Do you overreact to little annoyances? Do you feel tired all the time? Worse yet, do you feel apathetic toward the work you used to love? Or like you’ve lost your purpose? If so, what you’re experiencing goes beyond the usual stress associated with working in the lab. What you’re feeling is full-fledged burnout. 

On this episode of Inside the Lab, Ms. Kelly Swails is joined by panelists Dr. Ali Brown, MD, FASCP, Chief Officer of Medical Quality at ASCP, Dr. Lotte Mulder, PhD, Director of Leadership and Empowerment at ASCP, and Dr. Joe Sirintrapun, MD, Director of Pathology Informatics at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, to discuss the behavioral, mental, and physical signs of burnout they recognized in themselves and what they did to overcome it.

The panelists explore why burnout has gotten more media coverage in recent years and how the coronavirus pandemic is likely to increase burnout among pathologists and lab professionals. Listen in for insight on the role technology plays in contributing to burnout in the healthcare space and learn what leaders can do to prevent burnout and create an organizational culture that values wellbeing. 

Key Takeaways 

·       The distinction between stress and burnout
·       How changing attitudes toward work-life balance have increased media coverage of burnout in recent years
·       How a loss of autonomy and the high-stakes nature of medical laboratory work has led to an increase of burnout among lab professionals
·       How technology contributes to burnout among healthcare professionals
·       The behavioral, mental and physical signs of burnout
·       How the uncertainties around COVID-19 are likely contributing to or accelerating burnout we won’t see the true impact until the pandemic is over
·       How to deal with burnout
·       What leaders can do to prevent burnout and help their team members overcome it
·       How organizational culture contributes to burnout, and why prioritizing wellbeing over productivity metrics is critical  

Connect with ASCP 

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Connect with Dr. Brown 

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Connect with Dr. Sirintrapun

Association for Pathology Informatics
Dr. Sirinatrapun at Sloan Kettering
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Connect with Dr. Mulder

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Connect with Ms. Swails

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Resources

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