Stresses Experienced by Primary Care Practices in 2018 versus 2022
| 2022 (N, %) | 2018 (N, %) | P-Value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Practice Stress | |||
| Report any stress | 280/526 (53.2%) | 163/484 (33.7%) | <0.0001 |
| Have a major office renovation* | 44/280 (15.7%) | 55/163 (33.7%) | <0.0001 |
| Adopt a new electronic health record system | 38/280 (13.6%) | 43/163 (26.4%) | 0.0012 |
| Adopt a new billing system | 34/280 (12.1%) | 32/163 (19.6%) | 0.0459 |
| Change in practice ownership | 30/280 (10.7%) | 13/163 (8.0%) | 0.4397 |
| Move office to a new location | 28/280 (10.0%) | 29/163 (17.8%) | 0.0268 |
| Lost 1+ doctor, NP, or PA | 222/280 (79.3%) | 64/163 (39.3%) | <0.0001 |
| Planned retirement± | 70/180 (38.9%) | –±± | – |
| Early retirement | 78/180 (43.3%) | – | – |
| Moved | 103/180 (57.2%) | – | – |
| Changed practice | 106/180 (58.9%) | – | – |
| Fired | 28/180 (15.6%) | – | – |
| Died | 5/180 (2.8%) | – | – |
| COVID-19 Impact on Practice Clinicians and Staff | |||
| Reduced or held pay for clinicians and staff | 157/461 (34.1%) | – | – |
| Still struggling to recover financially | 183/461 (39.7%) | – | – |
| 1+ of our clinicians or staff got COVID-19 | 355/461 (77.0%) | – | – |
| 1+ of our clinicians or staff died from COVID-19 | 6/461 (1.3%) | – | – |
| Clinicians/staff are suffering from burnout or mental exhaustion | 325/461 (70.5%) | – | – |
| State of Mental Health Care | |||
| Difficulty referring patients to mental health services | 56.20% | – | – |
| Have mental health providers in clinic | 18.30% | – | – |
Notes. *Calculated from responses of practices reporting any stress.
↵±Calculated from responses of practices who lost 1+ doctor, NP, or PA; not all practices provided reasons for losing clinicians.
±±refers to question not included in 2018 survey.
Abbreviations: NP, nurse practitioner; PA, physician assistant.