1. To study the contributors of Burn out in Women Neurologists in the face of the COVID pandemic, resulting in women moving away from a career in clinical neurology 

2. To offer solutions to help prevent Moral Injury in all Neurologists - Based on our experience in an Academic Urban Medical Center 

The term Burnout implies that the neurologist is at fault.  More recently, we have come to understand Moral Injury which drives the onus on the system rather than on the person.  When we find systemic problems, we can find strategies to manage them.

This is a first step in coming up with effective solutions to help us sustain so that we prevent moral injury and attrition of neurologists in a world where there is already a predicted shortage of neurologists. 

An online survey of a 100 Women neurologists who moved away from Neurolology, revealed surprising results.

The survey covered the key drivers that made women leave neurology, the phase in their career when the change was made, subspecialty, practice setting and eventually what turn their career took.

Career women in their early phase of career were moving away while they should have been looking at academic growth.

Burnout/Moral Injury was a huge driver - administrative interference contributing largely to it.

The COVID-pandemic didn't seem to be a key player. 

The survey revealed a lot of potential fixable issues which were brought together as a project for our department to work on. 

We came up with practical solutions at our academic center - addressing the challenges of administrative burden, introducing flexible schedules, providing physician autonomy, ensuring fair and transparent compensation for the women physicians, and trying to close the gender gap. In addition to everything else, a collegial work environment played a huge role in retaining the work force at our institution.