Chief wellness officer Nigel Girgrah, MD, PhD, was facing a dilemma. To maintain Ochsner Health’s longtime Gold-level from the AMA’s Joy in Medicine® Health System Recognition Program, the health system had to show proof it was removing intrusive and stigmatizing mental health questions from credentialing and peer reference forms.
“What I appreciate about this recognition program is that participation raises questions and brings forth ideas that we might not always think about,” said Dr. Girgrah, who practices transplant hepatology at Ochsner Health.
“Recognizing for several years that this is the right thing to do for our physicians, I have had many thoughtful discussions with our chief physician executive, Dr. Robert Hart,” he added. “His support of expanding this discussion and consideration with our physician board members, ultimately allowed Ochsner to implement credentialing application revisions.”
Achieving Gold is not just symbolic, Dr. Girgrah emphasized. At Ochsner Health, maintaining Gold-level recognition from the Joy in Medicine Program means that physician well-being gets equal status as a quality indicator alongside patient experience, access and quality and safety.
The health system has also shown an ability to pivot—to stay dynamic through board action, shared accountability and continuously raising the bar in its programs.
Ochsner Health is 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.
For the past six years, Ochsner Health has maintained Gold-level recognition from the Joy in Medicine Program.
Whether it’s building a transplant program or developing a physician well-being program, Dr. Girgrah gets restless when the focus shifts to stewardship or maintenance.
“I’ve always been motivated by building things, creating things and learning about things,” he said. “I'm encouraged in how this mindset is taking hold with leadership and across teams at Ochsner."
Gold status helps recruit, retain physicians
Ochsner Health’s sustained Gold-level recognition from the Joy in Medicine Program sends a strong message to both current and prospective physicians about the organization’s culture.
“I’d like to think it signals quite a lot,” Dr. Girgrah said. “When you break it down into recruitment, onboarding and retention, it’s increasingly meaningful.”
More prospective physicians are noticing the Gold-level recognition when researching Ochsner Health too.
“More and more candidates are seeing that Gold badge when they look us up, and it matters,” Dr. Girgrah said. In fact, the professional staff services team, on occasion, asks him to meet with candidates. Historically, candidates mostly met with operational leaders and people within their specialty, but now they’re interested in meeting with the leader of the well-being program. A cardiac surgeon, for example, wanted to talk about Ochsner Health’s efforts in the physician well-being space.
That interest aligns with broader national trends. Dr. Girgrah cited survey data from national consulting firms showing that among the newest generation of physicians evaluating potential employers, physician well-being is a major factor.
The second most important thing candidates were looking for—after compensation—was what an organization is doing around well-being, he said. This is consistent with what he’s hearing directly from candidates.
Dr. Girgrah also meets regularly with newly hired physicians to discuss Ochsner Health’s approach to physician well-being as part of the onboarding process.
For retention, the organization tracks several key indicators, including physicians’ “turnover intent,” which is measured through the AMA’s Organizational Biopsy® survey.
“That helps us identify where the hotspots are and where to direct our energies,” he said.
Dr. Girgrah said the recognition also reflects a broader cultural shift within the organization. Ochsner Health has spent significant time refining its organizational values and identifying specific behaviors and commitments that support them, with physician well-being woven throughout.
Over the past year, the health system also collaborated with doctors to develop a new physician compact—referred to internally as Group Practice Commitments—which represents a shared understanding between Ochsner, its physicians and advanced practice providers about how they work and lead together.
Looking at the output from this compact, physician well-being features prominently in what physicians commit to the organization and what the organization commits to physicians, Dr. Girgrah said. “The fact that it does is a reflection of how our culture has evolved over the past seven years.”
AMA fosters Ochsner’s collaborative efforts
The AMA has played an important role in helping Ochsner Health sustain its Gold-level recognition from the Joy in Medicine Program, noted Dr. Girgrah.
“Even before our formal relationship with the AMA, which began around 2019, the AMA made itself available to help coach me in this area,” he said.
Several AMA resources have supported Ochsner Health’s efforts, including the Joy in Medicine framework and the Organizational Biopsy from the Mini Z survey, which provides data on physician well-being and workplace culture.
Dr. Girgrah also emphasized the value of the AMA’s broader efforts to highlight and share health systems’ successes in improving physician well-being.
“The work AMA has been doing to communicate these successes has been really important,” he said.
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.
Download the 2025 AMA Joy in Medicine® magazine (log into your AMA account to view) to see whether your organization is part of the prestigious group of 164 organizations across 40 states and the District of Columbia that are currently recognized for their dedication to physician well-being.
AMA STEPS Forward® offers real-world solutions to common challenges in health care today. Explore a variety of innovative, physician-developed resources designed to help prevent physician burnout, optimize workflows, improve well-being and enhance patient care.
