Is staying worth it? How one physician broke free from the "sunk cost fallacy"

We sit down with anesthesiologist Kolleen Dougherty as she reflects on her experience of career burnout after two decades at a Level 1 hospital. Kolleen shares the internal struggles that kept her in a job that no longer brought her joy and how fear, loyalty, and the “sunk cost fallacy” contributed to her staying longer than she should have. She opens up about her journey to making the difficult decision to leave and the relief that followed.

Kolleen Dougherty is an anesthesiologist.

She discusses the KevinMD article, "Why this doctor stayed stuck in a job for years and how she finally broke free."

Our presenting sponsor is DAX Copilot by Microsoft.

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I'm partnering with Learner+ to offer clinicians access to an AI-powered reflective portfolio that rewards CME/CE credits from meaningful reflections. Find out more: https://www.kevinmd.com/learnerplus