Populytics and Valley Preferred Join Together in Physician Wellness

Everyone who works in health care can be susceptible to exceptional levels of stress. As health care grows more demanding of its providers, it can become difficult to maintain a sense of balance between work and a personal life. These are some of the issues that are coming to the forefront as health systems everywhere struggle with what has been called “physician burnout,” which can be linked to accelerating technology, a growing patient population, and overall, more requirements in health care.

Valley Preferred, the preferred provider organization aligned with Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN), is planning and actively pursuing ways to change the dynamic for member physicians. “We’re working with the Network’s Wellness Committee, collecting self-reported data on stress levels and determining where the biggest needs exist,” says Mark Wendling, MD, Executive Director of Valley Preferred. The organization has tapped into resources available through the LVHN subsidiary, Populytics, to take a well-rounded comprehensive approach to the problem.

Preferred EAP, the behavioral health counseling arm now under Populytics, is part of the effort offering its counseling expertise to both employed and independent physicians. BeneFIT, the corporate wellness division of Populytics has also made its personal health coaching program available to physicians. Health coaching is an effective way to identify one’s own goals and create a realistic pathway to achieve them, along with a helpful guide (in this case, a board-certified health coach) to encourage and motivate. These programs are complemented by a physician-to-physician support program, where clinicians serve as mentors and confidants to their fellow doctors. Free access to LVHN’s fitness centers also allows physicians to take advantage of the benefits of staying physically fit.

Valley Preferred is already seeing the percentage of burnout among LVHN physicians dip. Its leaders are dedicated to enacting the ideas on the drawing board and finding more avenues to improved wellness for all of the physicians and other clinicians who care for the regional patient community. “Quality patient care absolutely depends on the health and wellness of our physicians,” says Dr. Wendling. “And no other mission is more important than their well-being.”