AMA Issues Guidelines for Use of Physician Data to Address Burnout

In response to ongoing concerns about high levels of burnout among healthcare
professionals, the American Medical Association (AMA) has adopted new guidelines to
regulate how personal and biological data from physicians is collected and used to support
professional wellbeing.
These guidelines were approved at the AMA’s Annual Meeting, where physicians and
medical students voted in favor of implementing measures designed to safeguard privacy
while enabling data-driven efforts to reduce burnout in the clinical workforce.
Protecting Privacy While Supporting Wellbeing
The AMA emphasized that while health and biological data can provide useful insights into a
physician’s mental and physical wellbeing, the use of such sensitive information must be
carefully managed to avoid ethical, privacy, and security risks.
“The management of such sensitive information raises significant privacy, security and
ethical concerns that should be carefully addressed to ensure the rights and interests of
individuals are protected,” said Dr. David J. Welsh, AMA Board Member.
“The collection and use of this data offers the possibility of supporting the wellbeing of
healthcare professionals, including early identification of burnout and developing
prevention strategies, so they can best care for patients.”
Key Guardrails for Data Collection and Use
The newly adopted guardrails aim to ensure that physician health data is handled
responsibly and used only for burnout mitigation efforts. The main principles include:

• Limited and evidence-based collection: Data should be gathered only when there is
  evidence that it is necessary and relevant to improving professional wellbeing or
  reducing burnout.
• Transparency about identifiability: Physicians must be informed whether the data is
  directly or indirectly identifiable.
• Voluntary participation: Physicians must be able to opt in or out without fear of
  penalty, coercion, or retaliation.
• Informed consent: Clear, informed consent must be obtained before collecting or
  using any data.
• Ongoing control: Physicians should retain the right to opt out at any time.
• Restricted use: Data must be used solely to address burnout-inducing working
  conditions—not for disciplinary, punitive, or discriminatory purposes.
• Data security and transparency: Entities collecting data must maintain clear policies
  for secure data storage, access duration, and deletion protocols.

Ongoing Advocacy for Physician Wellbeing

The AMA has been actively addressing physician burnout since 2012, advocating for
solutions that focus on reducing administrative burdens and promoting systemic changes in
healthcare. These latest guardrails build on those efforts by offering a framework to
responsibly leverage personal data in ways that can inform better support strategies.
By establishing these guidelines, the AMA hopes to strike a balance between the potential
benefits of data-driven wellbeing initiatives and the need to protect the autonomy and
privacy of healthcare professionals.