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What Percentage of Physicians Experience Burnout?
What Causes Physician Burnout?
What Is the Cost of Physician Burnout?
How Can Locum Tenens Help Reduce Physician Burnout?
Partnering with Medicus to Reduce Staffing-Related Physician Burnout
Frequently Asked Questions About Physician Burnout
For many physicians, work-life balance is no longer a secondary consideration. It increasingly shapes where they choose to practice, how they structure their careers, and whether they remain with an organization over the long term. As physician shortages persist, healthcare leaders must balance those expectations with the daily realities of maintaining coverage.
Without enough support, open positions and prolonged vacancies can place greater demands on permanent teams and contribute to the conditions that drive burnout. Used strategically, locum tenens can help relieve that pressure while supporting coverage, retention, and broader workforce stability.
What Percentage of Physicians Experience Burnout?
According to the American Medical Association’s (AMA) most recent National Physician Comparison Report, 41.9% of physicians reported experiencing at least one symptom of burnout, with nine specialties reporting rates above the national average.
Nine Physician Specialties With Burnout Rates Above the National Average
- Emergency medicine: 49.8%
- Urological surgery: 49.5%
- Hematology/oncology: 49.3%
- OB/GYN: 45.7%
- Radiology: 45.2%
- Family medicine: 45%
- General surgery: 43.8%
- Cardiology: 43.5%
- Gastroenterology: 43.5%
Although burnout rates vary by specialty, the pressure behind them is often familiar: demanding workloads, persistent coverage gaps, and too little flexibility. When those challenges continue, burnout can contribute to disengagement, turnover, and greater instability across clinical teams.
What Causes Physician Burnout?
Although the causes of physician burnout vary by individual and specialty, the AMA links burnout to several workplace and system-level factors. These include administrative burdens, system inefficiencies, limited control over the work environment, and organizational cultures that lack strong communication, trust, and alignment.
Physician shortages, persistent coverage gaps, and limited opportunities for work-life balance can also contribute to burnout. When organizations do not have enough coverage to meet demand, physicians may face heavier workloads, less scheduling flexibility, and fewer opportunities to take adequate time away from work.
What Is the Cost of Physician Burnout?
Physician burnout can increase turnover, recruitment expenses, lost revenue, workload pressures, and operational disruption. One of the most significant consequences is the cost and time required to replace a departing physician. According to the Association for Advancing Physician and Provider Recruitment’s (AAPPR) 2025 Physician Benchmarking Report, it takes an average of 224 days to fill an open physician position.
When a vacancy remains open for months, the impact can extend well beyond recruitment costs and lost revenue. Existing physicians may be asked to cover additional shifts, manage higher patient volumes, or take on more frequent call responsibilities. At the same time, healthcare organizations may have to reduce appointment availability, limit services, delay care, or redirect patients elsewhere when there is not enough coverage to meet demand.
How Can Locum Tenens Help Reduce Physician Burnout?
Locum tenens physicians and advanced practitioners have become a core component of workforce stability as healthcare organizations navigate physician shortages, prolonged vacancies, and rising patient volumes. Beyond bridging coverage gaps, locum tenens can be a valuable strategy for addressing staffing-related physician burnout in several ways.
Preventing Vacancies From Overloading Existing Teams
When a physician position remains open, the workload does not disappear. Existing physicians may need to cover additional shifts, assume more frequent call responsibilities, or manage higher patient volumes. Over time, those added demands can contribute to burnout.
Incorporating locum tenens physicians and advanced practitioners can help restore balance before the strain of a vacancy becomes part of the team’s day-to-day workload. By maintaining adequate coverage, organizations can support more manageable workloads, reduce pressure on existing physicians, and lower the risk of burnout without disrupting continuity of care.
Enhancing Work-Life Balance Among Internal Teams
According to the 2026 Medscape Physician Mental Health & Well-Being Report, 59% of physicians said they would accept less pay if it meant better work-life balance. Yet when coverage is limited, physicians may have fewer options to adjust their schedules, take time off, or step away from work without adding pressure to the rest of the team.
Healthcare leaders can plan locum tenens coverage around vacations, parental leave, medical leave, and other anticipated scheduling needs. Coverage can also help reduce excessive call demands and create more sustainable schedules during prolonged vacancies. This proactive approach helps organizations protect physician time off, improve flexibility, and prevent staffing gaps from placing additional pressure on existing teams.
Responding to Increases in Patient Volumes
The risk of burnout can increase when patient demand grows faster than staffing levels. Seasonal surges, service line growth, facility expansions, and changes in referral volume can quickly increase workloads and place sustained pressure on existing teams.
