Beyond Self-Care: Why Burnout Is a Workplace Problem (Not a You Problem)
2:00 PM - 4:00 PMThu
Registration Required

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Speakers
JJ Ferguson, PT, DPT, DScPT, OCS, SCS, FAAOMPT
Feeling exhausted? Cynical about your job? Doubting your competence? You're not broken, you're mismatched. For decades, we've been sold the same solutions to burnout: meditation apps, resilience training, time management workshops, mentoring on difficult patients, and stress reduction seminars. But if these person-focused interventions worked, why are physical therapists leaving the profession in record numbers? This keynote presentation dismantles the myth that burnout is a personal failure and reveals what the evidence actually shows. Drawing on the Areas of Worklife Model and PT-specific data, you'll discover the six workplace mismatches driving burnout: workload overload, lack of control, insufficient rewards, breakdown of community, absence of fairness, and values conflicts. Through interactive activities and real PT case examples, you'll learn why teaching therapists to "manage their schedules better" doesn't fix unsustainable productivity standards, and why mentoring programs can't compensate for toxic workplace cultures. You'll leave with practical tools to assess your workplace, evidence-based organizational interventions that address root causes, and language to advocate for systemic change. Stop fixing yourself. Start fixing your workplace.