I Am Releasing My Physician Retention Book Right Here on LinkedIn

I have made a decision to release my book here on LinkedIn. Why? Because of how dire the situation is out there for physicians. From burnout to suicide there is a continuing trend of doctors suffering and leaving medicine altogether. And there is no easy fix.

I really don't want to point fingers at all the causes right now. I would just like to help organizations foster a better environment for physicians. With that in mind, I will post The Hospital Guide to Physician Retention: Why Creating a Physician-Friendly Environment is Critical for Your Organization's Success chapter by chapter on a regular basis. Some chapters are short. Some are long. Hopefully, though, all of them will create some thoughtful discussion. And, remember, it was written for administrators.

(It would be great if people found this helpful in changing environments where doctors are now struggling. Feel free to leave comments at the end of each post. I can always learn from others!)

SECTION ONE: What You Need to Know Before You Even Start a Physician Retention Program

Chapter One?

Introduction or Why I Hope You Read this Book?

“I was in a hospital elevator a few days ago. I was not on staff. I wore normal clothes. A couple of guys got on. One said ‘I like?

Howard, he knows how to control the doctors. The second said, ‘He fired one, and the others fell in line.’ They got off the next floor.”?

- Anonymous Doctor?

?????????????

Let’s start this book with the end in mind. You want less physician turnover. Why? Well, it saves you money. It also saves time, effort, and the heartache in recruiting new doctors not to mention dealing with their displaced patients. It also prevents your competitor down the road from getting your docs. Great. We are all on the same page. Or are we? What do the doctors want? Are they staying because of your non-compete clause that keeps them prisoners there? Trust me, that’s not the way you want to keep them.??

The quote you read above is 100% true and is NOT the atmosphere you want at your hospital either. Do you think doctors are happy at that hospital? What do you think the turnover rate is? How much money are they losing? What is the overall mood of everyone at the hospital???

And that is what this book is all about.??

The bottom line is that great hospital environments create happy doctors. Those happy doctors stay. Happy doctors recruit other happy doctors. And happy doctors make patients happy.?

This saves you money and makes you money.??

Now let’s figure out how to keep doctors happy.?

To summarize so far, here is why I hope you continue to read this book and even start a physician retention program. It will:?

1.?????Produce a better work environment.?

2.?????Create happier doctors.?

3.?????Create happier patients.?

4.?????Help give the hospital stability.??

5.?????Save the hospital money.?

I know what you may be thinking, but this book was not written to criticize administrators. I may poke fun at a few people, but the goal is to make physicians, who are employed by a hospital, happy. There is a problem out there, though. Doctors are unhappy. They are unhappy with their profession. They are unhappy with their lives. They are burning out. And most of this is NOT due to their employers. But some of it is.??

It really doesn’t matter, though. With a pending physician shortage that continues to get worse, the odds of finding and keeping a good doctor is getting harder and harder. This is especially true now that doctors are talking more than ever, especially when they leave, quit, or retire. Here is an example of a doctor communicating with his employer:?

Letter to administrators: “I write to you at a point in my career where I have decided to resign from XYZ System effective 90 days from the date of this letter. I am excited to pursue an old fashioned but relevant sabbatical. I don’t have a clear idea of the outcome, but I do know the path to take. I plan to engage patients in a new format and am looking forward to renewed relationships with colleagues. This change comes after great consideration of the impact on people I care deeply for: my partners, my loyal staff, and cherished patients. These relationships have helped me hunger to improve my knowledge and attend my calling as a family physician. I have shared a wonderful part of my life and career with people whom I love. I am grateful for having had that opportunity. Taking pause, I again realize the impact family doctors play in people’s lives as we learn to accept death, deal with imperfect bodies, and forgive mistakes. I remember a similar feeling as I graduated from college, attended medical school, married my wife, and heard the first heartbeat?of each of my sons. The feelings were a mix of the profound realness of the moment with an absolute dread of the unknown and the unbridled excitement of what was to come. “When it occurs to a man that nature does not regard him as important, and that he feels he would not maim the universe by disposing of him, he at first wishes to throw bricks at the temple, and he hates deeply the fact that there are no bricks and no temples.” Stephen Crane, The Open Boat. Having no bricks and no temples, I must exercise the choice to choose a different direction for my career. So, I wish you well. I hope the changes you face ultimately bring you happiness. “?

The response was that I got a decommissioning interview from a lowlevel administrator.??

What fun. They were making sure I wasn’t stealing anything from them.??

The irony.?

How well do you think he speaks of his former bosses? The hospital? And trust me, he is talking.?

Social media has changed the way the world communicates. This was starting to break into the physician world before COVID19 and then exploded afterwards. Normally stoic doctors are now opening up about their issues and expressing their opinions and those opinions are spreading. This is good for doctors. This can be either good or bad for you. It is good for you if you are a physician-friendly hospital. It is bad for you if you are not.?

Fortunately, there is a solution for this issue of physician turnover. If all those involved (doctors, too) can drop their egos and truly work together, then there is hope. Remember, healthcare is a people business. It is also relationship business. Administrators have their own pain points. Many of which physicians don’t know about (EHR problems, revenue issues, staffing, patient engagement, etc.).?

The pain points for physicians are getting more pressing every day. Doctors feel isolated. Doctors feel lonely. Doctors are people, too. If administrators strengthen the relationships with them, care about them and connect with them and help them connect to each other, then you have more than a chance to fix this issue. You could even be one of those physician-friendly hospitals that doctors are talking about and that sure would make recruiting easier, wouldn’t it? Imagine a hospital where physicians recruit their friends!!! I’ve seen it. The end result is that they want to stay. And, again, that saves you money.??

Author’s Note: I speak to doctors on a regular basis. Hundreds have sent me stories to share in this book. All are kept anonymous. In an attempt to not be repetitive, all the quotes in the rest of this book are anonymous. I just won’t type “anonymous” each time.??