Values vs Beliefs: A New Approach to Healthcare Burnout with Dr. Tracy Jackson
Last December, I had the opportunity to participate in a burnout workshop during our MedTreks Panama Surf & Yoga CME Retreat. The session was led by Dr. Tracy Jackson, CEO and founder of Relief Retreats. Dr. Jackson is a physician, educator, and thought leader whose work is helping reshape how we understand healthcare burnout, professional fulfillment, and sustainable career longevity.
What struck me most was how applicable her framework felt — not only to clinicians working in demanding environments like the emergency department, but also to those of us navigating leadership roles, entrepreneurship, caregiving responsibilities, and the many identities healthcare professionals often carry.
Tracy’s model goes beyond surface-level advice and offers a values-based approach to burnout recovery that feels both practical and empowering.
As someone who has spent the past decade leading CME retreats for physicians, nurse practitioners, PAs, and other healthcare professionals, I have seen firsthand that simply telling clinicians to “practice more self-care” is no longer enough. Healthcare professionals are not lacking motivation or discipline — they are often lacking the opportunity or permission to take space and get curious, asking what really matters most to them.
Dr. Jackson’s work helps illuminate why.
Beliefs vs Values: Why This Distinction Matters in Healthcare Burnout
Many conversations about burnout focus on time off, productivity strategies, or improved work-life balance. While these tools can be helpful, in her most recent blog post, Dr. Jackson highlights a deeper and often overlooked contributor to burnout:
the gap between what we believe and what we truly value.
Beliefs are shaped by education, culture, professional training, and personal experience. We may believe healthcare should be equitable, that hard work leads to success, or that patient care should always come first.
Values, however, operate at a deeper level.
Dr. Jackson describes values as the principles we organize our lives around — the forces that give our work meaning and direction.
When healthcare professionals spend prolonged periods working in environments that conflict with their core values, stress accumulates in ways that traditional burnout solutions may not fully address.
As Dr. Jackson explains:
“Burnout isn’t just caused by working too hard. It’s caused by working too long in misalignment with your values. The most important thing an individual can do isn’t more self-care. It’s knowing your unique core values clearly enough to see exactly where the misalignment is — and which parts can be reframed, renegotiated, or released without burning the whole thing down.”
This perspective resonates deeply with many clinicians who feel the strain of productivity pressures, administrative burden, limited autonomy, or disconnect between the practice of medicine and the reason they entered healthcare in the first place.
Why a Values-Based Approach to Burnout Creates Real Change
Many healthcare professionals already believe something needs to change within medicine. They recognize system strain, staffing challenges, and increasing complexity in patient care.
But beliefs alone can leave individuals feeling stuck or overwhelmed.
Dr. Jackson states that: Values create clarity.
They help identify which aspects of work are most misaligned and where meaningful change can begin — whether that involves redefining professional roles, building supportive community, pursuing continued learning, or reconnecting with purpose.
Dr. Jackson explains that values function as a lens for understanding both challenges and opportunities:
“Values are the lens for viewing big issues with personal clarity, and then provide the compass to direct your unique path forward.”
One of my favorite reflections from Tracy captures this beautifully:
“You’re moving towards the light instead of away from the dark.”
When daily work reflects core values such as learning, connection, autonomy, service, growth, or curiosity, effort often begins to feel energizing again rather than depleting.
Why This Matters for Healthcare Wellness and CME Retreats
At MedTreks, we design our CME-accredited retreats for healthcare professionals with the understanding that professional fulfillment and personal wellbeing are deeply interconnected.
Our experiences are intentionally structured to allow space for:
• reflection and perspective
• continued learning and intellectual curiosity
• meaningful connection with peers
• time in nature to support nervous system recovery
• renewed clarity around personal and professional direction
Exposure to frameworks like Dr. Jackson’s values-based burnout model reinforces the importance of creating environments where clinicians can step outside daily pressures and reconnect with what initially inspired them to pursue healthcare careers.
Often, clarity emerges not through working harder, but through creating space to think differently.
Learning More About Dr. Tracy Jackson’s Work
Dr. Tracy Jackson integrates her values-based burnout recovery framework into workshops, coaching programs, and immersive retreat experiences designed specifically for healthcare professionals navigating burnout, career transitions, and identity evolution within medicine.
Her work helps clinicians reconnect with meaning, regain agency, and develop a more sustainable relationship with their careers.
To learn more about Dr. Jackson’s work, visit reliefretreats.com or follow her on Instagram @msdrjackson.
Dr. Jackson will also be teaching on upcoming MedTreks CME retreats, including:
• November 2026 Panama Surf & Yoga CME Retreat
• April 2027 Bali Cultural & Wellness CME Retreat
These experiences are designed to support healthcare professionals in rediscovering purpose, building community, and integrating continued medical education with meaningful time away.
Because sometimes the most powerful professional development happens when we give ourselves permission to step back — and reconnect with what truly matters.
