A research letter published on May 14, 2025 in JAMA Internal Medicine entitled “Incomplete Team Staffing, Burnout, and Work Intentions Among US Physicians” reported on the results of a survey conducted from December 13, 2022 to March 31, 2025 of 970 physicians (53.1% men and 43.4% women) from 15 organizations (median organizational response rate, 45.7%). A total of 67.2% of respondents worked full time, and 64.4% worked in the outpatient setting only. Respondents worked in primary care (26.9%), medical (29.2%), surgical (7.7%), and other (18.3%) specialties.
The researchers found: “Nearly half of respondents (47.9%) worked with an incompletely staffed team more than 25% of the time. This percentage differed by specialty, with a prevalence of 44.8%, 38.5%, 49.3%, and 62.4% in primary care, medical, surgical, and other specialties, respectively (P < .001). Among respondents, 47.9% met criteria for burnout, 26.4% indicated likely or definite ITR [intent to reduce clinical work hours] in the next 12 months, and 15.4% indicated likely or definite ITL [intent to leave one’s current organization] in the next 24 months.”
“Working with an incompletely staffed team more than 25% of the time (vs not) was associated with greater prevalence of burnout (61.1% vs 35.8%; P < .001), ITR (31.2% vs 22.0%; P < .001), and ITL (18.1% vs 12.9%; P = .02). In multivariable analyses, working with an incomplete team more than 25% of the time was associated with greater odds of burnout.”
“Working with an incompletely staffed team was associated with significantly greater odds of burnout, ITR, and ITL. Given associations between ITL and attrition, our findings emphasize the importance of adequate staffing. When interpreted alongside evidence that work overload is associated with physician burnout and ITL, while control over team composition is associated with lower odds of these outcomes, our results underscore the central role of health care teams in shaping physician experiences.”
The results of a study published on January 26, 2024 in JAMA Health Forum stated: “In this cohort study of approximately 18 million health care industry employees, the number of workers exiting from the industry peaked in the first quarter of 2020 but was elevated above 2018 baseline levels in all quarters from 2020 through 2021. In early 2020, exits were primarily from workers exiting to nonemployment, while in late 2021, exits were primarily from workers exiting to other sectors. The findings of this study suggest a substantial and persistent increase in health care workforce turnover after the pandemic, which suggests the pandemic may have long-lasting implications for workers’ willingness to remain in health care jobs.”
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