Survey
Survey
The State of America's Physicians: 2025 Wellbeing Survey
2025 Survey of America’s Physicians assesses the state of physician practice and strategies to improve it.
Key Findings
Changes to the healthcare landscape have made the physician practice environment increasingly unsustainable, contributing to burnout. In 2025, dramatic shifts have driven stress and anxiety among physicians to levels not seen since the height of the pandemic.
Although reported burnout decreased in 2025, a majority of physicians still experience it. Elevated stress and anxiety levels may risk further increases in burnout. Each year, The Physicians Foundation assesses physician sentiment surrounding the practice environment and patient care, so we can understand where things stand and drive change to enhance physician practice and improve patient health outcomes. In 2025, the Foundation conducted an online survey of 1,000+ U.S. physicians on the topic of wellbeing and physician burnout, who were derived from Medscape’s proprietary database. The survey was fielded from June 25 through June 30, 2025.
Today’s healthcare environment is diminishing physicians’ wellbeing across the U.S.
6/10
Nearly six in ten of physicians have experienced inappropriate feelings of anger, tearfulness or anxiety during the past year. (57%) Similar to 2021 and 2022 pandemic levels
46
%
Nearly half report withdrawing from family/friends/co-workers. (46%) Significantly higher than last year
34
%
More than one-third have felt hopeless or that they have no purpose. (34%) Similar to 2022 and 2021 pandemic levels
55
%
More than half have felt levels of debilitating stress.
Burnout, driven chronic stress over an extended period of time, is associated with poor mental and physical health, increased suicide rates and career dissatisfaction for physicians.
- While a majority of physicians still report they often have feelings of burnout, this proportion declined significantly this year. (from 60% to 54%)
We must address physician wellbeing and provide support to prevent progression to burnout.
- More than seven in 10 (73%) agree that there is stigma surrounding mental health and seeking mental health care among physicians, lower compared to the prior three years at ~8 in ten.
- 40% of female providers reported checking in with a physician who they suspected was experiencing mental health distress–compared to just 25% of male providers.
- 38% of physicians reported they were afraid or know a colleague/peer who was fearful of seeking mental health care because of questions about mental health in medical licensure/credentialing/ insurance applications.
