UX Fest 2018 Janae Sharp, Founder and CEO, The Sharp Index The more highly engaged Physicians and Clinicians are the key to good patient outcomes. However, the more engaged physicians are the more vulnerable to stress physicians are. Highly engaged Physicians and Clinicians without support and coping tools are at a higher risk of death by suicide. Clinician engagement tools specific to their engagement profile improve patient and clinician outcomes. Janae lost her husband to suicide after the birth of their third child and before the beginning of his residency in Pathology. This session will describe Clinician engagement tools that were developed to address behavioral health.

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Physician Suicide
Janae Sharp
@CoherenceMed

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THE FACTS
More than half of US physicians are experiencing burnout

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THE FACTS
Each year we lose around 400 physicians to suicide.
Over one million patients lose their Doctor to suicide each
year.

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THE FACTS
Physicians who are at risk have more medical
errors.
Total costs of errors and physician suicide are not
well known

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Clean layout for
business project

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MD suicides: 70% higher
than rates than other
professionals [2,3]
• Female MDs: 250 to 400
percent higher [2,3]
• MDs also have higher
completed suicide rate
[2,3] Suicide rate
(including “accidental
overdose”) is likely higher
• Higher rates:
anesthesiologists and
psychiatrists [4]
Suicide rates up 24%
from 1999-2014 [1]
• Suicide was 10th leading
cause of death in US [1]
• Rates of suicide in middle
age men 45-64, up 43%
[1]
• Rates of suicide in white
women, up 63% [1]
1000 Units of
Insulin: Physician
Suicide

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Only 26% of surgeons with suicidal ideation in the previous
year had sought care from a mental health provider compared
to 44% for individuals in the general population. [17]

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My Problem With Burnout
John Died by Fire

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Physician Mental Health and Substance Abuse
Depression[6]
– MD depression
rates are the
same as in other
populations. [7]
Substance use
– MD rates of
substance use
are 10-15% [8]
(compared to 9%
nationwide [9])
Mental Health
– Anxiety, bipolar
disorder,
personality
disorders [6]
Mood and substance issues risk factors for suicide
“Suicide is seen as the outcome of a complex, multifactorial
process involving the interplay of many variables rather than just
a byproduct of mental illness.” [10]

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Blame the Technology
2017 was the year of the
Electronic Health Record
as Burnout Villain
• Influx of articles about EHR
and burnout

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My Problem With EHR Narratives
Suicide Risk Increases in Training

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EHR Data Shows
Workforce Health

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Coping tools and support have been shown to decrease burnout rates
When physicians receive support and learn strategies that work, their stress and burn
out levels go down. However, providers are reluctant to seek help out of fear of
diagnosing and licensing boards.
We are offering a platform to provide transdiagnostic, anonymous online help with
access to evidence-based tools and weekly, virtual peer support.
sharpindex.o
rg

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We asked if respondents WANTED to
be contacted personally at the end of
the survey
12 %
Asked to be texted
Lowest Stress
Correlated with mental
health support
107 Responses
Flagged for concern

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We reach a greater number of female
physicians with the Sharp Index. Our site is
NOT optimized yet as we send all
responses manually.
Health IT Industry
media
Social Media and Health
IT media outlets have
some traffic
Television Media
Shared our story online
not the Nonprofit.
ZDogg MD
Podcasts and Shows
drive the most traffic

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Male Respondents were more likely to
respond that they would like a text contact
and include their phone number.
22% of Men
Wanted to be contacted
via text
11% of Women
Wanted to be contacted
via text
Burnout Rate
Did not relate to opting
in to a text

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Questions
• Twitter: @Coherencemed
• https://www.linkedin.com/in/janaesharp
• Janae@sharpindex.org