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© 2025 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.

Abstract

Background: Burnout is a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion produced by excessive and prolonged professional stress. Its prevalence is unclear, and figures from 2 to 81% have been reported, although studies focused on this issue are scarce and inconsistent definitions and the absence of validated measurement tools make comparisons difficult. Methods: Our narrative review’s purpose was to explore physician and medical student burnout across medical specialties and in specific subgroups, including young doctors, researchers, and female physicians. We also assess burnout effects in medical students and patients and the possible strategies to prevent and reverse it. Results: Burnout affects doctors, medical students, and patients. It impacts significantly on physicians mental health and can be the trigger for depression, substance abuse, and suicide attempts. Moreover, this psychological and physical exhaustion can also increase the risk of systemic conditions such as cardiovascular disease. Physician burnout increases the risk of medical errors, reduces professional efficacy, and might compromise patients’ safety. Strategies focusing on mental, physical, social, and occupational well-being can help to prevent and treat burnout. These include resilience training, self-care, exercise, work–life balance, and institutional changes, such as reducing administrative burdens and improving electronic health record systems. Medical students’ burnout might be triggered by specific problems related to their young age, economic situation, exam stress and workload, high academic expectations, lack of support, and others. Conclusions: Burnout is common in physicians and medical students, negatively affecting mental health, professional/academic efficacy, and patient outcomes. Addressing burnout requires a multifaceted approach, including individual strategies and systemic changes within institutions.

Details

Title
Physician and Medical Student Burnout, a Narrative Literature Review: Challenges, Strategies, and a Call to Action
Author
Rodeles, Santiago Cotobal 1   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Martín Sánchez, Francisco Javier 2 ; Martínez-Sellés, Manuel 3   VIAFID ORCID Logo 

 Unidad de Geriatría, Complejo Asistencial Universitario, 37007 Salamanca, Spain; [email protected] 
 Hospital Enfermera Isabel Zendal, 28055 Madrid, Spain; [email protected] 
 Department of Cardiology, Hospital Universitario Gregorio Marañón, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Gregorio Marañon, Calle Doctor Esquerdo, 46, 28007 Madrid, Spain; School of Medicine, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain; School of Health and Biomedical Sciences, Universidad Europea de Madrid, 28670 Madrid, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red—Enfermedades Cardiovasculares (CIBERCV), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, C/Monforte de Lemos 3-5, Pabellón 11, Planta 0, 28029 Madrid, Spain 
First page
2263
Publication year
2025
Publication date
2025
Publisher
MDPI AG
e-ISSN
20770383
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
3188796367
Copyright
© 2025 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.