Burnout and Engagement

Abstract

This study's purpose was twofold: first, to examine the relative importance of job demands and resources as predictors of burnout and engagement, and second, the relative importance of engagement and burnout related to health, depressive symptoms, work ability, organizational commitment, and turnover intentions in two samples of health care workers. Nurse leaders ( n = 162) and licensed emergency medical technicians (EMTs; n = 102) completed surveys. In both samples, job demands predicted burnout more strongly than job resources, and job resources predicted engagement more strongly than job demands. Engagement held more weight than burnout for predicting commitment, and burnout held more weight for predicting health outcomes, depressive symptoms, and work ability. Results have implications for the design, evaluation, and effectiveness of workplace interventions to reduce burnout and improve engagement among health care workers. Actionable recommendations for increasing engagement and decreasing burnout in health care organizations are provided.

Burnout and Exposure to Critical Incidents in a Cohort of Emergency Medical Services Workers from Minnesota

“…Two early studies that used the Burnout Scale for Health Professionals found burnout among EMS providers was more prevalent than in other healthcare professionals in the U.S. 3 , 4 Two recent surveys conducted in U.S. paramedics and EMTs captured burnout measures using the Oldenburg Burnout Inventory and the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory. 11 , 12 One reported a work-related burnout prevalence of 30% in paramedics and 19% in EMTs, 11 and both found burnout was associated positively with turnover intentions and absenteeism. 11 , 12 In the only prior report of MBI data from a cohort of U.S. paramedics, mean scores for EE, DP, and PA were 19.2, 9.3, and 28.1, respectively.…”

“… 11 , 12 One reported a work-related burnout prevalence of 30% in paramedics and 19% in EMTs, 11 and both found burnout was associated positively with turnover intentions and absenteeism. 11 , 12 In the only prior report of MBI data from a cohort of U.S. paramedics, mean scores for EE, DP, and PA were 19.2, 9.3, and 28.1, respectively. 13 MBI data from ambulance personnel outside the U.S. have been reported, 6 , 15 – 18 , 32 but variability in defining burnout as a dichotomous construct makes inter-study comparisons difficult.…”

“…Occupational burnout has been documented extensively in emergency physicians 7 , 8 and nurses 9 and has been linked to lower quality of care, 10 but less is known about the prevalence and determinants of burnout in EMS clinicians, particularly those currently practicing in the United States (U.S.). With the exception of two recent reports, 11 , 12 existing studies on burnout in U.S. EMS providers are more than two decades old. 3 , 4 , 13 , 14 More recent studies from other parts of the world have examined burnout in EMS workers 6 , 15 – 18 using the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI), 19 the current gold standard for measurement of occupational burnout.…”

“… 3 , 4 , 13 , 14 More recent studies from other parts of the world have examined burnout in EMS workers 6 , 15 – 18 using the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI), 19 the current gold standard for measurement of occupational burnout. Burnout has been associated positively with turnover intentions and absenteeism in cohorts of U.S. EMS workers; 11 , 12 thus, empirical studies to uncover correlates of burnout may be integral to combating growing concerns around retention in the profession 20 and optimizing quality and workforce engagement among EMS workers.…”

Resilience, Moral Distress, and Workplace Engagement in Emergency Department Nurses

“…Moral distress has been studied extensively in high-intensity nursing care specialties such as critical care (Bruce et al, 2015;Mason et al, 2014;Rushton et al, 2015), in general medical-surgical nursing (Rathert et al, 2016;Whitehead et al, 2015), and in nurse leaders (Pavlish et al, 2016). Resilience (Brown et al, 2018) and workplace engagement (Carter & Tourangeau, 2012;Fragoso et al, 2016;Laschinger, 2012) have also been studied in the general population of nurses. However, resilience, moral distress, and workplace engagement have not been examined together in the ED nursing population (Adriaenssens et al, 2015;Hsieh et al, 2016;Wolf et al, 2016).…”