Burnout. In 2020, I saw firsthand how the pandemic multiplied the stressors facing my colleagues in the healthcare field. During the pandemic, many heralded the heroic efforts of frontline workers, especially those essential in healthcare provision. The global pandemic represented a stressful time for all of us, with the uncertainties surrounding a novel virus and disinformation running rampant. Those charged with keeping the healthcare system running for longer hours in closer proximity to the pandemic faced even higher levels of stress, anxiety, and burnout. With the high stakes involved as they hold life in their hands daily, burnout continues to impact medical professionals at alarming rates.
Any attempt to reduce burnout among medical professionals must be rooted in understanding the stressors that cause it. Before I founded Collaborating Docs, I worked at one of the largest Federally Qualified Health Centers in our nation’s capital, where I worked alongside many brilliant Nurse Practitioners (NPs) and Physician Assistants (PAs). As they mentored me in the early years of my medical career, I understood how much NPs and PAs had to offer if the barriers to them doing so were lowered. Seeing the pandemic’s toll on my colleagues throughout 2020 inspired me to do just that.
When it comes to burnout in the healthcare field, any progress generates increasing returns. Stressed-out workers make more mistakes, leading to more stress. The importance of finding trustworthy and reliable partners in a medical practice cannot be overstated, a fact especially true for NPs and PAs. In many states nationwide, NPs and PAs require a collaborating doctor as a partner. Even in states where that is not the law, many clients benefit from establishing such a partnership. However, many aspiring independent practitioners struggle to find the right doctor. Additional barriers, such as the need to have medical malpractice insurance and the legal logistics of building your practice, keep many NPs and PAs from branching out on their own. This removes potential care providers from the field, meaning a higher burden on healthcare workers.
Many Hands Makes Light Work
At Collaborating Docs, we understand those realities and strive to improve the field of medicine at an individual and systemic level. At a personal level, we center increased institutional support for employees and structured medical practices with the well-being of workers and patients in mind. At a macro level, our mission to help NPs and PAs begin or expand their practices lessens the burden on the system. We empower NPs and PAs by enabling them to provide care they are qualified to give. This reduces the burden on the healthcare system as a whole, one practice and one provider at a time.
Since the pandemic, great strides have been made to reduce burnout among healthcare professionals. It vaulted telehealth forward, and that increased acceptance and adoption has drastically increased access to care while reducing its burden. That increased accessibility improves patient care, as more frequent visits lead to a greater ability to practice preventative care rather than rehabilitative care. Rehabilitative care is often costlier, more time-consuming, and much more stressful for patients and doctors alike.
While these strides have been commendable, efforts to reduce the barriers to entry for NPs and PAs have not kept pace. Streamlining the process by which NPs and PAs start their practices can increase access and reduce stress, just as telehealth expansion has done. Among the over 4,000 NPs and PAs we have helped, legal concerns and worries about malpractice previously daunted many. We believe that improving healthcare means letting healthcare providers focus on just that – providing healthcare. We handle all legal requirements of starting their practice with a collaborating doctor and do the same for medical malpractice insurance. Removing these logistical hurdles increases the pool of medical professionals able to provide care, reducing the strain on an overburdened healthcare system. In doing so, we help our clients, their patients, and all medical professionals and patients in their area.
The Right Fit
In addition to the legal hurdles, NPs and PAs do not know where to begin when finding the right collaborating doctor working with the right people, especially in medicine, and building a medical practice from the ground up. Fear of finding the wrong partner can be debilitating for NPs and PAs, but the right partner can be uplifting and helpful. When dealing with life and death, the person standing next to you can make all the difference. When working as a doctor during the pandemic, I only got through it because of the team alongside me. We all lived the same experience and understood the importance of being there for each other during trying times. At Collaborating Docs, we curated a list of potential partner physicians, and if the NP or PA feels it is not the right fit, we will pair them with a new physician free of charge until they feel the fit is there.
While vital to healthcare employees, the principles underpinning Collaborating Docs can help those working across various fields. Let people focus on their work. Do all you can to lessen the burden while they work. Do everything possible to lighten the load. We focus on the legal and logistical aspects so healthcare workers can be healthcare workers. This is the same for lawyers, teachers, and all workers. When building a business, entrepreneurs building from the ground up and owners growing via expansion or acquisition seek trustworthy and reliable partners. Work with people who understand the stressors you face so they can best help you handle those stressors.
