Burnout syndrome among residents of different surgical specialties in a tertiary referral teaching hospital in Indonesia during COVID-19 pandemic

Clin Epidemiol Glob Health. 2022 Mar-Apr:14:100994. doi: 10.1016/j.cegh.2022.100994. Epub 2022 Feb 9.

Abstract

Introduction: Burnout is experienced frequently by residents, especially during COVID-19 pandemic. Impacts of the pandemic on clinical workload and training program of the residents has also resulted in burnout, which may impact their clinical performance and safety. Therefore, this paper aims to assess burnout syndrome among surgical residents in Indonesia during COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted on 120 surgical residents (from orthopedics, general surgery, and urology department) of a tertiary referral teaching hospital in Malang using web-based questionnaire. Personal data form and Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) for medical personnel were used. There are 3 subscales of MBI: emotional exhaustion (EE), depersonalization (DP), and personal achievement (PA). Comparative and correlative analysis were performed to analyze the socio-demographic, academic, and work-related factors in relation to the subscales scores of MBI-HSS and the presence of burnout.

Results: Burnout were experienced by 56.67% of residents in this study. There were statistically significant association regarding burnout and marital status, residency specialty, year of residency, and working hours upon analysis of mean and classification of subscale scores of MBI with the examined factors.

Conclusion: This study showed that burnout is a major issue in surgical residents during COVID-19 pandemic and may be associated with certain socio-demographic, academic, and work-related factors. Further studies to identify factors contributing to burnout in residents during COVID-19 pandemic are needed. It is imperative to formulate resident-centered strategies to prevent and address burnout among residents to ensure their overall well-being during this pandemic.

Keywords: Burnout; COVID-19; Surgical residents.