05/23/2022

Ohio’s Practice Transformation Initiative: Impact Highlights!

The American Medical Association (AMA) Practice Transformation Initiative was established in 2019 to conduct further research on physician dissatisfaction and burnout and actionable solutions to address these issues—including practice processes and performance.

Physician well-being is a key priority for OSMA, and we have been proud to administer the Practice Transformation Initiative since 2020 with two member practices:

• Emergency Services, Inc.

• Mount Carmel Medical Group

OSMA’s participation is supported by The Physicians Foundation.

The Process

As part of the Practice Transformation Initiative, the practices distributed a Mini-Z TEAMS Survey with 13 questions designed to assess burnout and satisfaction levels among both healthcare clinicians and teams.

The surveys were administered in two points in time:

• October 2020
• September 2021

The Impact

We connected with Dr. Maria Courser from Mount Carmel Medical Group, and Dr. Chloe Sidley from Emergency Services, Inc., who shared their experiences and how being part of this program is impacting their organization.

Mount Carmel Medical Group

Using the data from the Mini-Z survey, we were able to tailor our clinician wellness strategy to address the main drivers of burnout. Our strategy included projects that addressed individual burnout and resilience as well as identifying and addressing system-wide issues.

As an example, the biggest area that contributed to burnout was staffing shortages. We established a staffing workgroup that has developed a plan to address these challenges, and are moving toward implementing these changes in the near future.

Being part of this program is having a long-term impact on our organization. We will continue to administer the Mini-Z survey and tailor our strategy based on those results. This is now part of our operating plan.

We really appreciated the opportunity to participate in the program. The resources the AMA provided – both with the Mini-Z survey and the Steps Forward modules – were very valuable.

Emergency Services, Inc. (ESI)

Being part of the Practice Transformation Initiative helped us design and implement a number of social events in response to the data to help decrease burnout. One of these is during 12-hour shifts at our new freestanding ER, we have a program in place for doctors to order lunch or dinner paid for by the ESI. We also did a Peloton challenge competition for physical wellness.

It has been a tough couple of years for everyone related to wellness and burnout. COVID has made things challenging, in addition to overcrowded ERs and being short staffed. ESI is a small company, but knowing how much wellness matters makes a big difference, and we will continue to use the findings from our participation in this initiative in the future. We’re looking forward to continuing the Peloton challenges! 

Addressing physician well-being and burnout is a top priority for OSMA. To learn more about our organization-wide efforts, and to access our Well-Being CARE Service, visit www.wellbeingcare.org.