Risk of burnout among emergency physicians at a tertiary care centre in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Background: Emergency Medicine physicians are shown to be at increased risk of burnout. In this study, we aimed to assess the risk of burnout among emergency physicians working at one of the largest Emergency Departments in Saudi Arabia.Methods: This is an observational, cross-sectional study based on a structured questionnaire Maslach Burnout InventoryHuman Services Survey (MBI-HSS), which has been previously tested and validated extensively. The study targeted all physicians in the Emergency Department (ED) at a tertiary medical center in Riyadh. A total of 72 emergency physicians were included in the study.Results: Overall, 53 (74%) out of 72 subjects filled the questionnaire. Out of the 53 respondents, 45 (85%) were males and eight (15%) females. The years of practice experience ranged from six months to 24 years, with a median of seven years. Burnout Inventory-Human Services Survey subscale results:Emotional Exhaustion (EE): The mean EE score was 2.72 (SD 1.28), with 21 participants (40%) in the high-risk zone. Depersonalization (DP): The mean DP score was 1.86 (SD 1.31), with 21 participants (40%) in the high-risk zone. Personal Accomplishment (PA): The mean PA score was 4.5 (SD 0.9), with 17 participants (32%) in the high-risk zone. Conclusion:Our results are consistent with previous literature in showing that emergency physicians are at a moderate to high risk of burnout. Decision makers should take serious steps to address the threat, in order to minimize the risk of burnout and its impact on physicians as well as the patient they care for.

<p>Burnout and Coping Methods among Emergency Medical Services Professionals</p>

“…Some had reported alarmingly higher rates of burnout among emergency professionals, while others reported lower rates. [19][20][21] EMS personnel in Suffolk County, New York working in health-care services perceived high rates of depersonalization, emotional exhaustion, and personal accomplishment (99%, 92%, and 76% respectively). 17 In southern and southwestern regions in SA, emergency physicians and nurses have been examined according to their burnout syndrome.…”

“…20 At King Abdulaziz Medical City, Riyadh, emergency medical physicians scored highly on emotional exhaustion and depersonalization (40% each), while 34% were in the low-risk zone of the personal achievement subscale. 19 In Egypt, 46.9% ofemergency professionals showed perceived high emotional exhaustion, 14.4% high depersonalization, and 97.7% low personal achievement. 21 Meanwhile, in Turkey 44.7% of emergency staff perceived high emotional exhaustion, 33.2% high depersonalization, and 28% low personal achievement.…”

Burnout and Stress Among Emergency Physicians in the Kingdom of Bahrain Using the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI) and Short Form-stress Overload Scale (SOS-S)

“…A review of the latest literature found only three burnout studies conducted on healthcare providers in Bahrain: healthcare staff in psychiatric facility 35 , secondary care physicians 36 , and medical students 37 . In the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, there were several studies that measured burnout in healthcare providers, including medical residents 38 , physicians 39 , and EPs [40][41][42] . However, burnout was measured using the MBI, which has several disadvantages.…”

“…These demographic and occupational variables have been identi ed in the literature as having a signi cant effect on burnout and stress levels and were believed important to collect in order to control for potential confounding variables. 18,19,24,33,34,[39][40][41][42]47 The Study Protocol:…”

Risk of burnout among radiographers in a large tertiary care hospital in Saudi Arabia

“…The higher than normal score of emotional exhaustion is a key finding since it is considered the core manifestation of burnout. [50] Our study found that US section had the highest percentage of radiographers who were at moderate to high risk of burnout for emotional exhaustion within the sections. We believe that this is because US is an operator-dependent modality that needs to be operated by sonographers which may put more load on sonographers than the other radiographers.…”