BACKGROUND: Several studies show that professionals in the two main models of pre-hospital care (Franco-German (FG) and Anglo-American (AA)) are exposed to different psychosocial risk factors, with consequences such as burnout syndrome. Few studies provide information on protective factors, nor are there any results on risk/protective factors from the perspective of professionals and comparing both models (FG and AA). OBJECTIVE: From the perspective of medical transport (MT) professionals, we aimed to identify the risk/protective factors that may be involved in occupational burnout syndrome (OBS), comparing Franco-German (FG) and Anglo-American (AA) pre-hospital care models, as well as emergency (EMT) and non-emergency (non-EMT) services. METHOD: This was a qualitative research, through 12 semi-structured, in-depth interviews with participants chosen through intentional and snowball sampling. Content analysis and coding was carried out based on Bronfenbrenner’s ecological model and supported by the N-VIVO computer program. RESULTS: Our results illustrate the multi-causal nature of OBS, with risk/protective factors interacting at different levels of the ecological model. Among the data found at the different levels, some of the risk factors provoking OBS most commonly cited by professionals from both models are: work overload, work schedules, the coordinating centre, relationships with managers, the lack of work-life balance, the institutional model, the privatization of companies and the bureaucratization of management. The most cited factors acting as protectors include the stress involved in the emergency services, relationships with colleagues, relationships with other professionals or users, and social recognition. DISCUSSION: In general, we conclude that there are more similarities than differences in terms of how the workers in each model perceive the risk/protective factors.

BackgroundMedical transport (MT) professionals are subject to considerable emotional demands due to their involvement in life-or-death situations and their exposure to the serious health problems of their clients. An increase in the demand for MT services has, in turn, increased interest in the study of the psychosocial risk factors affecting the health of workers in this sector. However, research thus far has not distinguished between emergency (EMT) and non-emergency (non-EMT) services, nor between the sexes. Furthermore, little emphasis has been placed on the protective factors involved. The main objective of the present study is to identify any existing differential exposure – for reasons of work setting (EMT and non-EMT) or of gender – to the various psychosocial risk and protective factors affecting the health of MT workers.MethodsDescriptive and transversal research with responses from 201 professionals.ResultsThe scores obtained on the various psychosocial scales in our study – as indicators of future health problems – were more unfavourable for non-EMT workers than they were for EMT workers. Work setting, but not gender, was able to account for these differences.DiscussionThe scores obtained for the different psychosocial factors are generally more favourable for the professionals we surveyed than those obtained in previous samples.ConclusionThe significant differences observed between EMT and non-EMT personnel raise important questions regarding the organization of work in companies that carry out both services at the same time in the same territory. The relationships among the set of risk/protective factors suggests a need for further investigation into working conditions as well as a consideration of the workers’ sense of coherence and subjective well-being as protective factors against occupational burnout syndrome.

Despite the controversy generated by the conceptualization of personality disorders, it is well established that the inflexibility of coping styles and dysfunctional behaviors associated with them can lead to a considerable impairment in interpersonal relationships. Although communication is one of the most important processes in relating to others, few empirical studies have been undertaken on the influence of dysfunctional personality patterns on communication styles, which is the main objective of the present cross-sectional study. A total of 529 Spanish university students were assessed using the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory III (MCMI-III), Millon, Davis, and Millon, 1997, and the Communicator Style Measure (Norton, 1978). Results show statistically significant relationships between different personality patterns and styles of communication and suggest that narcissistic, histrionic and compulsive patterns are related to positive communication styles in a non-clinical sample. The implications of this study are discussed.