Despite these negatives, over 60 percent of millennials reported being happy with their worklife, followed by 59 percent of boomers and 56 percent of Generation X. Forty-nine percent of all respondents, however, were willing to trade $20,000 of their paycheck for more free time with family and friends, and about one-third said they would take a pay cut of $50,000 if it meant better hours and more balance between work and their personal lives.

“Expectations of what a career as a physician is in the 2020s is changing,” said Halee Fischer-Wright, CEO of the Medical Group Management Association, in the report. “Physicians recognize that seeing a smaller number of patients may give them more time with patients and the ability to practice medicine at the height of their license, reducing non-clinical hours and enhancing personal satisfaction, which ultimately may decrease burnout and extend their career life.”

A higher percentage of women were willing to take a pay cut than men. Female physicians were also 25 percent more likely to report burnout than their male colleagues across all specialties. Only a little more than 25 percent indicated that their workplace offered stress reduction programs, while half said theirs did not. Despite their being access to such programs, almost two-thirds among all generations indicated that they were handling their burnout and depression alone and had never sought help.

“Although there is increasing pressure for organizations and hospitals to provide wellness programs for physicians, 42 percent of respondents overall said they would probably not use them,” said Leslie Kane, senior director of Medscape Business of Medicine. “Many physicians don’t believe that such programs are helpful; others don’t want their colleagues at their workplace to know they’re feeling burned out.”

More than 15,000 physicians in 29 different disciplines took part in the survey.

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