reached a consensus on an institutional roadmap to diminish burnout in all physicians identifying as women. Results: We conceived a budget neutral, easily adopted, and sustainable institutional roadmap to mitigate burnout in women physicians. The roadmap is grounded in a learning health system and leverages data collection to drive iterative, structural changes that achieve meaningful impact on a culture of well-being. Conclusions: Organizational accountability for a culture of well-being is critical to diminish burnout in women physicians and should be approached through intentional, multi-pronged, structural changes which restore trust and achieve belonging.