Prevalence and predictors of burnout among nurses during COVID-19: a cross-sectional study in hospitals in central Uganda

Kabunga, Amir; Okalo, Ponsiano

doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2021-054284

“…In contrary to studies suggesting that inadequate PPE can be a considered a principal stressor increasing the burnout ( 19 , 63 ), our findings showed that those wearing adequate PPE while interacting with COVID-19 patients had higher personal burnout. As frontline HCWs are the first responders for COVID-19 patients, they can be physically and mentally exhausted during their prolonged wear of PPE given its limitations of comfort and reduced ability to communicate.…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

Sociodemographic and Occupational Factors Associated With Burnout: A Study Among Frontline Healthcare Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Aljabri

¹

,

Al-Shatti

²

,

Alumran

³

et al. 2022

Front. Public Health

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PurposeTo describe the prevalence of burnout among frontline healthcare workers (HCWs) during the COVID-19 pandemic and the associated sociodemographic and occupational factors.MethodsA cross sectional survey study was carried out to study HCWs burnout using the 19-item Full Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI) that includes personal, work, and patient-related burnout subscales. Bivariate analysis was used to test for associations and p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.ResultsA total of 207 responses received; where the mean score of personal burnout was 67.23, the mean of work-related burnout was 61.38, and the mean of patient-related burnout was 54.55. Significant associations were found; where female HCWs, those working in rotating day-and-night shifts, working more than 55-h per week, and who had their shift time and hours changed during the pandemic, had higher levels of personal and work-related burnout (P < 0.05). Patient-related burnout was higher among those who were single (divorced or separated), nurses, non-Citizens, those with fewer years of experience, and who were infected by COVID-19 and have been quarantined (P < 0.05). Age was not a significant factor of burnout in any of the CBI subscales.ConclusionsThere is a prevalent level of burnout among frontline HCWs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Findings highlight key sociodemographic and occupational factors affecting burnout; which can help planning for psychological support strategies. Furthermore, effective administrative control is important to institute policies and mechanisms to identify, and freely report burnout symptoms among HCWs to promote their wellbeing.

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“…Our results are in agreement with previous research which shows a correlation between burnout and age [ 34 ]. However, contrary to our findings, other studies did not find a relationship between burnout and age [ 35 , 36 ]. The disparity in findings may be attributed to differences in measurements of burnout and the timing of conduct of the study.…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

“…For instance, the study by Batayneh et al [ 35 ] used the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) while we used the Stamm's Professional Quality of Life (ProQOL V-5) to measure burnout. Relatedly, unlike our study, the study by Kabunga and Okalo [ 36 ] was conducted in the context of Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Nonetheless, our results suggest a need to devise mechanisms to protect younger nurses against workplace-related factors such as heavy workload that predispose them to burnout.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Burnout and Associated Factors among Hospital-Based Nurses in Northern Uganda: A Cross-Sectional Survey

Udho

¹

,

Kabunga

²

2022

BioMed Research International

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Background. Burnout is a public health problem that disproportionately affects nurses in sub-Saharan Africa because of the weak health systems that create an unconducive workplace environment. In Uganda, there is limited evidence on the burden of burnout among nurses in a manner that undermine advocacy and policy formulation. We aimed to assess the level of burnout and associated factors among nurses in northern Uganda. Methods. This was a cross-sectional survey conducted among 375 randomly selected nurses from health facilities in northern Uganda. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire. Data analysis consisted of descriptive statistics and logistic regression at a 95% level of significance in SPSS version 25. Results. Majority of the respondents were female 56.5% ( n = 223 ). Nearly half, 49.1% ( n = 194 ) of respondents had high levels of burnout, 36.2% ( n = 143 ) reported average levels of burnout, and 14.7% ( n = 58 ) reported low levels of burnout. Factors associated with burnout were age (AOR: 2.90; 95% CI: 1.28-6.58; p = 0.011 ), social support (AOR: 0.45; 95% CI: 0.22-0.94; p = 0.033 ), healthy eating (AOR: 0.06; 95% CI: 0.02-0.22; p < 0.001 ), workload (AOR: 0.31; 95% CI: 0.14-0.68; p = 0.004 ), and management responsibilities (AOR: 3.07; 95% CI: 1.54-6.12; p = 0.001 ). Conclusion. Half of the nurses in northern Uganda experienced high levels of burnout. The Ministry of Health should consider recruiting more nurses to reduce workload and adjust working hours to prevent workplace-related burnout among nurses in the country.

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“…A US study conducted over the same time span using a single item burnout measure found high burnout in 66% of nurses [ 43 ]. A study of nurses in Uganda in May–June 2021 using the ProQOL instrument found high burnout in 40% [ 44 ]. The use of different measurement instruments precludes direct comparison, but these studies confirm multiple reports of high rates of burnout in nurses.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Trends in burnout and psychological distress in hospital staff over 12 months of the COVID-19 pandemic: a prospective longitudinal survey

Maunder

¹

,

Heeney

²

,

Hunter

³

et al. 2022

J Occup Med Toxicol

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Background The mental health effects of healthcare work during the COVID-19 pandemic have been substantial, but it is not known how long they will persist. This study aimed to determine if hospital workers’ burnout and psychological distress increased monotonically over 1 year, during which waves of case numbers and hospitalizations waxed and waned, or followed some other pattern. Methods A prospective longitudinal survey was conducted at four time-points over 1 year in a cohort of 538 hospital workers and learners, which included validated measures of burnout (emotional exhaustion scale of Maslach Burnout Inventory) and psychological distress (K6). Repeated measures ANOVA tested changes over time and differences between subjects by occupational role, age and ethnic group. The direction and magnitude of changes over time were investigated by plotting rates of high scores (using cut-offs) at each time-point compared to case rates of COVID-19 in the city in which the study took place. Results There were significant effects of occupational role (F = 11.2, p < .001) and age (F = 12.8, p < .001) on emotional exhaustion. The rate of high burnout was highest in nurses, followed by other healthcare professionals, other clinical staff, and lowest in non-clinical staff. Peak rates of high burnout occurred at the second or third measurement point for each occupational group, with lower rates at the fourth measurement point. Similarly to the results for emotional exhaustion, rates of high psychological distress peaked at the spring 2021 measurement point for most occupational groups and were higher in nurses than in other healthcare professionals. Conclusions Neither emotional exhaustion nor psychological distress was rising monotonically. Burnout and psychological distress were consistently related to occupational role and were highest in nurses. Although emotional exhaustion improved as the case rate of COVID-19 decreased, rates of high emotional exhaustion in nurses and other healthcare professionals remained higher than was typically measured in hospital-based healthcare workers prior to the pandemic. Ongoing monitoring of healthcare workers’ mental health is warranted. Organizational and individual interventions to support healthcare workers continue to be important.

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Prevalence and predictors of burnout among nurses during COVID-19: a cross-sectional study in hospitals in central Uganda

Cited by 37 publications

References 48 publications

Sociodemographic and Occupational Factors Associated With Burnout: A Study Among Frontline Healthcare Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Sociodemographic and Occupational Factors Associated With Burnout: A Study Among Frontline Healthcare Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Burnout and Associated Factors among Hospital-Based Nurses in Northern Uganda: A Cross-Sectional Survey

Trends in burnout and psychological distress in hospital staff over 12 months of the COVID-19 pandemic: a prospective longitudinal survey

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