Becoming a surgeon requires a great amount of grit. Beyond the expected skills of medical expertise, surgeons must also be leaders in the OR, commanding their surgical team. They are compassionate confidants, helping patients navigate their well-being, building trust in their care. In most instances, they are also business owners with a private practice. Their typical work day extending well over twelve-hours – usually beginning with early elective surgeries, then seeing patients in the office, followed by paperwork, more paperwork, dictation, and then a surgery while on call, often during peak sleep hours. For surgeons, none of this is a surprise when they make their career decision. But reality is that surgeons do experience burnout, and with good reason. When everything else gets in the way of them doing what they love, and they can no longer enjoy the life they’ve worked so hard to obtain for themselves and their families. So what is the cure for a surgeon’s diminishing quality of life?
The Surgicalist Group has the answer.
The truth is, surgeons love to operate. By becoming a surgicalist, surgeons get to do just that. They no longer have an elective practice, eliminating long days of elective cases, clinic appointments, and the headaches of the paperwork that accompany the elective cases. They only take emergency call, so they only operate on individuals who need the surgery (and are usually pretty grateful they did). With a week-on/week-off schedule, our surgicalists can have up to 26 weeks off a year. Many of our surgicalists take this time to travel, follow other passions, and spend more time with their families and friends. And so it makes sense that their quality of life makes a significant shift toward the positive.
Recently we asked our surgicalists to share their observations of life before and after becoming a surgicalist. The greatest factor leading to their satisfaction was the element of protected time off, leading to a more fulfilling personal life and improved family dynamic, and improved physical and mental health. Additionally, our surgicalists find their work more rewarding, while they are able to focus on patient care.
Download Surgeon Survey Results for details on the cure for a surgeon’s quality of life.
