Impact of Burnout on the STEMM Workforce: Proceedings of a Workshop (2025)
Chapter: Front Matter
Proceedings of a Workshop
NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001
This activity was supported by a contract between the National Academy of Sciences and the National Institutes of Health (HHSN263201800029I/75N98023F00017). Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of any organization or agency that provided support for the project.
International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-73567-4
International Standard Book Number-10: 0-309-73567-X
Digital Object Identifier: https://doi.org/10.17226/29078
This publication is available from the National Academies Press, 500 Fifth Street, NW, Keck 360, Washington, DC 20001; (800) 624-6242; http://www.nap.edu.
Copyright 2025 by the National Academy of Sciences. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and National Academies Press and the graphical logos for each are all trademarks of the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Printed in the United States of America.
Suggested citation: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Impact of Burnout on the STEMM Workforce: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/29078.
The National Academy of Sciences was established in 1863 by an Act of Congress, signed by President Lincoln, as a private, nongovernmental institution to advise the nation on issues related to science and technology. Members are elected by their peers for outstanding contributions to research. Dr. Marcia McNutt is president.
The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964 under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences to bring the practices of engineering to advising the nation. Members are elected by their peers for extraordinary contributions to engineering. Dr. John L. Anderson is president.
The National Academy of Medicine (formerly the Institute of Medicine) was established in 1970 under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences to advise the nation on medical and health issues. Members are elected by their peers for distinguished contributions to medicine and health. Dr. Victor J. Dzau is president.
The three Academies work together as the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to provide independent, objective analysis and advice to the nation and conduct other activities to solve complex problems and inform public policy decisions. The National Academies also encourage education and research, recognize outstanding contributions to knowledge, and increase public understanding in matters of science, engineering, and medicine.
Learn more about the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine at www.nationalacademies.org.
Consensus Study Reports published by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine document the evidence-based consensus on the study’s statement of task by an authoring committee of experts. Reports typically include findings, conclusions, and recommendations based on information gathered by the committee and the committee’s deliberations. Each report has been subjected to a rigorous and independent peer-review process and it represents the position of the National Academies on the statement of task.
Proceedings published by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine chronicle the presentations and discussions at a workshop, symposium, or other event convened by the National Academies. The statements and opinions contained in proceedings are those of the participants and are not endorsed by other participants, the planning committee, or the National Academies.
Rapid Expert Consultations published by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine are authored by subject-matter experts on narrowly focused topics that can be supported by a body of evidence. The discussions contained in rapid expert consultations are considered those of the authors and do not contain policy recommendations. Rapid expert consultations are reviewed by the institution before release.
For information about other products and activities of the National Academies, please visit www.nationalacademies.org/about/whatwedo.
BURNOUT IN STEMM AND IMPLICATIONS FOR EQUITY WORKSHOP PLANNING COMMITTEE
RESHMA JAGSI, M.D., D.Phil. (Chair) (NAM),1 Chair, Department of Radiation Oncology, Emory University and Winship Cancer Institute
KELLEY BONNER, M.S.W., Founder and CEO, Burn Bright Consulting
ELENA FUENTES-AFFLICK, M.D., M.P.H. (NAM), Chief Medical Officer, Association of American Medical Colleges
LONNIE GOLDEN, Ph.D., Professor of Economics and Labor-Human Resources, Pennsylvania State University, Abington
ALICIA KOWALSKI, M.D., Professor of Anesthesiology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
JOSÉ A. PAGÁN, Ph.D. (NAM), Chair and Professor of Public Health Policy and Management, New York University
Staff
KATIE WULLERT, Ph.D., Study Director and Program Officer, Committee on Women in Science, Engineering, and Medicine
ASHLEY BEAR, Ph.D., Director, Committee on Women in Science, Engineering, and Medicine
PAMELA LAVA, Senior Program Assistant, Committee on Women in Science, Engineering, and Medicine
Consultant
PAULA WHITACRE, Consultant Writer
___________________
1 Designates membership in the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), National Academy of Engineering (NAE), or National Academy of Medicine (NAM).
This page intentionally left blank.
Reviewers
This Proceedings of a Workshop was reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in making each published proceedings as sound as possible and to ensure that it meets the institutional standards for quality, objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the process.
We thank the following individuals for their review of this proceedings:
Although the reviewers listed above provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the content of the proceedings nor did they see the final draft before its release. The review of this proceedings was overseen by J. NICHOLAS ODOM, University of Alabama at Birmingham. He was responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this proceedings was carried out in accordance with standards of the National Academies and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content rests entirely with the rapporteurs and the National Academies.
This page intentionally left blank.
