Burnout among surgeons before and during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic: an international survey

Background: SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has had many significant impacts within the surgical realm, and surgeons have been obligated to reconsider almost every aspect of daily clinical practice. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study reported in compliance with the CHERRIES guidelines and conducted through an online platform from June 14th to July 15th, 2020. The primary outcome was the burden of burnout during the pandemic indicated by the validated Shirom-Melamed Burnout Measure. Results: Nine hundred fifty-four surgeons completed the survey. The median length of practice was 10 years; 78.2% included were male with a median age of 37 years old, 39.5% were consultants, 68.9% were general surgeons, and 55.7% were affiliated with an academic institution. Overall, there was a significant increase in the mean burnout score during the pandemic; longer years of practice and older age were significantly associated with less burnout. There were significant reductions in the median number of outpatient visits, operated cases, on-call hours, emergency visits, and research work, so, 48.2% of respondents felt that the training resources were insufficient. The majority (81.3%) of respondents reported that their hospitals were included in the management of COVID-19, 66.5% felt their roles had been minimized; 41% were asked to assist in non-surgical medical practices, and 37.6% of respondents were included in COVID-19 management. Conclusions: There was a significant burnout among trainees. Almost all aspects of clinical and research activities were affected with a significant reduction in the volume of research, outpatient clinic visits, surgical procedures, on-call hours, and emergency cases hindering the training. Trial registration: The study was registered on clicaltrials.gov "NCT04433286" on 16/06/2020

Acute Care Surgery Preparedness for COVID-19 Pandemic: An Experience from Qatar

Most cases of COVID-19 pandemic are now being reported outside Wuhan, China where the first case was detected. It is highly contagious and has engulfed the world in a short span of time. The burden on healthcare resources to care for the public has mounted multifold due to its fast transmission. Non-operative management of COVID-19 positive or the clinical suspicious cases is preferred. Personal protective equipment (PPE) should be utilized to protect the healthcare professionals’ safety. The Ministry of Public Health, Qatar has launched a series of virtual health care facilities to manage patient appointments, medical consultation, sick leave and drug distribution to avoid hospitalization and to minimize the spread of COVID-19 infection to non-emergency patients by dialing hotline number to provide appropriate services. We would like to share and disseminate the experiences at the Acute Care Surgery (ACS) section, Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC). Ethical considerations, social distancing and optimum utilization of the available resources are essential to overcome the pandemic situation.International Journal of Human and Health Sciences Vol. 05 No. 02 April’21 Page: 154-158</jats:p

Improving postoperative functional outcomes through timely physiotherapy referrals in acute care surgery patients undergoing emergency abdominal surgeries: a multidisciplinary quality improvement initiative at Hazm Mebaireek General Hospital, Qatar

Recovery in postoperative patients involves multiple domains including physical, physiological, psychological, social and economic aspects. Immediate postoperative physiotherapy (PT) is crucial for promoting early recovery and reducing hospital stay, particularly after common general surgeries like laparoscopic appendectomy, laparoscopic cholecystectomy and hernia repair. Despite its benefits, there is often a gap in the optimal delivery of PT services, as observed at Hazm Mebaireek General Hospital, where only 10.4% of postoperative patients were referred to PT. The project aimed to improve the Six-Minute Walk Test (6MWT) distance from 250 m to 350 m and the incentive spirometry inspiration volume (ISIV) from 927 mL/s to 1200 mL/s in acute care surgery (ACS) postoperative patients over a 12-week period. This was to be achieved by increasing the percentage of immediate postoperative PT referrals from 10% to 50% through multiple Plan-Do-Study-Act cycles. The project involved a multidisciplinary team of ACS surgeons, physiotherapists and inpatient nurses. The interventions included educational workshops, daily reminders and personalised reminders to on-call surgeons. Process, outcome and balancing measures were tracked to evaluate the effectiveness of the interventions. The percentage of immediate postoperative referrals to PT increased from 10% to 67.7%, surpassing the target. The average 6MWT distance improved from 247.17 m to 390.86 m, and the average ISIV increased from 927 mL/s to 1198 mL/s. There were no reported increases in fall incidents or pain following PT, indicating that the interventions improved care quality without compromising patient safety. The project successfully enhanced postoperative recovery through increased PT referrals, demonstrating the effectiveness of targeted educational interventions and systematic reminders. These findings suggest that simple, targeted interventions can significantly improve postoperative care. Future steps include institutionalising the successful strategies, expanding them to other departments and exploring broader applications to ensure sustainability and scalability