Nearly 50% of physicians reported experiencing burnout in 2024, with 42% of them facing it for over two years. For 30% of physicians, burnout was so severe they considered leaving medicine altogether. These statistics underscore the urgency of addressing burnout, particularly as healthcare systems contend with increasing patient demand and growing physician shortages. Tackling burnout is not only essential for improving physician well-being but also for sustaining a stable clinical workforce and ensuring consistent, high-quality care for patients.

Interim healthcare staffing offers a strategic approach to mitigating burnout among permanent providers. By leveraging locum tenens providers, healthcare leaders can reduce excessive workloads, stabilize teams, and create space to implement long-term workforce strategies that improve culture and retention.

The Role of Interim Healthcare Staffing in Addressing Burnout

Interim healthcare staffing provides healthcare leaders with a strategic approach to managing physician burnout. By integrating interim providers, healthcare leaders can address immediate needs while supporting long-term workforce resilience in several key ways:

1. Reduce Excessive Workloads

Locum tenens physicians and advanced practitioners can step in to fill gaps caused by staff absences, cover additional shifts, or handle increased patient volumes. This helps distribute workloads more evenly, preventing permanent staff from becoming overworked or overwhelmed.

2. Integrate Flexible Coverage

Interim staffing solutions are adaptable to the unique needs of each facility. For example, scheduling locum tenens during times when permanent physicians are on leave ensures continuity of care without adding strain to the remaining team. Medicus takes a tailored approach, prioritizing the scheduling preferences of permanent staff and assigning locum tenens providers to cover additional needs.

3. Support Long-Term Workforce Strategies

During staffing model transitions or organizational changes, locum tenens help healthcare leaders mitigate risks associated with burnout. By addressing immediate coverage gaps, interim staffing creates breathing room to implement sustainable strategies, such as redesigning workflows or integrating advanced practice providers, without placing extra burdens on existing teams.

4. Improve Morale and Retention

Reducing burnout is key to improving workplace culture and retention rates. Incorporating locum tenens providers into staffing strategies offers a practical solution by alleviating excessive workloads. This approach supports permanent providers, helping them maintain a healthier work-life balance and reducing the risk of burnout. A balanced and supportive environment not only improves team dynamics but also enhances long-term retention, ensuring providers feel appreciated and empowered in their roles. 

Real-Life Impact: Tackling Radiologist Shortages at Corewell Health

During a Medicus-hosted panel at the Becker's CEO + CFO Roundtable, Chad Tuttle, Senior Vice President of Corewell Health, shared how radiologist shortages in Michigan created significant challenges and placed immense strain on remaining staff.

With a limited number of radiologists available, Corewell Health's outsourced radiology team struggled to adequately staff their program. This resulted in a backlog of 18,000 imaging studies, with some cases delayed 45 to 60 days. The delays not only impacted patient care but also led to unsustainable workloads for the remaining radiology team.

To address the backlog, Corewell Health established a command center to evaluate potential solutions. Initial measures, such as redistributing imaging responsibilities and reducing unnecessary studies, provided temporary relief but were insufficient to manage the growing workload. Recognizing the need for additional support, Corewell partnered with the Medicus Transition Program, a project-based staffing solution, to bring in approximately 20 FTE locum tenens radiologists.

This partnership aimed to reduce the backlog, relieve the pressure on permanent staff, and improve access to care for the community.

"We partnered with Medicus to identify a bolus of providers that we could bring in very quickly to augment the independent group... Medicus was really a very good partner for us in that, and it made it so that we could focus on the internal change management we need to do," Chad Tuttle shared.

Within 60 days, the Medicus locum tenens radiologists reduced the backlog to 2,500 studies, with 95% of cases read within 24 hours. This intervention not only restored operational stability but also provided much-needed relief for overworked radiologists, demonstrating the critical role interim staffing can play in reducing burnout while maintaining high standards of patient care.

Learn more on how healthcare leaders are leveraging interim healthcare staffing to stabilize their clinical workforces here.

Strengthening Healthcare Teams with Strategic Interim Staffing Solutions

Addressing burnout requires strategic, multifaceted staffing strategies. Interim healthcare staffing, like the Medicus Transition Program, offers long-term solutions for specialties facing significant FTE gaps. By making interim healthcare staffing a part of clinical staffing strategies, healthcare leaders can support their teams, maintain high-quality care, and build a more stable and engaged workforce.

Interested in learning more about the Medicus Transition Program? Complete the short form below to connect with Medicus.