About half of physicians are experiencing burnout, and some specialties are burning out at a much higher rate, according to Medscape’s Physician Burnout & Depression Report for 2024.
Having too many bureaucratic tasks, working too many hours and a lack of respect from administrators, colleagues or staff are the three biggest drivers of physician burnout, the report found.
Physicians said that increasing compensation, adding support staff and making work schedules more flexible would be the best ways to combat burnout.
Here are the 10 physician specialties with the highest and lowest burnout rates:
Highest rates of burnout
- Emergency medicine: 63%
- Obstetrics and gynecology: 53%
- Oncology: 53%
- Pediatrics: 51%
- Family medicine: 51%
- Radiology: 51%
- Pulmonary medicine: 50%
- Anesthesiology: 50%
- Gastroenterology: 50%
- Internal medicine: 50%
Lowest rates of burnout
- Plastic surgery: 37%
- Ophthalmology: 39%
- Psychiatry: 39%
- Pathology: 41%
- Otolaryngology: 43%
- Orthopedics: 44%
- Neurology: 44%
- Diabetes and endocrinology: 44%
- General surgery: 45%
- Critical care: 45%
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