For many academic radiologists, achieving work-life balance is a struggle
New survey data indicate that many radiologists are finding it difficult to strike a proper balance between their work and their personal lives.
The survey results, derived from a group of academic radiologists with the Keck School of Medicine of USC, indicate that not only are many radiologists taking on extra hours beyond their assigned shifts every week, they are also buying back their vacation time.
Experts involved in the new report caution that these are two driving factors that can lead to burnout.
“Work overload and an imbalance between work responsibilities and life outside of work have been identified as top contributors to radiologist stress and burnout,” corresponding author Sravanthi Reddy, MD, with Keck School of Medicine of USC, and co-authors noted.
The authors explained that part-time work schedules, higher seniority and time spent on work activities that feel meaningful all help to temper the symptoms of burnout. But unfortunately, this is not the reality for many radiologists.
According to the team’s data, not only are the radiologists who responded to the survey not working part-time hours, many of them (40%) are working a minimum of ten extra hours every week.
More than half of those surveyed reported stresses relating to family, financials and health, and 70.4% of respondents reported shouldering additional caregiving responsibilities.
For 35.7%, these additional stresses and responsibilities negatively affect work/life balance, and for 21.4% this results in poor lifestyle choices.
Although the respondents indicated that remote shifts and protected time off both promote better work/life balance, most engaged in remote work less than 25% of the time and 35.7% reported buying back a portion of their vacation time.
The authors noted that it can be particularly challenging for academic radiologists to achieve balance in their careers and personal lives due to their additional responsibilities in research and education.
“This balance is difficult to achieve solely by individuals; it is now recognized as a shared responsibility of healthcare organizations and individual physicians to implement strategies against burnout,” the group wrote, adding that this can be achieved, in part, by additional surveys of larger cohorts to identify specific “pain points” that institutions could address.
The study abstract is available in Academic Radiology.
In addition to her background in journalism, Hannah also has patient-facing experience in clinical settings, having spent more than 12 years working as a registered rad tech. She joined Innovate Healthcare in 2021 and has since put her unique expertise to use in her editorial role with Health Imaging.