Success and Challenge When Returning to Clinical Practice: A Case Series in Anesthesiologist Re-Entry

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Anesthesiology Workforce
• Physician Re-entry Programs

Background:

• Returning anesthesiologists present unique challenges for licensing and credentialing.
• Limited institutional re-education opportunities exist for physicians seeking to return to practice.
• This paper details a physician refresher/re-entry program implemented at a College of Medicine.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe and evaluate an individualized physician re-entry program.
• To assess the program's effectiveness in re-educating physicians who left clinical practice.
• To report outcomes for anesthesiologists completing the re-entry course.

Main Methods:

• A physician re-entry program was launched in 2006.
• The program provides individualized re-education for physicians returning to practice.
• Results are reported for 12 anesthesiologists who completed the program between 2012 and 2018.

Main Results:

• Twelve anesthesiologists (7 men, 5 women) participated, with reasons for absence including relocation, family, medical issues, substance use, and burnout.
• Absence from clinical activity ranged from 0 to 10 years.
• Nine of the 12 participants achieved their return-to-practice goals, with 78% succeeding within one year of course completion.

Conclusions:

• The physician re-entry program successfully facilitates the return of inactive physicians to the workforce.
• This initiative contributes to the limited literature on refreshing physician skills.
• Participants return to practice, serving communities and strengthening the anesthesiology workforce.