NEW YORK (PRWEB)
October 18, 2021

The American Medical Association (AMA) has recognized the Mount Sinai Health System as a recipient of the 2021 Joy in Medicine™ Health System Recognition Program for a demonstrated commitment to preserving the well-being of health care team members by engaging in proven efforts to combat work-related stress and burnout. Mount Sinai was one of 44 health care organizations nationwide to receive the honor.

“On behalf of the Office of Well-Being and Resilience at Mount Sinai, we are delighted to be recognized as leaders in the space of well-being and resilience. This is clearly the validation of a large team effort to work hard in trying to understand what enables our workforce to best do their work in a community that cares about them. It also exemplifies the priority that the school and system place on well-being,” said Jonathan A. Ripp, MD, MPH, Dean for Well-Being and Resilience and Professor of Medicine, Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine, and Medical Education at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. “We know that the pandemic has hurled a host of new stressors at us and that much work remains to optimize the work environment, but I am proud to be part of an institution that champions this and is committed to this journey. I am indebted to my team and the innumerable school and system leaders and champions who made it possible for us to be recognized for this award.”

Work-related stress and burnout were issues for health care workers well before the pandemic and have been exacerbated because of it. Health care workers face high rates of depression, job dissatisfaction, and other work-related issues and Mount Sinai was determined to identify evidence-based solutions to address and prevent them. These, included launching the Mount Sinai Center for Stress, Resilience, and Personal Growth in the spring of 2020 to prioritize the health and wellness of its workers, helping them recover and even become more resilient after the first COVID-19 surge in New York City. Using a multidisciplinary approach, the Center provides early interventions that build resilience while addressing the burnout, stress, and other signs of mental health illness experienced during this pandemic. The Center collaborates with and complements other Mount Sinai programs, such as those organized by the Office of Well-Being and Resilience.

A national study examining the experiences of physicians and other workers who worked in health care systems during the COVID-19 pandemic found that 38 percent reported experiencing anxiety or depression, while 43 percent suffered from work overload and 49 percent had burnout.

Candidates for the Joy in Medicine Health System Recognition Program were evaluated according to their documented efforts to reduce work-related burnout through system level drivers. Scoring criteria were based on demonstrated competencies in commitment, assessment, leadership, efficiency of practice environment, teamwork, and support.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has placed extraordinary stress on physicians and other health care professionals,” said AMA President Gerald E. Harmon, MD. “While it is always important for health systems to focus on the well-being of care teams, the imperative is greater than ever, as acute stress from combating the COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to higher rates of work overload, anxiety, and depression. The health systems we recognize today are true leaders in promoting an organizational response that makes a difference in the lives of the health care workforce.”

Launched in 2019, the Joy in Medicine Health System Recognition Program is a component of the AMA’s practice transformation efforts, an ambitious initiative to advance evidence-based solutions that fill the knowledge gap in effective solutions to the physician burnout crisis.

“The recognition program offers a roadmap to guide health system leaders who are interested, engaged, and committed in efforts to fight the root causes of burnout in the health care workforce,” said AMA Vice President of Professional Satisfaction Christine Sinsky, MD. “The 44 health systems recognized this year by the AMA are creating momentum in the health care community for a united commitment to wide-spanning change in the culture of medicine that emphasizes professional well-being in health care.”

The AMA continues to work on every front to address the physician burnout crisis. Through research, collaborations, advocacy and leadership, the AMA is working to make the patient‐physician relationship more valued than paperwork, preventive care the focus of the future, technology an asset and not a burden, and physician burnout a thing of the past.

About the Mount Sinai Health System

The Mount Sinai Health System is New York City’s largest academic medical system, encompassing eight hospitals, a leading medical school, and a vast network of ambulatory practices throughout the greater New York region. We advance medicine and health through unrivaled education and translational research and discovery to deliver care that is the safest, highest-quality, most accessible and equitable, and the best value of any health system in the nation. The Health System includes approximately 7,300 primary and specialty care physicians; 13 free-standing joint-venture centers; more than 410 ambulatory practices throughout the five boroughs of New York City, Westchester, and Long Island; and more than 30 affiliated community health centers. The Mount Sinai Hospital is ranked in U.S. News & World Report’s “Honor Roll” of the top 20 U.S. hospitals and among the top in the nation by specialty: No. 1 in Geriatrics and top 20 in Cardiology/Heart Surgery, Diabetes/Endocrinology, Gastroenterology/GI Surgery, Neurology/Neurosurgery, Orthopedics, Pulmonology/Lung Surgery, Urology, and Rehabilitation. Mount Sinai Kravis Children’s Hospital is ranked in U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Children’s Hospitals” among the country’s best in four out of 10 pediatric specialties. New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai is ranked among the Top 20 nationally for ophthalmology. The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai is one of three medical schools that have earned distinction by multiple indicators: ranked in the top 20 by U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Medical Schools,” aligned with a U.S. News & World Report “Honor Roll” Hospital, and No. 14 in the nation for National Institutes of Health funding. Newsweek’s “The World’s Best Smart Hospitals” ranks The Mount Sinai Hospital as No. 1 in New York and top five globally, and Mount Sinai Morningside as top 20 globally, and “The World’s Best Specialized Hospitals” ranks Mount Sinai Heart as No. 1 in New York and No. 4 globally and the Division of Gastroenterology as No. 3 globally. For more information, visit https://www.mountsinai.org or find Mount Sinai on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

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