How much does clinician burnout hurt patient care?

The issue of clinician burnout has emerged as a pressing topic in medicine, but does it actually affect patient care? While some studies have found an association between burnout and a drop in care quality, a new review of 123 previous studies argues those were often based on varying and not very rigorous methods. That means, the authors of the analysis write, that the effect of burnout on care might be smaller than thought. Still, in an editorial accompanying the review, other experts “conclude that higher burnout is associated with lower quality.” The authors of both papers suggest that better methods are needed to weigh the impact of burnout in future studies.