Minnesota Medical Association and Benovate Launch Physician Wellbeing Pilot Project

March 25  

Minneapolis, MN – The Minnesota Medical Association (MMA) and Benovate have announced a six-month agreement for MMA members to use the Benovate app to help physicians make simple lifestyle changes to improve health and increase overall well- being, especially in the areas of burnout. 

More than 40 percent of physicians—and 50 percent of female physicians— report symptoms of burnout, though physicians in some specialties are suffering more than others, according to Medscape‘s 2019 National Physicians Burnout & Depression Report. 

According to the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) physician burnout is at a record high and has reached the level of being a strategic imperative referred to by the healthcare industry as the Quadruple Aim or 4th Aim which is an extension of IHI’s original Triple Aim framework. According to the American Medical Association (AMA), conservative estimates put the cost of physician burnout at about $4.6 billion annually, which includes physician turnover and reduced clinical hours, With an already intense focus on patient outcomes and demands to drive patient satisfaction, the recent COVID-19 pandemic has undoubtedly increased the potential for broader healthcare worker burnout. 

“The existence and prevalence of physician burnout is well understood, yet clear solutions to alleviating the problem still remain unclear,” says Janet Silversmith, MMA’s CEO. “One of the things MMA can do, however, is equip our membership with self-care solutions and also better understand the key drivers of burnout in order to make focused recommendations to improve this situation. In light of increased pressure to perform in high-reliability environments, there is little choice but to better manage and reduce professional burnout.”. 

A month after the implementation of a new physician well-being app, the MMA is learning that participants are interested in getting more information about how to lose weight and are confirming the need to reduce their stress. This is according to real-time analytics from the app created by the MMA and Benovate. This data is preliminary, and the information gleaned from users will become more robust as app use continues. 

“Like other behavioral health conditions, burnout can be an elusive thing to measure,” says Mark Walinske, CEO/President of Benovate. “Our app not only helps to detect burn-out, it helps to build self-awareness and personalized ways to self-manage away from the burnout condition much like having a trusted friend offering advice – in your pocket. That’s especially critical in fast paced, zero-fault tolerant environments such as healthcare settings.” 

As part of the six-month agreement between the MMA and Benovate, MMA has access to non-identifiable, aggregate information about factors that contribute to the stress of physicians and physicians-in-training. This information will be used to inform future MMA work and priorities to improve physician well-being. Through the personalized app, physicians have access to tools, information and incentives to help make simple lifestyle changes to improve health and increase overall well-being. The program is completely confidential to the individual and HIPPA compliant. 

About the MMA 

MMA is a non-profit professional association representing physicians, residents and medical students. With more than 10,000 members, the MMA is dedicated to being the leading voice of medicine to make Minnesota the healthiest state and the best place to practice. The MMA advocates for physicians and patient health, provides up-to-date information about news and events affecting medicine in Minnesota, offers products and services that save time and money, and provides education for physicians and their clinic staff. The MMA makes sure physicians help shape the decisions that affect their patients, their practice and their profession. 

About Benovate 

Benovate has been a well-being platform delivery company since 2011. The patented platform delivers real-time content personalization to any web-enabled device and combines unifying data, micro-assessments, gamification, incentives, benefits, and activities into a single place to empower and engage members to improve their total well-being. Benovate creates a dynamic assessment relevant to each individual member based on their preferences and health risks. The platform focuses on the entire picture of members total well-being, including nutrition, physical activities, relationships, personal growth and financial well-being. Easy-to-use analytics and administrative tools allows real-time understanding and targeted and tailored behavior change initiatives to be easily implemented and measured. 

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