Burnout and Appreciation: A Cross-Sectional Study Assessing Preferences for Appreciation Among Oncology Clinicians

Abstract

PURPOSE Feeling appreciated is related to increased well-being/reduced burnout. We developed a health care–specific appreciation assessment for clinicians, exploring what impactful appreciation looks like and whether it differs across a diverse provider population. METHODS The cross-sectional study was conducted with a diverse oncology clinician population in academic medicine as part of a general well-being survey. A total of 28 different methods of appreciation were assessed for their impact on feeling appreciated. RESULTS A total of 405 clinicians participated (response rate, 58%). No single method of appreciation showed high/low impact for everyone, although seven methods received high impact ratings from 60% or more, including inclusion in decision making (76%), private words of affirmation (64%), positive feedback about skills (63%), positive comments about clinical care from patients/families (62%), efforts to reduce daily frustrations (62%), signs of trust in medical skills (62%), and time for self-care (62%). The least impactful methods of appreciation describe public expression of accomplishments, leadership rounding, and awards but each still receive a rating of moderate/high impact from 33% of participants. CONCLUSION Appreciation comes from many different places and takes on multiple forms, suggesting that making healthcare workers (HCWs) feel valued takes the efforts of colleagues, leaders, the system as well as patients. There exists no one perfect way of showing appreciation, and no one method is meaningless for all. The impact on feeling valued is primarily a function of the specific appreciation method and not the demographic/personal characteristics of the recipient. The findings highlight modifiable factors that—when intervened upon—can reduce burnout and address organization-level determinants of burnout impactfully.