Health Professional Wellbeing

An Australian study by Rella et al. (2009) which explored the development of burnout in nursing students has found that 20% of nursing graduates suffer from serious maladaptive stress.

The survey of 431 Bachelor of Nursing students emphasised the need for additional support from nursing staff for nursing graduates in the form of mentoring and guidance, and provision of effective stress management.

The researchers emphasise that while nursing is an inherently stressful position, burnout in nurses occurs when there is a failure to consistent recovery from stress outside of work hours.

The full study can be found at www.ingentaconnect.com.

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An Australian study by Markwell and Wainer (2009) found 70% of junior doctors surveyed have experienced high levels of stress at work and 56% have been concerned about the wellbeing of their colleagues because of the work conditions.

The survey, published in the Medical Journal of Australia today also found over 70% of the junior doctors met the criteria for low job satisfaction, 69% met the criteria for burnout and 54% met the criteria for compassion fatigue.

The survey of 914 junior doctors recommended that stress management strategies be incorporated into continuing medical education.

From the Medical Journal of Australia.

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A Japanese study by Kanai-Pak et al. found that 56% of nursing staff surveyed scored high on burnout, with 60% being dissatisfied with their jobs. The survey of almost 6,000 nurses discussed issues facing nurses in Japan including the young nursing population and the low retention rate of qualified nurses, and concluded that work environment was the greatest challenge facing Japanese nursing staff. The authors suggested improved relationships between nurses and physicians and within the nursing staff would greatly reduce burnout.

The study can be found at www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov.

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A Spanish study by Camps et al. (2008) found that 8 per cent of medical oncologists are suffering from high levels of burnout. The survey of 200 oncologists also found that 21 per cent of the sample showed high levels of exhaustion. The results were consistent with previous international research examining oncologists.

The authors describe the specialty as having its own unique stresses, as it involves much management of pain and death, which often leads to the internalising of painful emotions.

The authors recommend an increase in education to teach oncologists how to manage their emotions, and the establishment of support groups to help oncologists manage stress and burnout.

The study can be found here.

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A Dutch study by Prins et al. (2007) of burnout in medical residents has found the greatest predictor of burnout is the the level of perceived support from supervisors. The survey of over 250 medical residents also found that the residents were significantly more dissatisfied with support received from their supervisors compared with support received from other residents and nurses.

The study recommends support strategies be taught to not only residents, but also supervisors in an attempt to minimise burnout in young doctors.

The study can be found at www.informaworld.com.

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A US study of nurses has found that better care environments were associated with significantly more positive job experiences for nurses and significantly lower risk of death for patients. The survey of more then 10,000 nurses recommended that care environments be optimised and nurses educated to maintain care environments.

The full study can be found at www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov.

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A survey by Surgenor et al. (2009) of 180 medical consultants in New Zealand hospitals investigated burnout and its relationship with demographic characteristics.

The study found 29% of the sample had high emotional exhaustion, 24% had high depersonalisation, and 31% had low personal accomplishment. Twenty per cent of the sample was assessed as having high overall burnout.

Factors which significantly correlated with burnout were longer work hours, less experience and lower job satisfaction.

The authors recommended well researched stress management interventions to target burnt out consultants.

The study can be found at www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov.

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Head et al. (2002) in a follow up study on the Whitehall data of more then 10,000 British civil servants, reported that high job demands, low decision latitude and effort-reward imbalance, were all related to higher rates of coronary heart disease, despite controlling for conventional risk factors such as smoking or blood pressure. Similarly, high job strain, high demands and reduced decision latitude were associated with the highest risk of coronary heart disease (Kuper et al., 2003).

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An American survey by Shanafelt et al. (2009) of almost 8,000 surgeons investigated the incidence and factors of burnout in the American surgeon population.

The study found that 40% of respondents were suffering from burnout, 30% showed symptoms of depression, and only 36% felt surgery left sufficient time for personal and family life. The study additionally found that 28% of the respondents had a mental quality of life score of less then half a standard deviation below the population average.

The study accepted a number of limitations including a low response rate, and highlighted a number of strengths including that it is the largest survey of physician burnout to date.

The study can be found here.

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A Turkish study of 100 emergency nurses has found no difference between burnout in public and state hospitals, however nurses in the public sector were found to have lower levels of personal accomplishment. The study also found further support for the positive influence of social support on burnout levels. The study went on to encourage the use of coping mechanisms such as relaxation techniques.

The study can be found at Pubmed.

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