Preface and Acknowledgments
Science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) occupations have long been understood to be greedy institutions—demanding an immense amount of time, dedication, attention, and resources from individual workers. It is perhaps no surprise then that rates of burnout are high for those working in these domains, especially in medicine. In March of 2024, our committee began to meet to plan a workshop to unpack burnout—what it is, how it has been conceived and misconceived, what causes it, what its impacts are, and what we can do about it. All of this was discussed within a context in which STEMM disciplines remain highly unequal for women, people of color, and other marginalized or undersupported groups, such as individuals with disabilities and individuals with caregiving responsibilities. Our focus was also to understand what burnout means for fostering a STEMM environment that best engages all people because, while anyone can experience burnout, the implications are uneven across the population given the ways in which experiences of discrimination, microaggressions, and other significant stressors unevenly affect different groups.
This document details the key takeaways from a 2-day workshop held October 1–2, 2024, at the National Academy of Sciences building in Washington, D.C. Day 1 of the workshop focused on background knowledge to ensure a shared understanding of what burnout is, how it comes to be, and what this means for individuals and organizations within STEMM.
Day 2 shifted to focus on interventions to provide insights into current knowledge on efforts to mitigate and address burnout.
We are immensely grateful to the sponsor of this workshop, the Office of Research on Women’s Health within the National Institutes of Health. Their guidance and support made this possible. We are also grateful to our many outstanding speakers and commissioned paper authors. We had a unique opportunity to turn to experts in the field not only to share their insights at the workshop but also to craft papers providing an essential summary of our current scientific knowledge on the causes and consequences of burnout and interventions to address it. You will find these papers in Appendixes B, C, and D of this proceedings.
Personally, there is much I took away from this workshop. First and foremost, burnout must be recognized as the consequence of chronic, unmanaged workplace stress. Burnout often results from the accumulation of many small insults, so-called pebbles in the shoe that, in isolation, might be brushed aside but when taken together can conspire to cause tremendous harm. The causes of burnout are complex, multifactorial, and multilevel, and the consequences, which include detriment to talented individuals’ physical, mental, social, and professional outcomes, are not borne equally by all individuals. As the workshop highlighted, burnout has clear implications for gender and racial equity within STEMM. Additional research to understand the ways burnout affects the vitality of STEMM professionals, including those who may be most vulnerable due to multiple marginalized identities, such as the unique experiences of women of color, for example, is critical to target interventions to support the essential segment of the workforce that STEMM constitutes.
Nevertheless, models already exist to guide interventions that seek to prevent burnout and to mitigate its effects. We have a great opportunity to build on a strong foundation of evidence already collected—much of which has been synthesized herein—to transform our organizations. We must implement locally appropriate initiatives, evaluate them, and disseminate what we learn. We must honor the voices of all those within organizations so that decisions include their invaluable perspectives, and we must maintain the focus on the worthy and inspiring purpose that motivates us. I look forward to partnering with all those reading these proceedings in the all-important work of continuous improvement of our work environments.
Reshma Jagsi, Chair
Planning Committee for the Burnout in STEMM and Implications for Equity Workshop
Contents
2 UNDERSTANDING BURNOUT AND CHALLENGING MISCONCEPTIONS
3 CAUSES OF BURNOUT AND ASSOCIATED RISK FACTORS
4 CONSEQUENCES OF BURNOUT AND MEASUREMENT CHALLENGES
5 DEEP DIVE ON BURNOUT, IDENTITY, AND INTERSECTIONALITY
6 CURRENT AND INNOVATIVE APPROACHES TO MANAGING BURNOUT
7 INTERVENTIONS TO MANAGE BURNOUT: DEEP DIVE ON MEDICINE
8 IMAGINING A FUTURE OF GREATER SUPPORT: AN INTERACTIVE DISCUSSION
Boxes, Figures, and Tables
BOXES
1-1 Workshop Statement of Task
5-1 Sample Participant Takeaways from Workshop Day 1
C-2 Summary of the Equity-Based Consequences of Burnout Highlighted in This Report
FIGURES
1-1 Word cloud resulting from participants poll responses
4-1 Burnout and stress levels by racial and ethnic groups
6-1 Individual, Group, Leader, Overall Organization (IGLOO) interventions for healthy workplaces
D-1 Burnout antecedents and outcomes and corresponding levels of interventions
D-2 Template for a holistic perspective in addressing burnout, with example initiatives
TABLES
4-1 Individual-Level Consequences of Burnout
4-2 Occupational-Level Consequences of Burnout
D-1 Meta-Analysis-Based Studies of Burnout Interventions
D-2 Examples of Individual and Organizational Interventions to Address Burnout
