Burnout among Army personnel: A Sri Lankan Experience

Abstract

Purpose Given the relatively scarce evidence on mental health of the military personnel in the South Asian region, this study was conducted to assess the burnout status and factors associated with burnout among Army personnel in Sri Lanka. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted in a selected Security Forces Headquarters in Sri Lanka using a self-administered questionnaire including the validated Sinhala version of the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI) to assess the burnout status. The 19-item CBI assessed three burnout subscales (personal, work-related, and client-related) using a five-point Likert scale. The summary statistics of the overall and subscale burnout scores were presented with mean (SD) and median (IQR). The statistically significant factors in the bivariate analysis (p < 0.05) were included in the multiple linear regression model to assess the independent associations of the factors with the overall burnout score. Results The response rate was 80.2% (n = 481). The majority were males (n = 467,97.5%). The mean (SD) age was 39.6 (4.8) years. The mean (SD) overall burnout score was 26.5 (13.3). In the bivariate analysis, service duration, job satisfaction, perceived satisfactory physical health and mental health revealed statistically significant results (p < 0.05). In the multiple linear regression, satisfactory level of perceived physical health (p = 0.046) and perceived mental health (p < 0.001) emerged as statistically significant independent predictors of overall burnout score. Conclusion The overall burnout score is relatively low among the Army personnel in the selected Security Forces Headquarters in Sri Lanka. Satisfactory levels of perceived physical health and mental health are significant independent predictors of burnout among Army personnel.