BURNOUT AMONG ACADEMIC CLINICIANS AS IT CORRELATES WITH WORKLOAD AND DEMOGRAPHIC VARIABLES

Abstract

Background & Rationale: Burnout syndrome (BOS) is a psychological state resulting from prolonged exposure to job stressors. It is commonly observed in occupations with human interaction. The most visible impact of burnout is a decrease in work performance and the overall quality of service, and within healthcare professionals, BOS correlates with reported medical errors. Academic healthcare workers are particularly predisposed to experience BOS given the high level of work-related stress that characterizes their jobs. There is a scarcity of studies investigating burnout in academic clinicians. Objective: The goal of this study is to identify the prevalence of burnout in academic clinicians in the Faculty of Health Sciences at McMaster University and investigate potential demographic and workload variables that contribute to self-reported measures of burnout. Methods: A novel modification to the MBI (Maslach Burnout Inventory) scale was distributed to all academic clinicians at McMaster University through an internet-based survey. The MBI scale was modified to reflect three hypothesized sources of burnout for academic clinicians: interactions with students/trainees, interactions with patients and interactions with administration. The scale comprised of three dimensions of burnout: Emotional Exhaustion (EE), Depersonalization (DP) and Personal accomplishment (PA). Demographic and workload data were also collected. Results: Factor analysis and internal consistency showed that the modified MBI scale was associated with valid and reliable scores, respectively, within this population. Results showed that academic clinicians experienced high levels of burnout due to administration interactions relative to that attributed to patients and students. The prevalence of burnout for the EE subscale are: administration = 51.8%;, patients = 26.4%, students = 11.7%); for the DP subscale: administration = 44.8%, patients, = 24.5%, students, = 9.8%); and the PA subscale: administration =16.3%, patients = 33.4%, students =33.7%). Regression analyses suggested that young age, surgical specialty, low academic rank, academic main practice, female gender, numerous night shifts and living alone contribute to EE and DP subscales. Meanwhile, high number of patients under their care was shown to contribute to increasing PA. Conclusion: Burnout Syndrome is prevalent among academic clinicians at McMaster University. The major source of burnout was attributed to interactions with administration. Surgical specialties and young faculty staff members correlated with burnout. Further studies are needed to further characterize the nature of administrative interactions that contribute to burnout and to solidify other contributing variables.