The survey shows that trust in science fell in 2022 while political divisions persisted

NEW YORK – Trust in the scientific community declined among American adults in 2022, a major survey shows, driven by a partisan divide in views of both science and medicine that emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic. 19.

A technician prepares samples from patients with the COVID-19 coronavirus for testing in a laboratory on March 11, 2020 in Long Island, New York.

John Minchillo, Associated Press

Overall, 39 percent of American adults said they had “a lot of trust” in the scientific community, down from 48 percent in 2018 and 2021. That’s according to the General Social Survey, a long-running survey conducted by NORC at the University. of Chicago that has controlled Americans’ opinions on key issues since 1972.

An additional 48 percent of adults in the latest poll reported “only a little” confidence, while 13 percent reported “almost none,” according to an analysis of the poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

The poll showed low levels of trust among Republicans as the partisan gaps that emerged during the pandemic era remain, said Jennifer Benz, the center’s deputy director.

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“It doesn’t seem that dramatic when you’re just looking at the trends for the general public,” Benz said. “But when you drill down into that by people’s political affiliations, there’s a very serious drop-off and polarization.”

Between the 2018 and 2021 polls, as the pandemic took hold, the major parties’ confidence levels went in opposite directions. Democrats reported a growing level of confidence in science in 2021, perhaps as a “concentration effect” around things like COVID-19 vaccines and prevention measures, Benz said. At the same time, Republicans saw their confidence begin to plummet.

In the 2022 poll, confidence among Democrats fell back to pre-pandemic levels, with 53% reporting a great deal of confidence compared to 55% in 2018. But confidence among Republicans continued to downward trend, falling to 22% from 45% in 2022. 2018. Trust in medicine has also become more polarized since 2018. That year, Democrats and Republicans were equally likely to say they had a high confidence By 2022, however, Republicans’ trust had fallen to 26%, while Democrats’ trust has remained roughly the same as before the pandemic at 42%.

Overall, 34% of Americans reported high trust in medicine in 2022, compared to 39% before the pandemic.

Scientists have generally had a high level of trust compared to other groups in the United States, said John Besley, who studies public opinion about science at Michigan State University. And even with recent declines, trust in science is still higher than in many other institutions, he noted.

But the division between political parties is a cause for concern, experts said.

“You can definitely see the impact here of people taking cues from their political leaders,” Benz said.

For Sudip Parikh, CEO of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the declines were “disappointing but not surprising.” He sees them as part of a “general disconnection from our communities” and a loss of trust in many institutions.

The latest survey found that mistrust has also grown for some other groups. According to the 2022 survey, trust in the Supreme Court has fallen to its lowest level in at least 50 years. Americans also reported lower levels of trust in education, the press, big business and organized religion.

Besley said scientists should communicate about their motives to help prove they’re trustworthy: “Not only do we have some experience, but we’re also using that experience to try to make the world better,” he said. to say.

Parikh felt that there is a lot at stake to restore trust in science, and to do it across political lines.

“Science has to be bipartisan,” he said. “The causes of Alzheimer’s are the same whether you are a Republican or a Democrat. The melting that takes place in the sun is the same whether you live in Topeka or San Francisco.

The General Social Survey has been carried out since 1972 by NORC at the University of Chicago. Sample sizes for each year’s survey vary from about 1,500 to about 4,000 adults, with margins of error between plus or minus 2 percentage points and plus or minus 3.1 percentage points. The most recent survey was conducted from May 5, 2022, to December 20, 2022, and includes interviews with 3,544 American adults. Results for the full sample have a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

COVID-19 worsened already worrying levels of medical attrition

Medical burnout is at an all-time high. According to the American Medical Association, 62.8% of US physicians reported at least one symptom of burnoutwhich includes emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and reduced feelings of personal fulfillment.

The COVID-19 pandemic undoubtedly exacerbated this trend. Studies show that factors like inadequate personal protective equipment and excessive patient volumes were linked to higher incidences of burnout, but this phenomenon predates 2020.

Burnout among healthcare workers is constant higher than that of workers in other areas. This is partly due to the nature of the healthcare work environment, which is often characterized by understaffing, difficult ethical situations, patient incivility and heavy workloads. These factors may lead doctors to experiment workplace stress, alcohol abuse and suicidal ideation at higher rates than the general population.

But burnout affects more than the doctors themselves. In fact, physician burnout can also affect patient health outcomes. Burnout physicians are more likely to leave their jobs, disrupting continuity of patient care, and making medical errors in providing treatment. However, work environments can be strategically designed to mitigate burnout, and additional research and initiatives are underway.

Consult industry reports, surveys, research and government resources, DocBuddy analyzed the current state of medical burnout following the COVID-19 pandemic.

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The volume of patients who needed care during the pandemic was unprecedented. The National Institutes of Health estimate that between May 2020 and April 2021, nearly 3.6 million people were hospitalized for COVID-19. This increase in hospital admissions put a strain on healthcare resources, including staff who were already facing higher rates of occupational stress than the average population. These challenges led to mainstreaming moral damage among healthcare workers, a phenomenon that occurs when factors such as excessive workloads prevent staff from acting in accordance with their sense of moral obligation to patients.

Adding to this trend is the volume of excess deaths that occurred during the pandemic. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there were more 1.35 million more deaths since February 2020 than initially planned. It should come as no surprise that this environment was not conducive to physician well-being. A 2021 Mayo Clinic study revealed this Self-reported burnout among doctors increased by almost 25% between December 2020 and December 2021.

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The medical field maintains strict standards of documentation and health records for good reason, but research indicates that these demands can lead to medical burnout. In fact, doctors who spend more time on administrative tasks are less satisfied with their careers and experience higher levels of burnoutaccording to a survey carried out in 2014. Of these administrative tasks, prior authorizations are usually cited as particularly onerous.

In a 2020 American Medical Association survey, 86% of physicians surveyed reported that their weekly prior authorization workload alone was tall or extremely tall. A Medscape study reported that nearly 3 in 5 physicians surveyed (58%) even believe this administrative burden is the biggest contributor to their feelings of exhaustion, as it prevents them from spending more time with patients.

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Social stigma prevents people from seeking the help they need in all industries, but especially among healthcare workers. In fact, doctors cite stigma and fear of harmed career prospects as the two biggest motivators for hiding their mental health struggles. Burnout is particularly stigmatized within health workplace cultures, as mental well-being is perceived as an indicator of competence.

In addition, those seeking help are less likely to consult a professional, preferring to share their concerns with friends and family. This restricts the clinician to non-clinical treatments and coping options that may be ineffective depending on the presence of a diagnosable condition. Perhaps it was to be expected, doctors suffering from untreated burnout more likely to have stigmatized opinions.

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While physician burnout is increasing, there is also a public interest in addressing the crisis. Evidence-based systemic changes in the workplace and job duties can significantly improve collective burnout. Health facilities can create positive and safe work environments that encourage staff to share their mental health struggles and provide resources and tools in response. These progressive developments within health systems are particularly important in light of the fact that doctors who suffer from burnout more likely to make medical errors while providing treatment and more likely to suffer from suicidal ideation and alcohol abuse.

In addition, facilities may take into account redelegate some of the doctor’s administrative tasks to other staff to reduce your administrative burden. When properly integrated, electronic health care systems can also help reduce the administrative burden on physicians.

Data reporting by Emma Rubin. Story editing by Brian Budzynski. Copy editing by Paris Close. Photo selection by Abigail Renaud.

This story originally appeared on DocBuddy and was produced and distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.

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