Physician burnout is showing promising signs of decline, according to exclusive survey data from the AMA. The analysis reveals that burnout rates have fallen among physicians at every career stage after residency or fellowship training. At the same time, measures of job satisfaction and feeling valued in the workplace are on the rise—an encouraging shift that suggests meaningful progress in efforts to support physician well-being.
Nearly 18,000 responses from physicians across 43 states were received from more than 100 health systems and organizations that participated in the AMA Organizational Biopsy® last year. The AMA national physician comparison report—which is exclusive data to the AMA that is not published anywhere else—reflects 2024 trends on six key performance indicators—job satisfaction, job stress, burnout, intent to leave an organization, feeling valued by an organization and total hours spent per week on work-related activities (known as “time spend”).
The purpose of the aggregated data is to provide a national summary of organizational well-being and to serve as a comparison for other health care organizations. The results represent data from all organizations that surveyed with the AMA in 2024.
As the leader in physician well-being, the AMA is reducing physician burnout by removing administrative burdens and providing real-world solutions to help doctors rediscover the Joy in Medicine®.
In 2024, 43.2% of physicians reported experiencing at least one symptom of burnout, down from 48.2% in 2023 and 53% in 2022. But burnout rates varied among physicians based on the number of years post residency or fellowship training.
For 2024, here is what AMA data reveals about physician burnout rates and how they vary based on the number of years since completing residency or fellowship training:
- 1–5 years: 39.3%—down from 46.7%.
- 6–10 years: 48.4%—down from 55.1%.
- 11–15 years: 49.4%—down from 55.3%.
- 16–20 years: 46.5%—down from 50.8%.
- 20 or more years: 38.3%—down from 41.3%.
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Job stress down, satisfaction up
Physicians across all levels of training also reported a drop in their job stress levels. Here is what AMA data reveals about job stress rates and how they vary based on the number of years since completing residency or fellowship training:
Meanwhile, job satisfaction was highest in early and late-career physicians. For physicians who were five or fewer years out of training, 80.4% reported they were satisfied with their jobs, up from 74.7% in 2023. And for physicians with 20-plus years since residency or fellowship, 77.3% reported job satisfaction, up from 72.9%. But job satisfaction rates were lowest for physicians with six to 10 years in practice, at 74.8%, which is up from 69.2%.
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More physicians are feeling valued
For 2024, there was also a boost in physicians reporting that they feel valued by their organization. Here is what AMA data reveals about rates of feeling valued and how they vary based on the number of years post residency or fellowship training:
- 1–5 years: 57.8%—up from 50.5%.
- 6–10 years: 49.9%—up from 45.2%.
- 11–15 years: 51%—up from 47.1%.
- 16–20 years: 53.5%—up from 49.8%.
- 20 or more years: 56.7%—up from 54.6%.
Additionally, 25.4% of physicians 16 to 20 years post training reported they were likely to leave their current practice in the next two years, down from 29.6% in 2023. This is compared with physicians with more than 20 years since residency or fellowship at 36.5%, which is down from 40.8%.
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Health systems are making changes
The reduction in burnout rates and rise in job satisfaction and feeling valued for physicians across years post residency or fellowship training signals a promising trend. It highlights the powerful impact of prioritizing well-being across experience levels and shows that ongoing efforts that health systems have implemented can help.
These examples from health care organizations that are part of the AMA Health System Member Program—which provides enterprise solutions to equip leadership, physicians and care teams with resources to help drive the future of medicine—show commitment to ongoing change to reduce burnout and improve satisfaction across all experience levels.
CenterWell and Conviva Senior Primary Care invest in education and leadership
- Two sister primary care organizations with operations in 15 states—CenterWell Senior Primary Care and Conviva Senior Primary Care—have invested company time and resources to offer multiple opportunities in professional growth and continuing education.
- Fostering continual learning helps grow leaders and leads to retention of physicians. Physician education and leadership development also reduce burnout by breaking up the day and providing variety.
Hattiesburg Clinic gives young doctors chances to connect
- Leaders from Hattiesburg Clinic, a physician-owned and -governed health system in Southern Mississippi, completed the AMA’s Organizational Biopsy®. While Hattiesburg performed better than the national average on almost every performance indicator, a surprising result emerged. Early career physicians experienced a significantly higher rate of burnout compared to the rest of the organization.
- Hattiesburg Clinic features about 300 physician partners, but with offices spread across a 19-county area, most only work with one or two other physicians in their office. That dispersed workforce was a key factor in why many physicians said they were looking for more social connection among their colleagues. The early career physicians, in particular, said they wanted to know more about their partners and staff in other departments. Hattiesburg Clinic responded with a number of new initiatives.
Ochsner Health uses a multifaceted approach
- At Ochsner Health, physicians who were in practice for 10 to 15 years were experiencing the most burnout compared to the rest of the organization. This may be because their practice is more mature and they’re at their busiest. They could also be starting families or they have more family responsibilities, both with kids and older, aging parents.
- In response, Ochsner Health has expanded both child care and elder care services, and significantly improving paid parental leave policies. Now, all full-time employees, including physicians, are eligible on the first day of their employment for parental leave at 100% of their base pay for six weeks upon the addition to their household of a child by birth, adoption or surrogacy. Ochsner Health also has embraced augmented intelligence (AI)—often called artificial intelligence—to help. Using generative AI tools helps reduce the administrative burden on physicians at Ochsner Health.
Sanford Health conducts annual check-ins with leaders
- For midcareer physicians who were “doing just fine,” leaders still know the importance of transparent, timely and authentic communication. The same goes for physicians who are doing amazing things or doctors who are struggling. How can you check in with them and give them the tools they need?
- Every year at Sanford Health, a designated hour is set aside for physicians and their leaders to meet and get to know each other better—not to discuss a performance review.
Download the 2024 AMA Joy in Medicine™ magazine (log into your AMA account to view) to see whether your organization is part of the prestigious group of 130 organizations across 35 states that are currently recognized for their dedication to physician well-being.
