We live in a day and age of hyperconnectivity. Anyone can get in touch with you from anywhere in the world and at any time of the day, simply through email.

In healthcare, our emails are usually related to administrative tasks, research, and teaching, rather than direct patient care.

Could checking your email be causing you stress?

Yes!  And we are going to talk tips and what you can do starting today.

The problem:

In studies evaluating physician burnout, a large source of stress is administrative burden. Physicians spend half of their time on electronic health record tasks, desk work, and other administrated tasks compared to 27% of their time on direct clinical care.

Higher amounts of administrative duties correlate with lower levels of career satisfaction and higher levels of burnout.

Mass email burden on physicians is also increasing.

A 2014 study found that academic physicians received an average of 2.1 spam invitations daily to attend a conference or write for a journal, 16% of which were duplicates, and 84% which were of minimal relevance to the recipient.

Patient email communications are also increasing.  A 2013 study found 37% of patients with chronic conditions reportedly contact their physicians by email, with frequencies as high as 49% in patients 25-44 years old.

Let’s talk about some healthy email habits.

By decluttering our email and reducing email burden, there is one less factor cluttering our mental and physical energy.

Here are some strategies for reducing email burden:

Limit access:

• Set up overnight or weekend out-of-office auto generated responses stating you are not available during specific time periods, except for emergencies (which must be identified in the subject line)
• Avoid checking your email on your phone
• Set specific times to check your email- “top of the hour” or “morning, lunch, and before dinner”

Manage your inbox:

• Vet your inbox and only open emails that enhance your productivity and goals
• Unsubscribe to emails that you do not read (or hire a virtual assistant to do that for you once a month)
• Avoid using your inbox as a to-do list 

Limit content:

• Keep emails short with less open ended questions
• Conversations/open ended discussions should be reserved for in-person meetings or phone calls

Unnecessary emails result in lost time that could be spent on other tasks like clinical care, research, or home life.

Career satisfaction and burnout are large areas of challenges for physicians.

Decluttering your email and creating healthy email habits is one area that we can start working on today!

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I hope you found some useful workplace wellness tips today! If you found these helpful- share with a friend.

Remember, #dosomethingdaily for yourself to make steps towards a healthier and more-fulfilled you.

In health,

Shani Esparaz M.D.

Double Board-Certified Ophthalmologist, Lifestyle Medicine Specialist, Health & Wellness Coach

Sources:

Armstrong MJ. Improving email strategies to target stress and productivity in clinical practice. Neurol Clin Pract. 2017 Dec;7(6):512-517. doi: 10.1212/CPJ.0000000000000395. PMID: 29431178; PMCID: PMC5800719.

https://positivepsychologynews.com/news/geoff-fallon/2014101330240