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50 Physician Affairs ABIM: 'We Got it Wrong' With Maintenance of Certification Program Changes By Emily Rappleye The Most and Least Burned Out Physicians Broken Down by Specialty By Emily Rappleye A n increasing number of physicians are reporting burnout: They are losing their drive and enthusiasm for work, feel- ing cynical or have a low sense of accomplish- ment. The 2015 Medscape Physician Lifestyle Report found 46 percent of physicians surveyed felt burned out, compared to slightly less than 40 percent in 2013. However, burnout doesn't hit all physicians the same. The following data shows the top 10 spe- cialties in which physicians are feeling the most burned out, according to Medscape. 1. Critical care (53 percent reported burnout) 2. Emergency medicine (52 percent) 3. Family medicine (50 percent) 4. Internal medicine (50 percent) 5. General surgery (50 percent) 6. HIV/infectious diseases (50 percent) 7. Radiology (49 percent) 8. OB/Gyn & women's health (49 percent) 9. Neurology (49 percent) 10.Urology (48 percent) The specialties with the smallest percentage of burnout included the following, from least to most burned-out: 1. Dermatology (37 percent) 2. Psychiatry & mental health (38 percent) 3. Pathology (39 percent) 4. Ophthalmology (41 percent) 5. Gastroenterology (41 percent) 6. Rheumatology (43 percent) 7. Allergy & clinical immunology (43 per- cent) 8. Pediatrics (44 percent) 9. Oncology (44 percent) 10. Anesthesiology (44 percent) Bureaucratic tasks, long hours at work and insuf- ficient income were the top three factors influenc- ing burnout at work, according to the report. n "W e got it wrong and sincerely apologize. We are sorry," reads a letter from Richard J. Baron, MD, President and CEO of the American Board of Internal Medicine. The letter, dated February 3 and addressed to the internal medicine commu- nity, addresses recent complaints about ABIM's changes to its Maintenance of Certification program, which involved program requirements to be com- pleted on a shorter, continuous cycle. The letter states, "it is clear that parts of the new program are not meeting the needs of physicians," and says ABIM is open to discussing how to improve the MOC program. It also outlines the following changes to the current MOC program. • The Practice Assessment, Patient Voice and Patient Safety requirements will be immediately suspended for at least two years. Certification sta- tuses will not be changed for at least two years if internists have not completed these requirements. • Public listings on websites will read, "participating in MOC," rather than "meeting MOC requirements," or "not meeting MOC require- ments." Changes are expected on ABIM's website within six months. • The Internal Medicine MOC exam will be updated for fall 2015 to re- flect current physician practices. • The enrollment fee will be locked at or below 2014 levels through 2017. • ABIM will accept most forms of ACCME-approved CME by the end of this year as a way for physicians to show self-assessment of medical knowledge. n BECKER'S HOSPITAL REVIEW CEO REPORT E-WEEKLY subscribe today free • educational • up-to-date Visit beckershospitalreview.com/e-weeklies.html or call (800) 417-2035