Having an established locum tenens partnership can help organizations respond more quickly when patient volumes rise. With a trusted partner already familiar with the organization’s needs, locum tenens physicians and advanced practitioners can be deployed more efficiently. This additional capacity can help keep workloads manageable and prevent temporary demand increases from becoming a prolonged source of burnout.
Supporting a Broader Workforce Strategy
Locum tenens cannot address every factor that contributes to physician burnout. Leadership, culture, autonomy, and workplace support all remain important to creating a healthier work environment.
Reliable coverage can create the capacity leaders need to address those issues without placing additional strain on internal teams. As organizations work through staffing changes, rebuild after turnover, or introduce more sustainable schedules, locum tenens can help maintain coverage and protect manageable workloads. This gives leaders more room to focus on long-term workforce improvements while continuing to support the physicians already in place.
Partnering with Medicus to Reduce Staffing-Related Physician Burnout
Addressing staffing-related physician burnout requires more than filling an open shift. Healthcare leaders need a trusted locum tenens staffing partner who understands how vacancies, rising patient demand, and changing coverage needs can affect clinicians, operations, and continuity of care.
Medicus works closely with healthcare organizations to develop locum tenens staffing solutions that reflect their clinical and operational priorities. Through a relationship-driven approach, nationwide recruiting capabilities, and dedicated support throughout licensing, credentialing, travel, and onboarding, Medicus helps leaders secure high-quality physicians and advanced practitioners while reducing pressure on permanent teams.
When healthcare organizations partner with Medicus, they benefit from:
- Access to high-quality physicians and advanced practitioners across medical specialties
- Staffing solutions aligned with clinical, scheduling, and operational needs
- Dedicated support with licensing, credentialing, travel, and onboarding
- Project-based coverage for complex or multi-FTE staffing challenges
- Centralized oversight of locum tenens programs
- A responsive partnership backed by 24/7 support
Medicus can provide tailored locum tenens staffing for specific coverage needs, project-based support through the Medicus Transition Program, or centralized locum tenens workforce management through MedicusOne, an enterprise-grade MSP/VMS platform. By matching the right level of support to each healthcare organization's needs, Medicus helps healthcare leaders maintain continuity of care, protect existing teams, and create greater workforce stability while long-term staffing strategies take shape.
Looking for locum tenens coverage that supports your organization’s workforce goals? Complete the short form below to connect with the Medicus team.
Frequently Asked Questions About Physician Burnout
Can Locum Tenens Help Reduce Physician Burnout?
Locum tenens can help reduce staffing-related burnout by adding coverage when internal teams are managing vacancies, planned absences, or increases in patient demand. Additional support can help maintain manageable workloads, protect time off, and reduce prolonged pressure on existing physicians.
How Do Physician Shortages Contribute to Burnout?
When staffing levels do not meet patient demand, existing physicians may be asked to work additional shifts, assume more frequent call responsibilities, manage higher patient volumes, or delay time away. When those conditions continue, they can increase exhaustion and contribute to burnout.
How Can Locum Tenens Improve Physician Work-Life Balance?
Healthcare organizations can plan locum tenens coverage around vacations, parental leave, medical leave, and other scheduling needs. This makes it easier for physicians to take time away without shifting the full workload to the rest of the team.
When Should Healthcare Organizations Consider Locum Tenens Coverage?
Locum tenens may be helpful when an organization is managing a vacancy, prolonged recruitment timeline, planned absence, seasonal surge, service line expansion, or unexpected increase in patient volume. Coverage can be tailored to short-term needs or broader workforce challenges.
What Percentage of Physicians Experience Burnout?
According to the American Medical Association’s most recent National Physician Comparison Report, 41.9% of physicians reported experiencing at least one symptom of burnout. Rates were higher than the national average in nine specialties, including emergency medicine, urological surgery, hematology/oncology, OB/GYN, and radiology.
Can Locum Tenens Support Long-Term Workforce Strategies?
Yes. Locum tenens can maintain coverage while organizations improve schedules, rebuild after turnover, transition staffing models, or develop longer-term workforce plans. This can help prevent those changes from placing additional strain on internal teams.
How Can a Locum Tenens Agency Support Burnout-Reduction Efforts?
A locum tenens agency, like Medicus, can source and qualify locum tenens clinicians while managing licensing, credentialing, travel, and onboarding. A trusted partner can also help align coverage with an organization’s specialty needs, schedules, patient demand, and workforce goals.
