Degree of burnout among Maltese podiatrists working in two different settings

The issue of burnout is receiving increasing research attention. However, most of the literature on burnout has focused on the nursing, physiotherapy and occupational therapy professions, with very few studies within the podiatric profession exploring this concept. The purpose of this paper is to compare the degree of burnout among Maltese podiatrists working in two different settings, namely the public health service and private practice. A quantitative non-experimental study, involving a convenience sample, was conducted. The Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI) was used to evaluate levels of burnout in the two participant groups. No statistical difference was found between the overall mean burnout scores for Maltese podiatrists employed in the public health service and those working in private practice (p = 0.067, mean = 48.89 vs 31.84). Although the level of burnout did not differ between podiatrists working within the two different settings, podiatrists working in the public sector in general reported higher mean scores for each subscale of the CBI than podiatrists working in private practice. More research is necessary to build a better understanding of burnout among podiatrists in parallel with other health care professionals, in order to help prevent or alleviate this phenomenon.peer-reviewe

Burnout in the Workplace: A Review of the Data and Policy Responses in the EU

This report looks at the extent of burnout experienced by workers in the EU, based on national research. As a starting point, the report sets out to consider whether burnout is viewed as a medical or occupational disease. It then examines the work determinants associated with burnout and looks at the effects of burnout, including psychosocial and physical work factors, work intensity and work organisation. It also reviews national strategies and policies regarding this issue, the involvement of the social partners in the current debate, as well as preventive actions currently in place

Professional Burnout in Social Service Organizations: A Review of Theory, Research and Prevention

This paper provides an overview of research on burnout in human service workers, with an emphasis on findings relevant to social workers and other professionals in child welfare and children’s mental health and the organizations that employ them. It is intended to inform the reader about the developments in burnout research since the phenomenon was initially described, and to identify some issues and questions that need further study. Part one of the paper begins with a discussion of several definitions of burnout and its components. Part two outlines the variables that have been identified by research as antecedent to burnout, and as consequences of burnout. Part three describes several theoretical models that have been used to explain the causes of burnout and its relationship to other forms of stress, coping and organizational processes. Part four reviews and critiques some prevention literature, and offers additional thoughts for consideration when intervention is planned

An estimate of the cost of burnout on early retirement and reduction in clinical hours of practicing physicians in Canada.

BackgroundInterest in the impact of burnout on physicians has been growing because of the possible burden this may have on health care systems. The objective of this study is to estimate the cost of burnout on early retirement and reduction in clinical hours of practicing physicians in Canada.MethodsUsing an economic model, the costs related to early retirement and reduction in clinical hours of physicians were compared for those who were experiencing burnout against a scenario in which they did not experience burnout. The January 2012 Canadian Medical Association Masterfile was used to determine the number of practicing physicians. Transition probabilities were estimated using 2007-2008 Canadian Physician Health Survey and 2007 National Physician Survey data. Adjustments were also applied to outcome estimates based on ratio of actual to planned retirement and reduction in clinical hours.ResultsThe total cost of burnout for all physicians practicing in Canada is estimated to be $213.1 million ($185.2 million due to early retirement and $27.9 million due to reduced clinical hours). Family physicians accounted for 58.8% of the burnout costs, followed by surgeons for 24.6% and other specialists for 16.6%.ConclusionThe cost of burnout associated with early retirement and reduction in clinical hours is substantial and a significant proportion of practicing physicians experience symptoms of burnout. As health systems struggle with human resource shortages and expanding waiting times, this estimate sheds light on the extent to which the burden could be potentially decreased through prevention and promotion activities to address burnout among physicians

Reliability and use of Copenhagen Burnout Inventory in italian sample of university professors

Academics often have to face with burnout syndrome at work. This cross-sectional study evaluates the reliability of the Italian version of the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI) in a sample of Academics of Sapienza University of Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, through an online questionnaire composed of the CBI, SF12 Health Survey, and Positivity Scale. Univariate, bivariate, multivariate analyses, and Cronbach α coefficients of CBI were performed. Ninety-five participants completed the questionnaire (response rate 85%). Cronbach’s α of the three domains were high (0.892, 0.868, and 0.836). Women, younger and part time professors reported higher score in personal (p = 0.025; 0.060) and work burnout. In multivariate analysis decreasing age (β = −0.263; p = 0.001); being a professor in environmental technicians (β = −0.120; p = 0.098); and low mental (β = −0.263; p = 0.020), physical (β = −0.319; p ≤ 0.001) and positivity scores (β = −0.237; p = 0.031) predict significantly higher personal burnout. Low physical (β = −0.346; p < 0.001) and mental (β = − 0.249; p = 0.013) positivity (β = −0.345; p = 0.001) scores; fewer years of work (β = −0.269; p ≤ 0.001); and being a medical or nursing professor (β = 0.169; p = 0.016) predicts high work burnout. Low MCS predicts a high level of student burnout. Results suggest that the Italian version of the CBI is a reliable instrument. Further research should focus on the prevalence of burnout in academics

