Number of patients U.S. physicians saw per day 2012-2018
Physician time with patients
Physicians and patient time is an important part of a medical relationship. Among all practices, a majority of physicians spent between 17 and 24 minutes with patients. A lack of time between patients and physicians can also lead to patient mistrust. A recent survey indicated that just around half of patients trusted that their doctor prescribed drugs for them because it was the best possible product for them at the time.
Burn out among physicians
Another result of large patient burdens could be burn out. A large majority of physicians have had feelings of burnout in recent years. Different physician specialties have different levels of burnout. The top three specialties for burn out in recent years were urology, neurology and physical medicine/rehabilitation. Among the major causes of burnout among U.S. physicians, over one third of physicians indicated that spending too many hours was a primary factor that causes burnout.