Association Between Empathy and Burnout Among Emergency Medicine Physicians

Background: The association between physician self-reported empathy and burnout has been studied in the past with diverse findings. We aimed to determine the association between empathy and burnout among United States emergency medicine (EM) physicians using a novel combination of tools for validation. Methods: This was a prospective single-center observational study. Data were collected from EM physicians. From December 1, 2018 to January 31, 2019, we used the Jefferson scale of empathy (JSE) to assess physician empathy and the Copenhagen burnout inventory (CBI) to assess burnout. We divided EM physicians into different groups (residents in each year of training, junior/senior attendings). Empathy, burnout scores and their association were analyzed and compared among these groups. Results: A total of 33 attending physicians and 35 EM residents participated in this study. Median self-reported empathy scores were 113 (interquartile range (IQR): 105 - 117) in post-graduate year (PGY)-1, 112 (90 - 115) in PGY-2, 106 (93 - 118) in PGY-3 EM residents, 112 (105 - 116) in junior and 114 (101 - 125) in senior attending physicians. Overall burnout scores were 43 (33 - 50) in PGY-1, 51 (29 - 56) in PGY-2, 43 (42 - 53) in PGY-3 EM residents, 33 (24 - 47) in junior attending and 25 (22 - 53) in senior attending physicians separately. The Spearman correlation (ρ) was -0.11 and β-weight was -0.23 between empathy and patient-related burnout scores. Conclusion: Self-reported empathy declines over the course of EM residency training and improves after graduation. Overall high burnout occurs among EM residents and improves after graduation. Our analysis showed a weak negative correlation between self-reported empathy and patient-related burnout among EM physicians

Burnout and the Retirement Decision

We introduce the process of psychological burnout and recovery as an explanation for the phenomenon known as unretirement. We illustrate theoretically how predictable time variation in burnout could generate retirement and subsequent re-entry in a standard retirement model. We apply this model to the longitudinal Health and Retirement Study, presenting a novel measure of burnout, the Burnout EX3 Index. The index is correlated with different types of work stressors, and its time profile discriminates among different types of retirees. For example, prior to retirement, burnout rises steeply for future unretirees then falls rapidly after retirement; whereas burnout among future partial retirees is low and changes little over time. Using a series of econometric models derived from our theoretical model, we show that as burnout rises, retirement becomes more probable, and as burnout recedes following retirement, re-entry becomes more probable. While access to public and private pension benefits increases the likelihood of retirement for all retirees, pension accruals are least important for those who will later unretire, suggesting that unretirees are more willing to trade future gains in pension wealth for leisure than other retirees. Indeed, for this group, the effect of burnout dominates that of the net return to work.

Perfectionism and burnout in junior athletes: A three-month longitudinal study

Perfectionism in sports has been shown to be associated with burnout in athletes. Whether perfectionism predicts longitudinal changes in athlete burnout, however, is still unclear. Using a two-wave cross-lagged panel design, the present study examined perfectionistic strivings, perfectionistic concerns, and athlete burnout in 101 junior athletes (mean age 17.7 years) over 3 months of active training. When structural equation modeling was employed to test a series of competing models, the best-fitting model showed opposite patterns for perfectionistic strivings and perfectionistic concerns. Whereas perfectionistic concerns predicted increases in athlete burnout over the 3 months, perfectionistic strivings predicted decreases. The present findings suggest that perfectionistic concerns are a risk factor for junior athletes contributing to the development of athlete burnout whereas perfectionistic strivings appear to be a protective factor

The relationship between recalled self-esteem as a child and current levels of professional burnout among Anglican clergy in England

This study links and tests three strands of theory concerned with explaining individual differences in levels of professional burnout in general and among religious professionals in particular. These three strands concern the significance of current self-esteem, recalled self-esteem as a child, and personality. Data were provided by a sample of 1,278 male stipendiary parochial clergy working in the Church of England who completed the modified Maslach Burnout Inventory (specially designed for use among clergy), and the short-form Revised Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (designed to measure the personality dimensions of extraversion, neuroticism and psychoticism), together with a semantic differential index of recalled self-esteem as a child. The bivariate correlation coefficients demonstrated significant associations between more positive self-esteem as a child and lower levels of professional burnout (higher personal accomplishment, lower emotional exhaustion and lower depersonalisation). The bivariate correlation coefficients also demonstrated significant associations between personality and professional burnout. Multiple regression analyses, however, demonstrated that the association between recalled self-esteem as a child and professional burnout largely disappeared after controlling for the personality variables. The conclusion is drawn that knowledge about the personality profile of clergy functions as a more secure predictor of susceptibility to professional burnout than knowledge about recalled self-esteem as a child